Electric Vehicle Conversion Project (2025)

Abstract

The Electric Vehicle Conversion (EVC) project began in 2014 to contribute to the reduction of atmospheric carbon emissions by taking an internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicle and converting it into one powered by electricity. Approximately one-third of greenhouse gases (GHGs) are from the transportation sector, with light-duty vehicles (e.g., cars, SUVs, and trucks) accounting for 57% of GHG emissions (United States Environmental Protection Agency, 2024). By targeting light-duty vehicles, an electric vehicle conversion would address a large contributor to GHGs. Using a donated 1998 Chevrolet Cheyenne K1500 pickup truck as the platform for conversion, its original components were stripped, and a battery bank, electric motor, and Arduino-based dashboard were added. The purpose of this year’s iteration was to optimize performance, robustness, and safety. Anticipated efforts include expanding the current capacity of the battery pack to prevent shutdowns under high current demand, upgrading the cooling system, and implementing better programming practices. After an initial test run before the upgrades, we found that the truck used over double the amount of energy compared to the average modern Battery Electric Vehicle (BEV). Following another test run conducted after upgrading the cooling system, we found that the average motor controller temperature decreased, and there were fewer system shutdowns. By performing these upgrades, we addressed a core aspect of the driver experience (i.e., shutdowns affecting reliability) while allowing us to compare its efficiency to modern BEVs.