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pinetreeporsche Samba Member
Joined: June 11, 2009 Posts: 752 Location: Falls Church, VA
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Posted: Tue Mar 14, 2017 8:33 pm Post subject: Anyone done a meld of a Vanagon and a hybrid (Prius, etc?) |
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Got on the road with a friend in a Prius last week, and love the infrequent gas stops. I wonder if anyone has swapped a hybrid system into one of our vans (any hybrid, not necessarily a Toyota)? If the details could be worked out, I bet conversions would do a land-office business. Tinkerers and dreamers: get working on it! |
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Team WorldTour Samba Member
Joined: September 02, 2010 Posts: 2426 Location: Der Vaterland
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Posted: Tue Mar 14, 2017 10:46 pm Post subject: Re: Anyone done a meld of a Vanagon and a hybrid (Prius, etc?) |
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I think someone DID a Tesla conversion, though I'm not sure how successful it was..... _________________ 1990 Feldjäger Syncro AAZ
Click to view image
H6 Subaru Engine Swap Thread
WV2ZZZ25ZFH094138(x)/ WV2YB0257LH057308(x)/ WV2ZZZ25ZLG113270/
"Where am I going? And what am I doing in this handbasket?" -Nicodemus Jordan
When All Else Fails: Lather, Rinse, Repeat! |
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IdahoDoug Samba Member
Joined: June 12, 2010 Posts: 10239 Location: N. Idaho
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Posted: Wed Mar 15, 2017 12:29 am Post subject: Re: Anyone done a meld of a Vanagon and a hybrid (Prius, etc?) |
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I have a buddy who's most of the way done with putting a Prius drivetrain into his bus - either a splitty or a bay. Can't recall. He also has a Syncro with a 3.0 Nissan 300ZX V6 in it. And he took an ancient 50s Volvo, split it lengthwise, widened it a couple inches, had custom glass made and put it back together atop a Mitsubishi Eclipse AWD Turbo chassis. Patina'd the fresh paint and his wife drove it around down for years and nobody knew. He's a gas.
Doug _________________ 1987 2WD Wolfsburg Vanagon Weekender "Mango", two fully locked 80 Series LandCruisers. 2017 Subaru Outback boxer. 1990 Audi 90 Quattro 20V with rear locking differential, 1990 burgundy parts Vanagon. 1984 Porsche 944, 1988 Toyota Supra 5 speed targa, 2002 BMW 325iX, 1982 Toyota Sunrader |
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OddN Samba Member
Joined: August 19, 2010 Posts: 690 Location: Northern Norway
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Posted: Wed Mar 15, 2017 1:45 am Post subject: Re: Anyone done a meld of a Vanagon and a hybrid (Prius, etc?) |
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Team WorldTour wrote: |
I think someone DID a Tesla conversion, though I'm not sure how successful it was..... |
I remember reading about that Vanagon/Tesla project a couple of years ago, but I believe it halted due to Tesla refusing to sell parts, and insisted that if he indeed had a Tesla needing those parts, the car had to be inspected by them and i think even repaired by them.
Maybe a hybrid project with Prius parts is easier... _________________ 1991 VW Multivan syncro 1,9 TD |
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pushkick Samba Member
Joined: August 09, 2007 Posts: 1366
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Chainsaw Samba Member
Joined: August 07, 2015 Posts: 249 Location: Issaquah Washington
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Posted: Wed Mar 15, 2017 6:02 am Post subject: Re: Anyone done a meld of a Vanagon and a hybrid (Prius, etc?) |
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How aboit just a straight up electric? Lots of folks do this with pretty minumal work. Basiclly adapt and electric motor, a battery bank and a good modern controller. _________________ 89 Westy. 2wd. Manual. |
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pushkick Samba Member
Joined: August 09, 2007 Posts: 1366
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Posted: Wed Mar 15, 2017 6:30 am Post subject: Re: Anyone done a meld of a Vanagon and a hybrid (Prius, etc?) |
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yes i think there was a thread where someone put a electric motor in a vanagon . but that is basically what a testla motor is just an electric motor with a controller and battery bank. there is also a nisson leaf which is an all electric car. salvage some parts to make your vanagon an all electric van. add some solar panels etc. you would probably only need one of testla's motors since they boast around 400 + horsepower for two motors.
http://cafeelectric.com/stretchla/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZG19lAsJqcA
http://bauplan-elektroauto.de/elektrischer-vw-bus/
there are several ev conversions on this site
http://www.evalbum.com/2996 _________________ i see said the blind man to his deaf dog
i am going to quit smoking and drinking and die a healthy man. gotta laugh
there is no deed to the planet earth
1990 vw automatic camper
Last edited by pushkick on Wed Mar 15, 2017 9:56 am; edited 1 time in total |
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Paulbeard Samba Member
Joined: July 10, 2015 Posts: 2604 Location: Seattle
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Posted: Wed Mar 15, 2017 7:19 am Post subject: Re: Anyone done a meld of a Vanagon and a hybrid (Prius, etc?) |
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The big problem is going to be range. Electrics are fine for city use — short trips, frequent charging. A Tesla gets you more but at $70k+… To go far afield is going to require the freedom that petroleum gives you. The energy density of hydrocarbon fuel is hard to beat, to say nothing of how accessible it is. Yeah, it might not feel that way at 2AM on some blue highway but that's often down to planning and routing.
