Home-Made Electric Car

1979 - Volume #3, Issue #5, Page #21

[ Sample Stories From This Issue | List of All Stories In This Issue | Print this story | Read this issue]

Electric cars have been an on again-off again fad. Biggest problem has been that they don't go fast enough, or far enough.
Now comes Tort Walker, Eagan, Minn., who thinks his home-built version - or something patterned after it - just might be the wave of the future.
Called the Day Starter, it's a tiny one-seater that's cramped by any standards. But it will go up to 65 mph and cover a distance of 80 miles without needing a recharge. To recharge, you simply plug it into a standard 110 volt outlet.
Walker's home-built car uses commercially-available batteries. They can be purchased from most retail stores handling batteries," he told FARM SHOW.
The batteries in Walker's car were made by Standard Battery Company, St. Paul, Minn.
They're called the Day-Starter brand, which is where the vehicle itself gets its name.
Walker says he doesn't intend to have his electric car produced commercially, or to sell plans for his particular design. His main purpose in building it, he maintains, was to suggest that if he, as an individual working on a low budget, could build a feasible electric car, "then surely the auto industry can mass produce one at a reasonable price." He says the car costs just one cent per mile to operate, based on electricity at four cents a kilowatt.
Walker's one-seater is 117 in. long, 59 in. wide and 56 in. high. Since it's a 3-wheeler, it's classified by law as a motorcycle. Its low center of gravity allows it to attain speeds up to 65 mph without losing stability.
More than half of the vehicle's 2,220 lbs is in the 13 batteries, which ride only 8 in. off the ground. The car's Volkswagen transmission has four speeds forward and one in reverse. Windows are plexiglass and the body aluminum. The car's electric motor was obtained from a truck company that had used it in an experimental electric truck. Heat given off by the batteries is directed inside to keep the driver comfortable in cold weather.
For more details, contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Tom Walker, Standard Battery Company, 2286 Capp Rd., St. Paul, Minn. 55114 (ph. 612 6462707).

Click here to download page story appeared in.

Click here to read entire issue

Home-Made Electric Car FARM HOME Cars 3-5-21 Electric cars have been an on again-off again fad. Biggest problem has been that they don't go fast enough, or far enough. Now comes Tort Walker, Eagan, Minn., who thinks his home-built version - or something patterned after it - just might be the wave of the future. Called the Day Starter, it's a tiny one-seater that's cramped by any standards. But it will go up to 65 mph and cover a distance of 80 miles without needing a recharge. To recharge, you simply plug it into a standard 110 volt outlet. Walker's home-built car uses commercially-available batteries. They can be purchased from most retail stores handling batteries," he told FARM SHOW. The batteries in Walker's car were made by Standard Battery Company, St. Paul, Minn. They're called the Day-Starter brand, which is where the vehicle itself gets its name. Walker says he doesn't intend to have his electric car produced commercially, or to sell plans for his particular design. His main purpose in building it, he maintains, was to suggest that if he, as an individual working on a low budget, could build a feasible electric car, "then surely the auto industry can mass produce one at a reasonable price." He says the car costs just one cent per mile to operate, based on electricity at four cents a kilowatt. Walker's one-seater is 117 in. long, 59 in. wide and 56 in. high. Since it's a 3-wheeler, it's classified by law as a motorcycle. Its low center of gravity allows it to attain speeds up to 65 mph without losing stability. More than half of the vehicle's 2,2201bs0 is in the 13 batteries, which ride only 8 in. off the ground. The car's Volkswagen transmission has four speeds forward and one in reverse. Windows are plexiglass and the body aluminum. The car's electric motor was obtained from a truck company that had used it in an experimental electric truck. Heat given off by the batteries is directed inside to keep the driver comfortable in cold weather. For more details, contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Tom Walker, Standard Battery Company, 2286 Capp Rd., St. Paul, Minn. 55114 (ph. 612 6462707).

To read the rest of this story, download this issue below or click here to register with your account number.

SUBSCRIBE OR RENEW NOW