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Electric Land Cruiser 80 Series

J1000

J1000

Well-known member
Joined
Jun 3, 2020
Member Number
1811
Messages
96
Loc
Morrison, CO
EV80 featured on TFL Off-Road!



I built a fully electric Land Cruiser and took it to Moab!





The truck is a 1996 Land Cruiser

I gutted it and installed a Nissan LEAF electric motor, battery, charger and other electronics.

It gets about 60 miles range city and 30 miles on a trail.

OME 2.5" lift, rear lokka, Nitto Ridge Grappler tires.

I tow it to the trail with my supercharged LX470.


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What kinda mpg does your tow rig get while dragging that around?
 
Didn't watch the video, so I'm assuming everything worked for the most part...

That's seriously impressive from a proof of concept perspective. I'm sure many will poopoo on range or power but the fact that it's a running driving wheeling EV swap in a 6k pound tank is pretty cool.
 
Yotota said:
Didn't watch the video, so I'm assuming everything worked for the most part...

That's seriously impressive from a proof of concept perspective. I'm sure many will poopoo on range or power but the fact that it's a running driving wheeling EV swap in a 6k pound tank is pretty cool.
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Might be less than stock weight now with the smaller motor and battery. Add I a bigger battery and motor it will weigh more.
 
I like how you went with leaf parts and not Tesla. Something different. If battery technology can get a little better builds like this would be cool.
 
NorCalJalopy said:
I like how you went with leaf parts and not Tesla. Something different. If battery technology can get a little better builds like this would be cool.
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Probably because getting into the brain and charging system of the Leaf was easy.
The minute he sourced a wrecked tesla he would have to fight ELON for access.
 
NorCalJalopy said:
I like how you went with leaf parts and not Tesla. Something different. If battery technology can get a little better builds like this would be cool.
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A lot better. Would need to at least be comparable to current ranges of vehicles and be able to charge in a couple minutes.
 
bdkw1 said:
Might be less than stock weight now with the smaller motor and battery. Add I a bigger battery and motor it will weigh more.
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I weighed it before and after. Before it was 5080 lbs and afterwards it was 5180 lbs but that also includes the steel bumpers, tires, winch, and roof rack. So it is actually slightly lighter than stock.
 
Stingray said:
Probably because getting into the brain and charging system of the Leaf was easy.
The minute he sourced a wrecked tesla he would have to fight ELON for access.
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Yes I used a LEAF because of price and ease of modifications. The Canbus is well understood and it doesn't have internet connection "phone home" like Teslas do. People use both for conversions so it's possible just more expensive. Teslas have more power and better batteries though for sure.
 
Yotota said:
Didn't watch the video, so I'm assuming everything worked for the most part...

That's seriously impressive from a proof of concept perspective. I'm sure many will poopoo on range or power but the fact that it's a running driving wheeling EV swap in a 6k pound tank is pretty cool.
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Thanks, it went really well for the maiden voyage. It was really a lot of fun to drive. It was definitely more fun and I'd say better than the stock gas engine. Smoother and easier to control. Moab is a good town for it because there is lots of EV chargers around.
 
So, how much power does the leaf motor put out?

Is there enough room to double up on the battery? How much more weight would that add?
 
What does the LEAF Battery/Drivetrain weigh?
I know a 1FZ-FE is right in the 700 lb range, plus adding the exhaust. and fuel system

EDIT
looks like the leaf runs various batteries some with a weight near 1200 lbs, would that be right?
 
SLOWPOKE693 said:
You lost me at 30 mile range offroad....
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I'd actually think that would be more of an "hours of operation" than "miles range" sort of thing what with low range crawling and such - which is really the case with gas/diesel as well.

And that would end up being an issue depending on your style of wheeling. Out East here, where it is pretty much off-road parks instead of "outback" wheeling, I'm sure eight to twelve hours would likely be more than enough for most people.
 
J1000 said:
Yeah right now it's just got a small battery from a Nissan LEAF. More batteries planned in the future. Really though, 30 miles offroad will keep you busy for a couple days.
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I've easily clicked off 30 miles in the buggy in a afternoon numerous times. Of course I'm on the east coast though not Moab.

It's cool you did it with a EV though.
 
bdkw1 said:
So, how much power does the leaf motor put out?

Is there enough room to double up on the battery? How much more weight would that add?
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Currently, it makes 100hp and 187 ft-lbs. I bought an inverter from a 2020 LEAF Plus which will increase the power to 214hp and 250 ft-lbs. Currently, it feels about like stock acceleration and works really well so I'm excited to see what the upgrade does. The original motor and automatic trans are basically boat anchors so it's not a downgrade at all.

