I want an electric truck to exist.

"Ravey Mayvey Slurpee Surprise" (raveymayveysurprise) 02/03/2014 at 12:47 • Filed to: None

0

28

Bear with me here, because I understand that combustion engines and trucks go together like America and bald eagles. The torque possible from an electric truck would be pretty useful — but we've gone on about that point quite a bit. I thought a bit further, and felt it would make a brilliant work truck. First of all, range anxiety wouldn't be as pronounced; unless you have to go a town over to get supplies (in which case, bring in our good ol' gas truck), you probably aren't going to be hitting zero as much. Secondly, you can keep the trucks on site, have them in a charging station overnight, and have them full in the morning. It would possibly save gas for a business.

Feel free to call me crazy/wrong/Canadian, though. And here's a picture for reading my ideas.

For Sweden > Ravey Mayvey Slurpee Surprise 02/03/2014 at 12:52

0

The only issue with an electric truck is that towing, hauling heavy cargo, etc, eats electrons very, very quickly.

MontegoMan562 is a Capri RS Owner > Ravey Mayvey Slurpee Surprise 02/03/2014 at 12:53

0

If it's as beautiful as this I'm down.

RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht > Ravey Mayvey Slurpee Surprise 02/03/2014 at 12:58

0

Truck implies rural area over half the time. Rural area means that that *one time* you run out of battery (due to FS's listed reasons of cargo, etc.), you're very very boned. Get it stuck by the side of the road or in a field, and you have to cart a generator to it, not just a gas can. Can't see that going over too well, especially with more conservative (as it comes to vehicle buys) purchasers.

If only EssExTee could be so grossly incandescent > Ravey Mayvey Slurpee Surprise 02/03/2014 at 13:05

0

Ford actually did build a number of Ranger EVs in the late 90's.

pdthedeuce > If only EssExTee could be so grossly incandescent 02/03/2014 at 13:17

0

as did Chevrolet ...

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chevrolet…

BJ > RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht 02/03/2014 at 13:19

0

Not necessarily. Think service trucks for utility companies, or delivery vehicles. You could run internal combustion models for rural use, and electric/hybrid models for urban use.

vdub_nut: scooter snob > RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht 02/03/2014 at 13:20

0

Why not a tiny range extender? a la volt, or fisker?

puddler > Ravey Mayvey Slurpee Surprise 02/03/2014 at 13:23

0

one of the plans for my furd involves making it a welding rig. diesel welder = generator = electric motor...but i'd want 4 electric wheel motors & that will probably be infinite dollars.

i also want plasma gas batteries & MT Keshe is n't sharing the goods yet.

RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht > BJ 02/03/2014 at 13:33

0

Service truck for a utility I could definitely see. Farmer John, not so much.

RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht > vdub_nut: scooter snob 02/03/2014 at 13:35

0

Not a bad idea - but any secondary power plant opens the Real Truck-Owning Man up to mockery of the size of his engine. Not likely to go well :p

BJ > Ravey Mayvey Slurpee Surprise 02/03/2014 at 13:37

0

I've always thought that big trucks would make a good platform for hybrid drive. They already have a heavy chassis and large tires capable of supporting the weight of the batteries and equipment. You could get away with a smaller diesel motor than currently used, and still have tons of power available.

BJ > BJ 02/03/2014 at 13:37

0

Note that I'm not talking about highway tractors, but large trucks used for utility servicing, delivery, tree removal, etc.

Stupidru > puddler 02/03/2014 at 13:41

0

Although this may be a bit dated, when I worked on my senior design project in 2011 we used two electric motors which were sourced from a company that supplied Isle of Man TT-e motors to all competitors. They were 35hp each, had a butt-load of torque available from 0rpm, and were heavy as a mother. Each motor was roughly $3k, though this price may have come down since then.

