Convert It! [Paperback]

Michael P. Brown (Author), Shari Prange (Contributor)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 1993

This book is the leading how-to resource for electric car conversions. It combines Brown's years of professional automotive experience with down-to-earth language even an automotive beginner can understand. It is not written for the engineer in the laboratory, but for the home mechanic building his own car, and for the average person behind the wheel. Brown speaks to the reader as if talking to a friend in his garage. Before lifting a wrench, Brown answers the most frequently asked questions about electric cars: how fast will it go, how far will it go, how long will the batteries last, how pollution-free is it really, and many more. The conversion process itself begins with choosing an appropriate donor chassis, and stripping it of internal combustion components. Here Brown's experience provide numerous tips and tricks to make the later conversion process easier and more successful. Step by step, Brown leads the reader through the conversion. As each component comes up, Brown gives a little background on the different types available, and the pros and cons of each. He includes tips on layout, design and fabrication at each step, and discusses different approaches for different chassis, such as front wheel drive vs. rear wheel drive. By the end of the book, every part of the conversion process has been discussed. Brown wraps up with a procedure for testing and troubleshooting, and guidelines for normal driving, charging, and maintenance. The book is salted heavily throughout with photos and diagrams to illustrate its topics, and it includes a very thorough index. CONVERT IT has been chosen by the Department of Energy and by numerous schools across the country as the textbook for high school electric car conversion projects.

Editorial Reviews

Review

Don't even think about converting it until you have read this book. -- HOME POWER, April/May 1994

If a booklet similar to yours had been around when my first gasoline car was converted to electric propulsion, the car would have been both easier to convert and more reliable. Your notes should be required reading for all members before starting construction. -- John B. Newell, past president, Electric Auto Association

This is a very readable and practical manual for the do-it-yourselfer. I heartily recommend this book for anyone who has ever contemplated such a project. -- Dr. W. Robert Kincheloe, Stanford University, Professor Emeritus of Electrical Engineering

We built Mr. Brown's car and we won. -- Bruce Burk, St. Johnsbury Academy, winner 1991 American Tour de Sol Open Class

From the Author

A lot of people make electric cars very complicated, and they don't need to be. I believe in keeping it simple. Over the years, I've learned a lot of tricks that can help the builder, and a lot of pitfalls that should be avoided. I want to share the benefits of my experience.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 128 pages
• Publisher: South Florida Electric Auto Association; 2nd edition (November 1993)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1879857944
• ISBN-13: 978-1879857940
• Product Dimensions: 10.9 x 8.5 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (28 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #143,080 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

32 of 33 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Convert it is a must before any conversion, March 28, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Convert It! (Paperback)

Convert it does not make to long process of car conversion a breeze, but it is an excelent resource. The book is full of excelent pictures that bring the informative writing to life. The information in this book can be easily appiled to every car conversion and is of great help.

24 of 24 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A great grounding in the knowledge of electric car conversion, July 19, 2005

By 

C. J. Marriott (Northamptonshire, UK) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Convert It! (Paperback)

I have an interest in all environmental solutions, but from a more technical side and I was searching for an economical mode of transport, which could also be an ongoing project for the future months. "Convert It" is a great read and it really shows you the basic rules and tips in both technical detail but in a user friendly layout. I would recommend it as a great starting block and as an essential library piece for any future electric car-converting enthusiast.

23 of 25 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A Wealf of information in Scheap's clothes, October 23, 2006

By 

Catherine Jemma "Cate" (Outback Western Australia) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Convert It! (Paperback)

(Sorry if you are from another language culture and didn't "get" the title, it's a play on Wealth/Wolf and Sheep/Cheap)

This book is a great step by step guide that pretty much any novice could follow to convert a petrol/gasoline car to full electric operation. It covers everything from selecting a donor car body to your first test-drive.

Starting at the basics, some material probably goes back over old ground, for those people who have experience being backyard tinkerers with old cars and electrical gizmos.

I've heard one complaint that this book is "just a photocopy" this is quite wrong. However the book has been published in a cheaper, lower quantity print-run style that some folks will be familiar with, similar to some in-house productions of workbook-readers or manuals used in a technical training college. A better looking presentation is normally expected for a book costing US $ 25, however the information in this book, although now somewhat dated, is organised and laid out clearly and with a limited number of photos and drawings, it is easy to understand and worth every penny to a novice converter.

I would look forward, at some future date, to a substantially updated and fully revised edition of this book, being published and bound in a better manner.

Until that does happen, (if ever) I'd have no hesitation in recommending this as one of the several texts that any novice car converter should read before starting their first Electric Car conversion project.

Catherine Jemma, Outback Western Australia. (Experienced car and electric tinkerer.........novice future EV converter)