Electric MG Midget
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01-23-2013, 11:59 PM
You too, can convert an MG Midget to electric
The Midget makes an excellent choice for an electric conversion. It is light and small which are key characteristics of good electric cars. It’s fun to drive, and makes a good commuter car. If you have a short commute to work like me, then you can drive it every day.
My goal was to have a midget that drove like the midget I’ve owned for 35 years. While I drive the midget almost every workday, I don’t ever have to go very far. The most I would drive in single day was about 50 miles. After reading many forum topics on electric vehicle conversion I realized that it would be important to get my range safely above the 50-mile goal. Range anxiety can be an issue when driving an electric car, and it is easier on your batteries if you don’t have to push them near their limits. The EV calculators that people had published on the web allowed me to estimate the range fairly well. I wanted a car with a 75-mile range. What I ended up with was a car that can drive 100 miles in real driving conditions, and the performance of a fast gas midget. I have just shy of 5,000 miles on the car now and everything is running great.
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In order to get the range I wanted, I put 475lbs of LiFePo batteries in my midget. While it still drives like a midget, it doesn’t feel as light as a 1275 midget. It is 380 lbs heavier than my ’74 Gas Midget. I did start with a ’77 midget, so I probably have a 150 lb penalty over someone who can start with an earlier version. My batteries have a capacity of 19.6 Kwh. If you want an electric midget that feels like the real thing, then the battery weight is the limiting factor. For anybody considering a conversion, I would recommend not going above the 475 lbs of batteries. I have written individual articles on the motor, batteries, and controller, and I’ll leave the details about these items to their articles found on my site.
Why the motor, batteries, and controller works so well in my midget
The motor can produce the same torque as the spitfire 1500 engine when you drive 550 amps though it. The controller can deliver 550 amps, and the batteries can deliver 550 amps. The Soliton Jr. can easily handle the 550 amps for the times I need that kind of power. The batteries I choose are 160ah, and can handle current draws of 3C, that is 3 X 160, or 480 amps for sustained periods of time. Pushing them to 550 amps is not a problem. The car is quicker than the gas version because you can get the maximum torque of the gas midget at all rpms, not just the peak rpm like a gas engine. You still need the transmission, but that is half the fun of driving a midget. Because of the improved torque you actually have to learn to shift faster. The Warp 9 Impulse also recommends not going past 5000 rpm. My controller is set to shut you down if you go past 5000 rpm. I have a lot of information about this on my site, and I will be glad to help anybody who wants to try a conversion.
The Midget makes an excellent choice for an electric conversion. It is light and small which are key characteristics of good electric cars. It’s fun to drive, and makes a good commuter car. If you have a short commute to work like me, then you can drive it every day.
My goal was to have a midget that drove like the midget I’ve owned for 35 years. While I drive the midget almost every workday, I don’t ever have to go very far. The most I would drive in single day was about 50 miles. After reading many forum topics on electric vehicle conversion I realized that it would be important to get my range safely above the 50-mile goal. Range anxiety can be an issue when driving an electric car, and it is easier on your batteries if you don’t have to push them near their limits. The EV calculators that people had published on the web allowed me to estimate the range fairly well. I wanted a car with a 75-mile range. What I ended up with was a car that can drive 100 miles in real driving conditions, and the performance of a fast gas midget. I have just shy of 5,000 miles on the car now and everything is running great.
.
In order to get the range I wanted, I put 475lbs of LiFePo batteries in my midget. While it still drives like a midget, it doesn’t feel as light as a 1275 midget. It is 380 lbs heavier than my ’74 Gas Midget. I did start with a ’77 midget, so I probably have a 150 lb penalty over someone who can start with an earlier version. My batteries have a capacity of 19.6 Kwh. If you want an electric midget that feels like the real thing, then the battery weight is the limiting factor. For anybody considering a conversion, I would recommend not going above the 475 lbs of batteries. I have written individual articles on the motor, batteries, and controller, and I’ll leave the details about these items to their articles found on my site.
Why the motor, batteries, and controller works so well in my midget
The motor can produce the same torque as the spitfire 1500 engine when you drive 550 amps though it. The controller can deliver 550 amps, and the batteries can deliver 550 amps. The Soliton Jr. can easily handle the 550 amps for the times I need that kind of power. The batteries I choose are 160ah, and can handle current draws of 3C, that is 3 X 160, or 480 amps for sustained periods of time. Pushing them to 550 amps is not a problem. The car is quicker than the gas version because you can get the maximum torque of the gas midget at all rpms, not just the peak rpm like a gas engine. You still need the transmission, but that is half the fun of driving a midget. Because of the improved torque you actually have to learn to shift faster. The Warp 9 Impulse also recommends not going past 5000 rpm. My controller is set to shut you down if you go past 5000 rpm. I have a lot of information about this on my site, and I will be glad to help anybody who wants to try a conversion.
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