Turn your comuter into a hybrid for less than $200

[Wallybear]

This started with a Subaru Justy that I once owned. It is really simple and anyone can do it.

First you will need to buy a marine battery and a battery charger.

Remove the belt from your alternator and replace the belt with a smaller one that will run everything else such as your water pump if needed.

Then run off your battery. I was able to save an average of 14% in fuel mileage. I installed a battery charger under the hood of the car and when I got home I would plug in to recharge. I had the charger hooked to the battery at all times for convenience and left the cord hanging just outside the grill.

A deep cycle marine battery is important so that it will hold up to the draining and recharging.

Now in my Justy I averaged about 110 miles in between charges but usually only ran 40 or 50 miles and charged back up. This was because that was my round trip commute and running around every day.

Another way of doing it that is not quite as efficient (about 4-5% savings) but is a little more versatile is to put a cut out switch on your alternator and when your voltage meter shows you are low on battery storage, them flip the cut out back on so you are drawing back off the alternator.

This is very much a hybrid because you are using about 20 cents of electricity to charge a battery and saving about $1 in gas per trip. This was my experience.

Now the cost of setting this up will take at least a year to recover. Is it worth it. i think so because the charger is a tool that for me is needed around the house anyhow and at the end of the year not only did I make my $200 back but I also have an extra battery for other projects and the charger itself. So I end up making a profit by doing this. The second year it is just another $200 in my pocket for other projects. Now this was based on $2.75-$3.25 per gallon gas. It looks as though we are looking at $5 per gallon by Summer time and will pay out even better.

 

[Marianne]

Bill here, Marianne's husband.

I have a few thoughts about Wallybear's system.

While it worked well for his car, it's not a system for all vehicles. The pulley configuration of some models will not allow the use of a smaller belt to bypass the alternator. The 'path' of some configurations will not allow it to turn freely without rubbing against another component.

The type of driving you do would play into this, too. If you use the A/C or heater, radio, etc, it will deplete the battery faster = fewer miles traveled before a charge is needed. Night time driving will also use the battery up faster.

If you deplete the battery all the way down a couple times, there's a possiblity of having a dry cell which could cause an internal short. As far as I know, the marine batteries don't have removeable caps to add needed liquid. Just a word of caution.

The charger could also just be stored in the trunk. Not every vehicle has space under the hood to mount the charger.

If you could get by without the A/C, instead of eliminating the alternator, what about eliminating the a/c compressor? It creates more drag than the alternator does. But there again, you have to watch the path of the belt.

IMO, the biggest potential problem? As you're driving the car without the alternator, the voltage is dropping. The purpose of the alternator is to keep the battery charged at 12 volts. The alternator produces about 14 volts to maintain the battery. The computer system in a car is very sensitive and the drop in voltage could cause problems.

Obviously it worked for Wallybear for the type of driving that he does, but it's not for everyone or every vehicle.

 

[mlynd]

It still sound like something to look into if it works thanks for the info Wallybear

 

[SKR8PN]

Today's fuel injected cars won't like anything less that 13.8 to 14.2 volts. Most modern cars have more than one computer. Take a 1998 Chrysler Town & Country. The T & C has an ECM (engine control module) TCM (transmission control module) BCM (body control module) an anti lock brake controller, an air bag module, a EVIC module(electronic vehicle information center) and probably a couple more that I am forgetting. Each and every one of these requires a constant, steady voltage to function properly. To try to run a vehicle like that on a battery only system would DRASTICALLY shorten your vehicle range, not to mention the replacement costs if you fry one of those modules for lack of proper voltage supply.