The hybrid makes the most sense. Electric traction backed by batteries and a small internal combustion motor to keep the power flowing is a good half-step before better batteries arrive. I wonder how small a motor you could get away with, how efficient it would be if you ran it at its most effective RPMs (most hp per unit of fuel). How many kW of traction power do you need and how best to provide that? Regenerative braking and shore-power charging would be part of it, of course, but I think diesel-electric locomotives have something to tell us. They offer great fuel economy per unit of mass/mile, though we would have to account for lower rolling resistance (steel wheels on rails vs runner tires on roads).
for more details and references. _________________ Currently -> Frida: 87 Tizian Red (mostly) Vanagon GL Westfalia w/ 2.0L ABA conversion
Formerly -> Steward of a 73 Super Beetle (Beater) and 67 Beetle 1300 (Little Max) both names by POs
— dhaavers |
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h00drat Samba Member
Joined: May 31, 2016 Posts: 881 Location: Hood River
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Posted: Wed Mar 15, 2017 8:24 am Post subject: Re: Anyone done a meld of a Vanagon and a hybrid (Prius, etc?) |
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Man I wish that Tesla project hadn't stalled out. I was just thinking about that swap a few weeks ago, did some Googling, and stumbled across it. But yes, it looks like it stalled out, unfortunately.
It feels like Vanagon + Tasla makes a ton of sense given the amount of space under the floor of the Vanagon. _________________ <<Tyler>>
1987.5 Wolfsburg Weekender / CHC / 2.0 ABA
CHC Top Thread
Engine Conversion Thread (2.0 ABA Swap)
ABA Swap - Image Gallery
Auto Trans Rebuild - Image Gallery |
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IdahoDoug Samba Member
Joined: June 12, 2010 Posts: 10239 Location: N. Idaho
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Posted: Wed Mar 15, 2017 9:13 am Post subject: Re: Anyone done a meld of a Vanagon and a hybrid (Prius, etc?) |
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While "cool", the hybrid conversion is a crazy amount of money and will obviously not save you money, nor impact the climate. For me, the sole attraction would be the incredible power!
As stated, the energy density of gasoline, ease of "refilling", etc still have a major advantage over electrics.
So for anyone considering it, be sure you have your priorities in line with what the end product will be. I think its similar to the decision making of turning a diesel into a biodiesel burner. You're not helping the environment, and the durability of the engine goes down as does reliability with all the added connections and the like - versus the original diesel vehicle as delivered from the factory. It's the "cool" factor and not everyone realizes that's really all they're accomplishing. _________________ 1987 2WD Wolfsburg Vanagon Weekender "Mango", two fully locked 80 Series LandCruisers. 2017 Subaru Outback boxer. 1990 Audi 90 Quattro 20V with rear locking differential, 1990 burgundy parts Vanagon. 1984 Porsche 944, 1988 Toyota Supra 5 speed targa, 2002 BMW 325iX, 1982 Toyota Sunrader |
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vw4wd Samba Member
Joined: April 03, 2011 Posts: 161 Location: Somerset, UK
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Posted: Wed Mar 15, 2017 10:36 am Post subject: Re: Anyone done a meld of a Vanagon and a hybrid (Prius, etc?) |
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I have had thoughts of building an electric motor into the propshaft of a syncro to create a hybrid.
