For the last few years in San Antonio Texas, Gary Krysztopik has been turning heads with his unique electric “hotrod” three-wheeler. He is still turning heads with this little machine, and is even working on a couple of electric vehicle conversions, including a VW Bug and a Porsche Carrera. His main project, though, is to refine the design of his three-wheeler and make the plans, and even kits, available to green DIYers.
An electrical engineer by trade, Krysztopik is also a DIYer at heart. His current DIY electric vehicle isn’t much more than a battery box with wheels. Twenty-four deep-cycle lead-acid batteries are low in the chassis and power an AC induction motor on the rear wheel, giving it a range of about 100 miles over 60mph. Further development, though, needs funding, and so he’s turned to the crowd-funding platform Indiegogo.
Future iterations of the EZ-EV looks to include improvements to the frame and suspension, the addition of power steering, disc brakes, as well as a 32kWh lithium-ion battery pack. Currently a open chassis design, full body kits might also be in the works should the new owners want coverage for weather. The plans are one thing, and sure to make any DIYer giggle like a schoolboy, but imagine getting an entire kit that you could put together in just a week with basic hand tools!
The final DIY electric vehicle should be registerable as a motorcycle in most states, achieve speeds over 80mph, and have a 150-mile range. For $1,000, backers will receive a quarter-scale model, $7,500 will get you a full-size frame, and $10,000 will get you a full rolling chassis kit. Krysztopik also wants to make quarter-scale kits available for education programs saying, “They can build and race the scale models and then get a ride in the full size version. I’m really excited about how this can work as an educational program that is so closely tied to growing clean tech businesses.”
