The idea is pretty simple. Take one Class 4-5 Isuzu diesel truck, yank the engine and replace it with a 00 kw, UQM liquid-cooled, DC brushless electric motor that receives juice from a 50 kw, recyclable lithium polymer battery pack that is then placed between the truck's frame rails.
The Zero Truck uses the stock GM automatic transmission and weighs in about 600 pounds more than before the conversion. The trucks come with an onboard charger and the battery pack takes 8 hours on 220 volts--or 12 hours--on 110 volts, for a complete charge. Best of all it costs about $3 to recharge.
jerrywimer says:
04:19 AM, 07/17/08
I wish it were so easy to convert our passenger vehicles to electric operation. Unfortunately, the battery weight alone makes it a bit less than optimum for our use right now. But a 100 mile range between charges, 8 hour recharge time, and roughly $3 cost per charge would make such a vehicle far less expensive for my daily commute than practically any car I can name right now.