Auto Parts Road Trip

July 21, 2014

This weekend, I found myself having a bit of fun building interesting Plug-in Vehicle projects. Recently, I’ve been chipping away on my diesel engine, updating the old glow plugs to new ones. At the heart of my DIY Hybrid Pickup project is a diesel engine, in this case one that I got from a 1976 […]

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Glow Plugs, Part 2

July 16, 2014

When last I left you, I had an engine with the glow plugs removed, and the remaining holes gunked full of carbon. Everything I’ve read so far strongly suggests reaming out the carbon when replacing glow plugs. I had looked online and found that a specialty reamer tool for glow-plug holes were over $50! I […]

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240D Glow Plug removal and inspection

July 15, 2014

The “Super-Truck” project is something that’s been in the back of my mind for a while. The whole idea is to build a plug-in hybrid pickup, which could run off diesel, battery electricity, and biofuels. Imagine if a Chevy Volt not only ran on bio-fuel, but could also haul firewood and tow a trailer! Too […]

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Dynasty IT Micro-Pickup NEV and Test Drive

July 10, 2014

This past weekend, a friend dropped off a Dynasty IT in my driveway. This IT is an adorable tiny pickup truck that’s in the NEV class. That means that it’s perfectly street-legal, but federal regulations restrict it by law to a 25 mph top speed, and use on streets of 35 mph and less. My […]

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Harley-Davidson Project LiveWire Electric Motorcycle Reveal

June 27, 2014

  Last Thursday, Harley put out a press-release saying that they have an electric motorcycle. This launched EV Cycles from the niche market into the mainstream. All weekend at the MREA Energy Fair, a friend and I were showing off our home-built electric motorcycles, and the news about Harley was all everyone was talking about. […]

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E15 Mower Deck Rebuild

May 22, 2014

Spring is in the air, which means that the grass is really starting to grow and I need a way to mow it. Last summer, I acquired an Elec-Trak E15. It even came with a plow! Unfortunately, one of the three mowing deck blade motors was completely seized up, and the other two had a […]

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Electric Tractor Repair

May 19, 2014

It’s been a long Wisconsin winter, but the snow is finally melted and the grass is beginning to grow. So what do you MOW it with? If you are like me, the less gasoline, noise and air pollution, the better! I’ve had a GE Electrak E10 electric lawn tractor for some years now. It’s older […]

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Electric Car Power Brakes

May 19, 2014

I was recently asked how brakes work on my electric Geo Metro. I also noticed that every once in a while lately, my vacuum pump wasn’t powering up, so I thought it was about time to take apart the electric power brakes system and examine it. While I did, I took a few photos to […]

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Tesla Chargers popping up all over

May 7, 2014

Resort upgrading EV charging to two 100 amp Tesla chargers. And I was amazed to see what was in the parking lot.

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Getting ready for Spring

April 20, 2014

Weather in Wisconsin is weird. Last week, it was snowing. This afternoon, it was 75 degrees and I swatted my first mosquito. Go figure. Well, while I had the chance, it was time to break out the electric motorcycle for spring. One of the many things I like about electric motorcycles is how EASY they are […]

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