Electric drive around town/at low speed and engine power when more speed required or batteries discharged. Use both when more acceleration or hill climbing required. _________________ Garyd
1990 Transporter syncro camper with 2 litre AGG 'GTi' engine |
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vanadom Samba Member
Joined: November 26, 2015 Posts: 32 Location: Vancouver, BC
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Posted: Wed Mar 15, 2017 10:42 am Post subject: Re: Anyone done a meld of a Vanagon and a hybrid (Prius, etc?) |
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I feel like 10-20 years down the road I will do an electric conversion. |
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Merian Samba Member
Joined: January 04, 2014 Posts: 5212 Location: Orygun
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Posted: Wed Mar 15, 2017 1:19 pm Post subject: Re: Anyone done a meld of a Vanagon and a hybrid (Prius, etc?) |
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"You're not helping the environment,"
eh _________________ .... |
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Zeitgeist 13 Samba Member
Joined: March 05, 2009 Posts: 12103 Location: Port Manteau
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Posted: Wed Mar 15, 2017 2:29 pm Post subject: Re: Anyone done a meld of a Vanagon and a hybrid (Prius, etc?) |
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You're not helping the environment by manufacturing, buying or running any vehicle, period. Helping implies a net positive gain to the system, and that's virtually impossible when it comes to an over the road personal transport vehicle. At best you can mitigate the negative impacts, and biodiesel does that to some extent. The other comments about impacts to durability and longevity are commonly regurgitated alternative facts. |
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82westyrabbit Samba Member
Joined: March 02, 2015 Posts: 957 Location: Ma
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Posted: Wed Mar 15, 2017 2:49 pm Post subject: Re: Anyone done a meld of a Vanagon and a hybrid (Prius, etc?) |
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I had a junk Prius and thought I might put the drive train in my van. It's 6 inches to wide to fit between the frame rails in the back. No easy way to make the wheels spin the right way. The best way would to mount it mid engine. But I am not willing to do the fram work. Some one would need to want it a lot more than me to make it work |
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RichBenn Samba Member
Joined: November 16, 2005 Posts: 703 Location: Lake Tahoe, NV
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Posted: Wed Mar 15, 2017 6:20 pm Post subject: Re: Anyone done a meld of a Vanagon and a hybrid (Prius, etc?) |
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As a Chevy Volt owner and engineer, I thknk of this kind of thing often.
One thing to realize is that current hybrids and electrics are fuel efficient not just because of the braking regeneration electric motors and batteries used, but also because they are fundamentally more fuel efficient as well. By that I mean low rolling resistance, very low wind resistance, ultra efficient gas engines (in hybrids like the Prius), and other gas mileage improvements. These are cars that might do 45+ MPG on the highway without the hybrid part.
A Vanagon is a big, heavy, high wind resitance vehicle with bigger tires and higher rolling resistance. So for all the effort in doing such a thing, the only area where you would likely see much improvement is city driving.
I would guess that the most likely candidate for this would be pulling engine and drivetrain from a wrecked Subaru Crosstrek Hybrid. It's a mild hybid system, but Subaru engines are vastly more efficient than Vanagon ones, they rotate the right way, and someone, if I recall, even used a Subaru transmission in their conversion.
The electronics, however, may be it's own nightmare, as the newer the ECU is, the more coupled it us to all of the car's other systems. Hybrids havs a lot of proprietary software, so it's not an easy undertaking. _________________ Rich |
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vanamaxagon Samba Member
Joined: May 16, 2009 Posts: 4 Location: Idaho and Vermont
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Posted: Mon Dec 06, 2021 12:34 pm Post subject: Re: Anyone done a meld of a Vanagon and a hybrid (Prius, etc?) |
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I've put a complete 2010 Prius drivetrain in our '64. Great results in the lighter bus. We just got back from an epic 7384 mile road trip with 1100 pounds on board (almost as heavy as our '87 Syncro)and got 27mpg in nasty winds.
The Syncro is still going strong with the 3.0 Nissan V6 I installed 15 years ago.
Neither one slips through the air very well |
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jimf909 Samba Member
Joined: April 03, 2014 Posts: 7400 Location: WA/ID
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Posted: Tue Dec 07, 2021 5:34 am Post subject: Re: Anyone done a meld of a Vanagon and a hybrid (Prius, etc?) |
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^^^ Wow, that's quite an accomplishment. Do you have photos to post or a link to a build thread? The complexity of this project boggles my mind. _________________ - Jim
Abscate wrote: |
Do not get killed, do not kill others.
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Current: 1990 Westy Camper - Bostig RG4, 2wd, manual trans w/Peloquin, NAHT high-top, 280 ah LFP battery, 160 watts solar, Flash Silver, seam rust, bondo, etc., etc.
Past: 1985 Westy Camper - 1.9 wbx, 2wd, manual trans, Merian Brown, (sold after 17 years to Northwesty who converted it to a Syncro). |
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?Waldo? Samba Member
Joined: February 22, 2006 Posts: 9752 Location: Where?
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Posted: Tue Dec 07, 2021 6:04 am Post subject: Re: Anyone done a meld of a Vanagon and a hybrid (Prius, etc?) |
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27 mpg is easily accomplished with a TDI Vanagon. |
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dabaron Samba Member
Joined: June 21, 2018 Posts: 2558 Location: Philly, mang
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Posted: Tue Dec 07, 2021 6:55 am Post subject: Re: Anyone done a meld of a Vanagon and a hybrid (Prius, etc?) |
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?Waldo? wrote: |
27 mpg is easily accomplished with a TDI Vanagon. |
does this TDI fit in the engine compartment without modification to the lid and sacrificing ground clearance? _________________ 1991 Vanagon GL Camper
i had no idea i wanted to be a mechanic
"burnin oil and cookin coils" -- Destructo
BiWerks Design, LLC |
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