In for a Dime, In for a Dollar

Has it really been over a year since I've posted? Unfortunately, it's been almost that long since both cars were on the road and drivable. Before we get to that sad tale, here's a glimpse of what transpired just before things went south.

In June, 2021 I was invited to show the MG TD conversion at the ALT NRG show at the Palmer expo center. The TD was one of the vehicles representing the AustinEV chapter of the Electric Vehicle Association. The show was focussed on Alternative Energy (ALT NRG - too clever!). 

Driving home, a couple of guys pulled up next to me at a stop light and asked if the car might be available for a video shoot for a media class at UT. Since I was a Radio/TV major myself in college, I had to help out. Of course all of our video back then was shot in glorious black and white on 16mm film.

Apparently the video story line involves a "Great Gatsby" era couple and my car looked sufficiently archaic to pass for something from the 1930's. 

The black vehicle in front is the camera car with the videographer hanging out the back. They were all nice kids and I was happy to help out.

A little over a month later, I gat a call from a gentleman from Phoenix asking if the MG was for sale. Well, everything's for sale if the price is right and he didn't flinch at my asking price. He was in town on business the first week in August and came by to have a look. After a walk around and test drive, he was ready to bite. He took one more spin around the neighborhood and was a long time returning. I finally saw the MG creeping around the corner. He said something went "POP!" and he lost power. We had to push it up the driveway into the garage. Sorry, no deal.

After I pulled it apart, I found three battery cells had blown their pressure relief valves. After eleven years of faithful service, I guess it was time. After reviewing all my options, I decided to buy another Nissan pack from EVTV Motor Verks. This would entail some fancy configuring to make it work with the old Soliton controller and Netgain DC motor, so I bought some custom bus bars for putting two cells in parallel which would essentially cut the voltage in half while maintaining the capacity. New project, but soon interrupted ...

So meanwhile, not to be outdone, the charge controller in the Porsche stopped working. Without that key bit of electronics, the charger won't charge the pack and the DC/DC converter won't charge the 12 volt battery. One had failed earlier and Jack Rickard had replaced it, but Jack has passed and it was time to look elsewhere.

To be Continued ...