[WIP] Voltswagen T2 -76

[johu]

That or maybe bus bar your way out. Towards the middle of the motor, then cables?

[Cera]

Yeah I'm currently thinking of a set of 90deg busbars towards the middle of the motor, enclosed safely in some 3D printed case, then 50mm2 cables to inverter. not too worried, I'm sure this can be made to fit somehow.

[Cera]

Getting back to this. Final mount sandblasted, powder coated. Motor has been mounted!





3D-printed some endcaps for the crossbar to keep dirt and dust out. With my own Ceravan logo, of course.



Sketching out mounting places for all the rest of the parts. I think inverter fits well somewhere on the shelf where the gas tank used to be, maybe HVJB next to it. Tesla M3 PCS fits perfectly behind the motor.



I should start looking into options with the charger etc. I have both the Tesla M3 PCS and the Leaf PDM. Currently leaning on using the M3 PCS with the M3 BMS and other components I got with the pack which as far as I understand saves me from Batman scavenging etc..?

Ah well. Need to study more.

Meanwhile did rest of the brake lines finally, too.



I had some ideas about using pressure switches with T-fittings to do original style brake light switch + brake warning light, but ended up just running the lines straight to the master cylinder at least for now. I don't fancy the idea of extra T-fittings in the lines, weight of the sensors and all the brake fluidy mess if they ever need replacing. Seems easier to install electronic switch somewhere in the linkage for brake lights.

As for the warning light in the dash, which I want just in case, I got a fluid reservoir with the level sensor which I deemed far smarter way of doing that than the pressure switches in the lines. I kind of want to know there's an issue with the brakes *before* the lines have no pressure. I think fluid level sensor in the remote reservoir makes most sense; if there's ever an leak somewhere, hose between the reservoirs gets detached, something horrible, then the reservoir level will go down and light up the warning light while there's still plenty brake fluid in the smaller reservoir on top of the master cylinder etc.

Also, some woodworking in between while waiting for parts.



Stain and oil



Mounted for test fit



Taking the measurements from the existing rotten door card was very annoying, but I'm really happy with the results.

A few steps onwards again.

[alexbeatle]

Well done!

…. I don't fancy the idea of extra T-fittings in the lines, weight of the sensors and all the brake fluidy mess if they ever need replacing. Seems easier to install electronic switch somewhere in the linkage for brake lights.

Good call. Lost my brakes already because of the inline sensor failure . Installed a mechanical switch on the pedal instead (end of the video).

[tom91]

The Tesla M3 PCS is NOT waterproof, so I would re think its location and house it in something.

[WillK]

I think you should be able to use one of the pins on the iBooster for brake lights.
Pin 24 is "brake sys monitor" which in my testing goes 0V-12V when pressure/movement applied to the push rod.

Loving this build. Would you be willing to share the 3d files of the motor mount?
I think I'll be doing Tesla M3 motor in my camper, but your detailed modelling of the engine mounts would be invaluable. Thanks

[Cera]

The Tesla M3 PCS is NOT waterproof, so I would re think its location and house it in something.

Thanks for the heads-up! I'll probably end up doing a sort of floor/thin weathershield panel covering the empty area around the motor to keep the motorbay a bit dryer in general. We'll see.

I think you should be able to use one of the pins on the iBooster for brake lights.
Pin 24 is "brake sys monitor" which in my testing goes 0V-12V when pressure/movement applied to the push rod.

Loving this build. Would you be willing to share the 3d files of the motor mount?
I think I'll be doing Tesla M3 motor in my camper, but your detailed modelling of the engine mounts would be invaluable. Thanks

Ahhh this is so perfect. Thanks a lot for the info! I had thought iBooster must have some output which would make the cleanest of solutions, but didn't find any info except people reverse engineering the canbus which I don't (yet) understand at all. I'll surely take another look at that.

Sure I'll PM you with the files!

[Cera]

Vaguely planning...



Would something like this be outrageously dangerous for the EM57 phase connectors?

I'd much want to avoid putting anything on top of the motor now (where the phases typically stick in from) as the space is tight and the whole thing is rubber mounted and therefore free to move slightly, which cooould squish the connector built on top.