Stupidru > Ravey Mayvey Slurpee Surprise 02/03/2014 at 13:51

0

I have another idea... keep the ICE in front, but mount 4 small electric motors to each wheel. Use the motors ala Prius; use them to get the truck started from a stop as that is the biggest gas hog. Once the truck is at 15mph, then kick in the ICE. Mount the batteries for the motors underneath the rear seats or behind the cab to keep the weight as close to the center of the truck as possible. Move all of the lights to LEDs to conserve power which will then boost mileage ala Audi. A KERS system would help massively as well since 5000lbs takes a lot of energy to stop. There are effective ways to get trucks more efficient, but the problem is getting people on board with it. Just like Harley is having a hard time getting purists to move over to water-cooled bikes, the truck industry will have to keep offering V8s to those who want it because goddammit I drive a truck and it needs to suck gas because 'murica! Ford is off to a good start start using lighter materials, but there's still more that can be done. These, along with thermal efficiency losses being reduced with better engine materials, will help propel us to some major changes in the next 20 years.

puddler > Stupidru 02/03/2014 at 14:06

0

how many phases do those motors have?

Stupidru > puddler 02/03/2014 at 14:40

0

No idea. I'm a mechanical engineer, not an EE

Stupidru > puddler 02/03/2014 at 14:42

0

We let the EEs deal with anything electrical. Us MEs just decided how much power and torque they needed to have and designed the torque vectoring around the power delivery

puddler > Stupidru 02/03/2014 at 16:11

0

awesome. sounds fun. looks like a top of the line diesel welder can put out 500 amps. sounds like a lot. it should run a pair of 3 phase leeson 50hp motors..geared 2.60:1 to roll @ 60.

Simplify, then add beer > Ravey Mayvey Slurpee Surprise 02/03/2014 at 17:26

0

I've always thought having a diesel electric 4wd would be the pinnacle of hybrids.

Electric motors would be perfect for rock crawling or mud running. Less moving parts to fail, work just as well upside down, no snorkel, low COG, 100% torque from the get go, and silent (very useful when you're being spotted).

Unfortunately batteries alone couldn't deal with the round trip to the trails and back, but if you could run a diesel to keep the batteries charged whilst you're on the way there, it would work.

Same story goes for a truck. The torque-y motor would greatly help a heavy beast (brilliant for towing), a smaller engine bay would mean you could move the cab forward and have more tray space, and still have enough room for a diesel or petrol generator to keep it charged - and to remove range anxiety.

bob and john > Stupidru 02/04/2014 at 14:45

0

Harley.
Purists.
IDK where you live buddy, but anyone who owns a harley in my area is having a midlife crisis and thinks that just cuz they have a harley they are bad-ass
the one exception os a guy my mom works with. but he builds his bikes, sooo

Stupidru > bob and john 02/04/2014 at 14:49

0

I live outside of Milwaukee. Drive past their drivetrain operations almost everyday. Applied to work at Harley many times and got shut-down because they're so old school... in order to get a job there, you have to have a job there. One of my best friends currently works there, so I hear all the inside stories. My dad owns 3 and thinks he's some sort of badass just because he can ride, afford a CVO, and has grey hair.

bob and john > Stupidru 02/04/2014 at 14:53

0

ouch.
I do find them funny though. I ride around on my 75hp, 650c sports tourer (yea, its an Sv650.) and have yet to lose to one of those monsters. even the night rods barely keep up with me. and thats before the twisty stuff starts.

Stupidru > bob and john 02/04/2014 at 14:59

0

That's not what riding a Harley is all about. Harleys are all about cruising through the countryside and taking long trips... not about racing anymore. The old guys don't seem to get that. They think that the bigger the engine the faster it is... not necessarily, as you have pointed out.

bob and john > Stupidru 02/04/2014 at 15:04

0

I know. its a lot of fun messing with them *snickers*

I do get the whole cruising thing though. but i'd rather on a gold wing then a hardly dangerous.

Stupidru > bob and john 02/04/2014 at 15:51

0

A Goldwing is definitely a better bike, bar-none. However, a Goldwing is mind-numbingly boring in the fact that you could ride for days and never know there's an engine between your legs aside from the fact that you've moved

bob and john > Stupidru 02/04/2014 at 16:02

0

stock anyrate. i heard one go by me once with akra's. mini porsche.
i hear you can strap a turbo to them too..which would defiantly spice things up a bit

Stupidru > bob and john 02/04/2014 at 16:20

0

I mean they sell well for a reason- they're great bikes. Just not the bike for me.

bob and john > Stupidru 02/04/2014 at 16:34

0

same.thats why i have an sv and not a wing Xd
(that and i cant afford a wing)