EVDL Administrator via EV wrote:
On 9 Jan 2019 at 16:19, Willie via EV wrote:
From what little I know of CCars, I would say that the most horrible,
overwhelming weakness is the body material that falls apart after a
few sun years.
They painted it with catalyzed acrylic enamel. That was supposed to provide
some UV protection, according to the last man standing in Sebring in the
late 1980s, Jim Tervort. Obviously it wasn't enough for sunny climates and
for cars stored outdoors. But garage-stored C-cars, and those in less sunny
regions, seem to have held up better.
Since I live in one of the cloudiest parts of the US, in my limited view,
the C-cars' greatest weaknesses were the suspension and brakes.
True, they rode roughly, but that wasn't the problem. They were skittish in
corners. At least mine was.
The brakes weren't suited to a vehicle that went much more than, say,
jogging speed. When I braked hard, my 1980 Comuta-Car had a unsettling
tendency to come to a stop with its tail facing the oncoming traffic.
Basically, they were enclosed golf cars, and that's pretty much how they
handled and braked.
And then there were the motor fuses -- er, that is, brush pigtails. They
couldn't have been much more than AWG 8 or 10. Despite the "current
limiting" (#2 battery cable for the traction wiring), they'd burn open on
steep hills -- especially if you actually did as the owner's manual
suggested, and stomped the accelerator to the floor.
I had a blast with that car anyway. Memories. :-)
Ah yes; those were the days. I liked mine as well. It had shortcomings,
but they could all be fixed; even my me. :-)
Early ones had aircraft brakes; they weren't much good. Later ones used
trailer brakes, which were at least highway rated. Stopping tail-first
was a side effect of not balancing the front/rear brakes. Almost all
other cars use different front/rear brakes or wheel cylinder sizes, or
pressure regulators in the brake lines; some means to balancing the
front/rear braking.
Bob Rice designed it to use two golf cart motors. He was over-ruled, so
they used one. My ComutaVan used one much bigger motor, and never had
that problem.
Skittish in corners: Yes; that was a consequence of using off-the-shelf
trailer springs and shocks that weren't properly sized for the vehicle's
weight. Solid-axle vehicles will never handle great; but they can handle
quite well when properly set up.
Bob used marine plywood to skin his prototypes. That might have been
superior to the plastic and might look more attractive; but of course
wood is not fashionable. :-) Aluminum or fiberglass would have been a
good alternative; but they chose ABS plastic because it was cheap and
had the lowest tooling cost.
--
The belief that there is only one truth, and that oneself is in
possession of it, is the root of all evil in the world. (Max Born)
--
Lee Hart, 814 8th Ave N, Sartell MN 56377, www.sunrise-ev.com
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