Re: [S10-EV] 1997 - NiMh conversion for sale on Ebay (partial battery pack)

[Jay Summet]

Hello all,

I just subscribed to this list yesterday because I found the S-10 EV
that Michael is selling on E-bay. (He mentioned the list, so I assume
he's also a subscriber.) I live in Atlanta (85mi south of Eljay) and am
looking for a EV to make short (3mi round trips) commutes to a nearby
MARTA station.

I've talked with Michael on the phone and he says that the truck is
basically working if I can get enough extra NIMH battery packs. It comes
with 18 batteries (but all have at least one bad cell), so would need
10-12 extra batteries assuming you could swap cells around to fix 14-16
of the 18.

It is also missing the power steering pump control module, so I'd either
need to find out to swap in, or wire up a switch or pushbutton. (or turn
really hard!)

Questions for the list:
-Is finding 10-15 replacement NiMH batteries possible / cost effective?
(I've heard prices of around $150 for a used battery?)
-How rare is the power steering pump control module?
-Would it be better to just buy lead acid batteries and convert it back
to PbA? (as my range needs are quite low...)

Thanks,
Jay

Ryan Dela wrote:
> http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Chevrolet-S-10-Electric-1997-Chevrolet-S-10E-GM-Factory-Electric-Truck-NiMH-Bat-_W0QQcmdZViewItemQQhashZitem3364b802ffQQitemZ220733113087QQptZUSQ5fCarsQ5fTrucks#ht_1044wt_973
>
>
>
> Looks like someone is selling one of the California NiMh conversions
> that was sent to Georgia as a parts vehicle. One more off of the
> operational list though it could be a good source of parts or a project
> vehicle to restore to full a full NiMh pack with some work.
>
> I have some NiMh modules with weak or dead cells in them that can be
> applied to the replacement cause if necessary.
>
> Ryan Dela
> Portland, Oregon
>
> PS: I would like to thank everyone for their helpful responses to my
> heat pump question last week. There were some great discussions and
> thought put into the responses.
>
>
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[McMullin, Kevin]

Hi Jay,
Welcome. I can't answer all of your questions. Even though I've owned my
97 Lead-Acid truck for 2 years this May, I am still learning about these
amazing trucks. You can get all of your questions answered in the
archives of this site. Lots of good information and advice there. One
thing that I did do on my truck, that is very convenient, is converting
to a tilt bed, (for less than $125), and cutting the top of the battery
box. I have access to all of my batteries in 5 minutes, without dropping
the pack. I used a different battery, (Deka 12AVR-75), and had to cut
mine to gain additional height to fit my batteries, but believe it would
be a benefit to any one. I still have a very tight seal, so the HVAC
system still does its job. One tool that is a must, is a Tech 2 scan
tool. I got mine on eBay.
Good luck,

Kevin McMullin
Bear, Delaware
5,280 gas free miles. So far.

[paul doe]

Jay,       You need a few items for this project...a tech 2 scanner (aprox. $3,000). a fairly substantial regulated dc power supply (aprox. $750), a set of good batteries (the shipping is almost as much as the batteries if you can find good ones), some way to get about 36 inches of clearance to drop the battery pack, and a whole lot of patience!  This is not a trivial or inexpensive undertaking.  I'm not trying to be pessimistic, but if you aren't really familiar with one of these vehicles it isn't an easy project and it is expensive.    Best of luck,   Paul --- On Thu, 2/3/11, Jay Summet <j...@summet.com> wrote:

From: Jay Summet <j...@summet.com> Subject: Re: [S10-EV] 1997 - NiMh conversion for sale on Ebay (partial battery pack)

-----Inline Attachment Follows-----

[Gil Dawson]

Hi, Jay--

On Feb 3, 2011, at 5:44 AM, Jay Summet wrote:
It is also missing the power steering pump control module, so I'd either
> need to find out to swap in, or wire up a switch or pushbutton. (or turn
> really hard!)

Turning really hard is not a bad thing. You won't hurt the truck. It's really a bother in parking lots, but on the streets and freeways you won't even notice it. I drove my S-10E in that condition for weeks before getting a new Power Steering Module from GM for $4K. I doubt GM has any more.

--Gil

[Gil Dawson]

Uh-oh.  My bad.  I just looked it up in my records.  $1200 in July '07.  Sorry. 

Thanks for catching that, Isaac.

--Gil

On Feb 10, 2011, at 10:53 AM, Isaac Podolefsky wrote:

You paid $4k for a power steering module?!?!