I’ve got one of the 1994.5 versions of the USE S10. It didn’t have many miles on it when I got it, but as has been noted, data and parts were hard to come by and it wasn’t running. I took out the Hughes bits and replaced with a PM100 inverter and Siemens motor for the drive train. I was able to fit 100 of the CALB 100ah blue cells in the original box under the bed and used a Lithiumate Pro BMS, which has worked quite well over the last 10 years. Now the CALBs are tired and there are a couple of stinkers in the pack limiting my range from the original 80 miles or so to now no more than 25 miles if the route is mostly flat and I don’t go fast. The next update is to swap out the CALBs for 12 Tesla S modules and an Orion BMS 2. Which means I need to get the air conditioning installed for a battery chiller. The Orion will give me much better level 2 charging and also Chademo DCFC. In Oregon, the Chademo chargers are numerous very well placed, even on many of the secondary highways and faction spots, unlike the CCS combo chargers.
Bottom line is that the rolling chassis is a good base platform, especially if it hasn’t been parked outside for a couple of decades. I would think that even some hotrodder who wants to put a large ICE power plant in it might pay $900 if it is in good condition. Paul Wallace > Message: 14 > Date: Sat, 22 Aug 2020 15:54:48 -0400 > From: "EVDL Administrator" <[email protected]> > To: Electric Vehicle Discussion List <[email protected]> > Subject: Re: [EVDL] wanted s10 ev > Message-ID: <[email protected]> > Content-Type: text/plain; charset=US-ASCII > > On 22 Aug 2020 at 17:54, paul dove via EV wrote: > >> We have one of the factory S10 EV with a dolphin controller up for sale on >> our website www.greenshedconversions.com > > Not sure what you mean by "factory S10 EV." if you mean "converted in a GM > factory," then not really. That conversion wasn't done by GM. > > What you have there is one of the US Electricar conversions from the mid- > 1990s. USE also converted Geo Prizms. I am not aware that a significant > number of them made their ways to Europe. > > The name US Electricar can throw you off a bit as there were two unrelated > companies by that name. > > An earlier one founded by Chandler Waterman in Athol, MA from 1979 converted > Renault R5s ("Le Car" -> "Lectric Leopard"), and I think a few other cars. > > https://cartype.com/pages/7110/us_electricar_corporation > > The later US Electricar was headquartered in Santa Rosa CA and for a brief > time from mid-1994 converted Chevrolet S10s and Geo Prizms using Hughes > Dolphin drive systems. > > https://www.sfgate.com/business/article/Sputtering-U-S-Electricar-Hits-a- > Cash-Wall-3040263.php > > You can see a few USE S10s at evalbum.com. > > I have to agree with Paul. Expecting $9,000 for that truck is probably more > than a little optimistic. > > I may be going a bit too far to the pessimistic side, but IMO given the > current conversion market and its non-running condition, yours might be > worth something closer to $900. > > Here's a '94 USE S10 offered back in 2003 for $5k - in running condition. > > http://mattvideo.com/electric/_disc1/0000002e.htm > > The USE S10s and Prizms can't compare to modern factory EVs, but they were > actually pretty nice conversions for their time. Fifteen to 20 years ago, > lots of folks who had USE vehicles really liked them. The battery costs > were daunting, though. They used a big tray full of expensive AGMs. > > By the late 1990s, spare parts for them were already a problem. Back then > we had an EVDL poster who was asking how he could re-convert his dead USE > S10 using a more conventional DC motor. > > There used to be a Yahoo Group for USE support. I don't know what's > happened to it since Yahoo tore down their groups' infrastructure, but IIRC > they had quite a lot of troubleshooting information. If you could get your > drive system going and upgrade the battery to lithium you'd probably have > something. > > I don't know whether it'd be $9k worth, though. At this point probably most > folks who are interested in EV pickups will be sitting tight for the Tesla, > Rivian, or possibly one of the possibly-vaporware Ford or GM E-pickups > promised for later. > > In any case, good luck with it. > > David Roden, EVDL moderator & general lackey > _______________________________________________ UNSUBSCRIBE: http://www.evdl.org/help/index.html#usub ARCHIVE: http://www.evdl.org/archive/index.html INFO: http://lists.evdl.org/listinfo.cgi/ev-evdl.org Please discuss EV drag racing at NEDRA (http://groups.yahoo.com/group/NEDRA)