But it has the side hatch for tightening the bolts.



And since I can 3D-print and lathe, I could relatively easily print out a Nylon "sleeve" for some round copper bars with holes in the middle, then use longer bolts to connect the cable lugs to the internal busbars. Sleeve for isolating the copper rods from the motor body and stabilizing them so no bending forces would be transmitted to the internal busbars.

After that it'd be just a matter of sealing of the top and printing a weatherproof case for the new connector?

As these would be only a couple of centimeters long so I'm not concerned about conductivity within the material, but the only thing that worries me slightly is that normally the inverter busbars are squeezed in there between two flat coppers, so contact surface is much more than what this would achieve seeing the round rod would only contact the busbar on one side...

Since it's HV and I lack sufficient qualification, hivemind please help am I being stupid or is this actually viable way out of my problem?

Thanks in advance!

[Jacobsmess]

I'll let others comment on the safety, but if you do this I'd be interested in a similar setup if you're happy to sell one on? Thanks

My thoughts on the safety is it's probably fine. Provided you get good connection. The bolt will pull everything tight, so provided the faces are clean you should have the same amount of copper (or more) than originally when compared with the original busbar.

[jrbe]

You may bump into issues with your vehicle inspection if they are strict on the emi side of things by using external wires vs internal busbars. That aside, I believe this can be done safely.

This is what pops into my head

I drew the phase wire section a bit too tall, keep it short but effective to not get into vibration induced fatigue / failure where it overhangs. If you get the spacing right you could use a silicone to seal the wires to the adapter & cover. If you're really good you could do some thick orings and grooves for them and avoid the silicone mess.
And if you do nylon internally and for the cover you could print a 3rd piece / thin orange cover for the color / safety side of things.
You could also flare the standoffs on the inside to make better connection if needed / worried. Keep the gap between the busbars as your safety gap, unless they had a non-conductive wall between them. Then you need the divider to achieve the same effective air gap or a larger gap.

[J0hannes]

Simpsons did it

As this is basically a reiteration of something that exists, why not take a look how one implementation has been made and see how to adapt/improve the design from there?

https://inductiveauto.com/product/nissa ... 25VsPEtW-K

As Cera is from Finland, I don't see an issue on the emi as current rules for conversion don't really ask much regarding that if the vehicle being converted is old as this Voltswagen is.

[Cera]

Simpsons did it

As this is basically a reiteration of something that exists, why not take a look how one implementation has been made and see how to adapt/improve the design from there?

https://inductiveauto.com/product/nissa ... 25VsPEtW-K

As Cera is from Finland, I don't see an issue on the emi as current rules for conversion don't really ask much regarding that if the vehicle being converted is old as this Voltswagen is.

Oh! Hey yes that's pretty much exactly what I had in mind! Awesome! Okay if it's been done before I'm far more comfortable with my plans and their safety

Yeah I don't think EMI restrictions/rules apply to 1976 here, so should be all good inspection-wise.

This is what pops into my head

Screenshot 2025-06-26 at 13.18.27.png

I drew the phase wire section a bit too tall, keep it short but effective to not get into vibration induced fatigue / failure where it overhangs. If you get the spacing right you could use a silicone to seal the wires to the adapter & cover.

Yes adding spacers like this between the wires sounds good. I might just steal the idea of using those threaded cable passthroughs used in the linked product for waterproof connections.

I'll let others comment on the safety, but if you do this I'd be interested in a similar setup if you're happy to sell one on? Thanks

Of course! I'll see what I can do

[ianlighting]

Did you see what @Windraver did for this on DIY Electric Car? 3D printed covers used to connect on top. I know you said you wanted to avoid that, but might be food for thought and he shared his files.

https://www.diyelectriccar.com/threads/ ... st-1126800

[Cera]

Did you see what @Windraver did for this on DIY Electric Car? 3D printed covers used to connect on top. I know you said you wanted to avoid that, but might be food for thought and he shared his files.

https://www.diyelectriccar.com/threads/ ... st-1126800

Yes I saw that it's a neat idea too!