![]() ![]() While Pi SBCs and LS engines are likely to dominate their respective fields for the foreseeable future, the quickly growing and evolving world of electric vehicles means this winning combo of today are likely to be replaced by some other combination in the future. A Volt battery pack costs less while still delivering enough peak power, and as it was originally developed to fit into an existing chassis, its smaller size also benefits garage tinkerers fitting it into project cars. It’s a matter of using the right tool for the job: most of these projects are not concerned about long range offered by Tesla’s battery. While the decision to use Tesla’s powerful motor is fairly obvious, the choice of Volt battery may be surprising. And while not up to the levels of LS swaps or Pi mods, there’s a decent sized body of knowledge for powerful garage-built electric cars thanks to pioneers like and a budding industry catering to those who want to build their own. Tesla Model S and Chevrolet Volt have been produced in volume long enough for components to show up at salvage yards. Things may not be quite as obvious in the electric world, but that’s changing. So if someone desired more power than is practical from a car’s original engine, the obvious next step is to swap it out for an LS. ![]() ![]() They are both compact, very powerful for the money, have a large body of existing projects to learn from, and an equally large ecosystem of accessories to help turn ideas into reality. The General Motors LS engine lineup is popular with petro heads for basically the same reasons Raspberry Pi are popular with the digital minded. Over the past few years, the world of electronics and automotive hacking started to converge in the form of electric car conversions, and proclaims the electric counterpart to “LS Swap” is to put a Telsa Model S motor and a Chevy Volt battery into a project car. For people who wrench on their cars, a similarly popular project is the “LS Swap”. The test car didn't have that.A common project category on this site is “put a Raspberry Pi in it”. All production Volts have programming that GM put in place last July to "depower" the battery after a crash, dissipating any remaining charge and rendering the battery inert. GM contends the fire happened because the prototype test vehicle's programming was incomplete. The prevailing theory explaining the battery fire says that the coolant lines serving the battery were probably severed during the crash, leading to a short or eventual overheating condition. As a result, NHTSA has opened an inquiry into not only the Volt's battery pack performance but also the post-crash performance of all hybrid vehicle battery packs. In followup testing, NHTSA crash tested a Volt battery pack and found it sparked at one point for 500 milliseconds before settling to a stable condition. After the test they stashed the mangled Volt outside, and three weeks later the vehicle's battery pack shorted and caught fire-an incident which has been widely reported on. NHTSA found the Volt to meet its five star crash rating. In the case of the Chevy Volt, those growing pains have come during testing done by the National Highway Transportation Administration (NHTSA) showing a possibility of fire in extreme crash scenarios.īack in May, NHTSA conducted a severe side-impact crash test that smashed a Volt against a pole-shaped barrier. Any time new technology hits the market, some growing pains are sure to follow. ![]()
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