Vespa PX200E conversion

[E. Hartmann]

Hello everybody.

I am totally new in here but have wanted to build an EV for long. I finally found a donor that was just the thing. It needs a little panel work, but nothing major. The floor panel is shot but that's an easy fix with an angle grinder and welder.

Now to the fun stuff. I live in the cold North, Scandinavia. EV's are a big thing here and I want to be a part of it. I got this frame for free with papers from a really nice guy. He loved my idea of an EV conversion. It's a large frame Vespa, and it originally had 12hp so 9kW. What motor would you guys recommend? I am also doing a disc brake in the front to add safety. It is a small motorcycle here in Denmark and in May 2020 it will become a classic vehicle so cheap insurance and taxes!
Any ideas are welcome here! I have seen a few builds here and other places so probably using them as reference.

Cheers!

 

[j bjork]

Sounds like a nice project
I think something like this would be perfect:
http://www.cnqsmotor.com/en/article_read/Quanshun%20Motor%2013inch%201500W%20-%2010000W%2012000W%20peak%2020kw%20273%20Electric%20Scooter%20Brushless%20Hub%20Motor/617.html
The 8kw of course :wink:

 

[Anders]

Make sure you have checked your local laws before you start buying things, here in Sweden EV swapping a motorcycle would make it a "Modified vehicle" that needs to be inspected by SFRO (The Swedish Vehicle Builders Association), I'm not sure if you have a equivalent in Denmark.

If that's all kosher then just go to town!

 

[louis raaijmakers]

cool project!
a hub motor would be the easy'st conversion.

but i guess you need a special inspection to make sure it is safe. otherwise you aren't insured in a crash.

greetings louis

i am folowing!

 

[Dui ni shuo de dui]

9KW electric is not really comparable with 9KW gas powered. The torque is much greater with an electric motor, so you can get away with far less than this.

Don't go for a 8KW motor on this thing, that's completely ridiculous, you will never be able to supply it with enough power (or if you can, then you just wont be able to stay on the seat). What matters here is peak power, not continuous power. Those 8KW continuous rated motors can take more than 25KW peak...
Given how light this thing is, you can get away with a 2000W QS hub motor, which will be plenty powerful, or if you want a little bit less heat you can go for a 3000W. From my experience, the 2000W motors can take around 11-12KW for sustained, long peak times reliably. Mine is still working after 5+ years of repetitive beating at 11+KW.

Keep your money for a good controller and a good battery. A 150A battery/350A phase controller will already be plenty. That would give you more power than the orignal gas engine would ever give you.

As for the batery, try to see how much space you got to fit one, build some cardboard templates and see what chemistry is the most appropriate. One thing for sure, if you plan on doing some high powered build like I just described, you will need some high discharge rate cells.

 

[John in CR]

How heavy is the vespa in that wheel-less motorless state? I worry that you've got a pretty big weight handicap to start.

Of course go for the big motor, and put plenty of battery. You want the result to kick the crap out of any other Vespa.