I can put battery where the gas tank was and the exhaust as well as the spare tire well and some other places. I could effectively double or triple the battery capacity. Part of the reason I chose a LC vs. a smaller 4x4 is the larger payload capacity and GVWR of the Cruiser. I can fit another 1600lbs of payload without exceeding GVWR. Just takes time and $$$

Stingray said:
What does the LEAF Battery/Drivetrain weigh?
I know a 1FZ-FE is right in the 700 lb range, plus adding the exhaust. and fuel system

EDIT
looks like the leaf runs various batteries some with a weight near 1200 lbs, would that be right?
Click to expand...
My battery weighed in at 603lbs before I installed it. That was the battery modules as well as the outer steel box and everything. KWH scale with weight so my 30KWH battery at 600 lbs would mean the 62KWH battery would be 1200lbs so that sound right.
PAToyota said:
I'd actually think that would be more of an "hours of operation" than "miles range" sort of thing what with low range crawling and such - which is really the case with gas/diesel as well.

And that would end up being an issue depending on your style of wheeling. Out East here, where it is pretty much off-road parks instead of "outback" wheeling, I'm sure eight to twelve hours would likely be more than enough for most people.
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Yeah it's a prototype/experiment more than anything. I have a truck and trailer specifically to tow it around. And you are right, it does depend a lot on the terrain and driving style. For instance in Moab I never turned off the truck or anything when coming to a stop and waiting for others to climb obstacles, I just left it on so the power steering, brake vacuum pumps, and other accessories were all on and draining a little battery. It would also depend on the trail you are driving on whether it's a rough dirt road, mud, or climbing up and down rocks out in Moab.


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awesome, thanks for sharing more pictures than just the all done stuff. as much as you are willing to share, is all good :smokin:

what is the recharge time for something like that? easy enough to run a full day and charge it over night
 
Maybe it's in your video which I can't view at work but how it does it transfer power? Is it basically driving power through the stock transmission?
 
Provience said:
awesome, thanks for sharing more pictures than just the all done stuff. as much as you are willing to share, is all good :smokin:

what is the recharge time for something like that? easy enough to run a full day and charge it over night
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Depends on the charger it can take anywhere from 20 hours to 30 minutes. 20 hours on 120 volts, 8 hours on 240 volts, or 30 minutes from a public DC fast charger.

Hodgiemoto said:
Maybe it's in your video which I can't view at work but how it does it transfer power? Is it basically driving power through the stock transmission?
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Here's some photos of the mechanicals. I use the stock transfer case and use a BlackBox-C reduction on top of it. Then the motor just drives straight into that.

This is my original driveline which caused vibrations but got me through Moab and a couple hundred miles on the street. It was just homemade with a short driveshaft.

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In the months since Moab I have been working with Prosise Metal Works to make a CNC'd adapter that will be stronger and vibration free. I recently got the prototype back and will be installing it shortly. This is why I haven't driven it much since Moab.

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8 hours 240v charge, so if you were to run a gen set over night to charge it back up, about 5 or 8 gallons of fuel depending on amps? 6 or so mpg for a day of crawling isn't bad at all, for something that idles quiet and is unique to play with
 
I think this is great, thank you for sharing! Is there enough torque/ gearing for it to go down the road with the BB and tcase in 1:1?
 
Wilson said:
I think this is great, thank you for sharing! Is there enough torque/ gearing for it to go down the road with the BB and tcase in 1:1?
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No, it needs the BB to be in low range (2.7:1) pretty much all the time. Then I use the OEM transfer case like normal, shifting to low for the trail and hi on road. When I upgrade to the 200hp inverter I'm wondering if that will change. Also possibly I could change my diff ratios and have more options with the BB
 
J1000 said:
No, it needs the BB to be in low range (2.7:1) pretty much all the time. Then I use the OEM transfer case like normal, shifting to low for the trail and hi on road. When I upgrade to the 200hp inverter I'm wondering if that will change. Also possibly I could change my diff ratios and have more options with the BB
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I might have missed it, what is your axle gear currently?
 
Cool build

Provience said:
8 hours 240v charge, so if you were to run a gen set over night to charge it back up,
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Well I have had enough beer, I gotta ask. Whats the point of an electric car if you have to run a generator all night to charge the damn thing?
 
Steve300xcw said:
Cool build



Well I have had enough beer, I gotta ask. Whats the point of an electric car if you have to run a generator all night to charge the damn thing?
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Because it's fun and you don't always need a generator, but for a long trip or a park trip it would make sense to bring one.
 
Vrs just swinging by the gas station an being "charged up" in less than 5 mins?
 
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