Freelander 1 Freelander EV

kernowsvenski said:

This is probably my favourite post of the entire thread so far! Rocking up to a car meet with a great mix of vehicles there, and managing to garner some interest in the seemingly humble, but individually special FL1 is first class, and then reading the positivity about the use for - as you say - the intended purpose. Even with the bits of fettling you're doing to get it just right you shoud regard this project as a complete and utter total success.

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Thanks mate
It was a lot of fun seeing the look on their faces when they realised it was fully electric, there were Ferrari's and Porches that got less attention.

From the start I wanted it to be a practical car that I could use every day for normal Freelander type purposes and for the most part it is. The boot is reduced a bit but still very useful and I intend to use it today to deliver used parts to Belfast which is around 25 miles away and collect new parts, keeping the tow bar was a major bonus and being able to use the car for jobs like yesterdays gives me a real kick.
So yes I am chuffed to bits with it and I'm calling it a success however there is one big upgrade that would make it even better.

At the minute I'm still fettling as you say doing small changes and improvements but I have one big upgrade I want to do and that is fast charging. Having a range of around 100 miles makes the car usable but having a max charging speed of 10mph (or 7mph on a granny cable) means I'm tied to home unless I stay overnight in a place I can charge it or I can leave it all day to charge while doing something else. Enabling fast charging would take away a lot of the range anxiety I currently experience.
It might or might not happen this year but is very much on the todo list.

Alibro said:

Thanks mate
It was a lot of fun seeing the look on their faces when they realised it was fully electric, there were Ferrari's and Porches that got less attention.

From the start I wanted it to be a practical car that I could use every day for normal Freelander type purposes and for the most part it is. The boot is reduced a bit but still very useful and I intend to use it today to deliver used parts to Belfast which is around 25 miles away and collect new parts, keeping the tow bar was a major bonus and being able to use the car for jobs like yesterdays gives me a real kick.
So yes I am chuffed to bits with it and I'm calling it a success however there is one big upgrade that would make it even better.

At the minute I'm still fettling as you say doing small changes and improvements but I have one big upgrade I want to do and that is fast charging. Having a range of around 100 miles makes the car usable but having a max charging speed of 10mph (or 7mph on a granny cable) means I'm tied to home unless I stay overnight in a place I can charge it or I can leave it all day to charge while doing something else. Enabling fast charging would take away a lot of the range anxiety I currently experience.
It might or might not happen this year but is very much on the todo list.

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A fast charging option would certainly be the final piece of the puzzle.
Even if you could get it to take a DC 50kwh max charge rate, the types found in and around towns (McDoanlds etc.), it would make its use open-ended.

50kW charging would give me a full charge from empty in around 45 minutes so not exactly convenient but for all the often I would need to use it, perfectly acceptable. 99% of the time I need to use fast charging it would be from 20% or higher to 80% or 90% so would be 30 minutes at most.

Alibro said:

50kW charging would give me a full charge from empty in around 45 minutes so not exactly convenient but for all the often I would need to use it, perfectly acceptable. 99% of the time I need to use fast charging it would be from 20% or higher to 80% or 90% so would be 30 minutes at most.

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30 minutes = burger and fries time

Over 50 kWh tend to only be found on the major trunk roads / service areas

… and beyond 80/90% the rate really slows down anyway (by the BMS). I only ever get it back up to ~90% and then head home, unless I am really dependant on the range for a particular reason.

Freddie17 said:

… and beyond 80/90% the rate really slows down anyway (by the BMS). I only ever get it back up to ~90% and then head home, unless I am really dependant on the range for a particular reason.

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I can't have the BMS controlling the charge speed for technical reasons so I'll need to control it another way. TBH I haven't given it much thought as it hasn't been high on my priority list.

I can't see many situations where I'll be charging 100% anywhere except at home. Enough to get me home is all I'll be doing.

New video.

So basically the issue was it leaked some magic smoke out and then wouldn’t work ?!?
But the universal LR first aid kit of; Tow Rope meant that you were able to get back home to effect repairs.

Seriously Ali - I didn’t understand half of what you explained (I was ok with “…5A fuse…”), but glad you got it fixed. More importantly, understood and resolved the underlying issue. Well done mate.

I think LR should offer you some form of honorary electrical engineer / mechanic title.

Freddie17 said:

So basically the issue was it leaked some magic smoke out and then wouldn’t work ?!?
But the universal LR first aid kit of; Tow Rope meant that you were able to get back home to effect repairs.

Seriously Ali - I didn’t understand half of what you explained (I was ok with “…5A fuse…”), but glad you got it fixed. More importantly, understood and resolved the underlying issue. Well done mate.

I think LR should offer you some form of honorary electrical engineer / mechanic title.

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Bottom line is I messed up again! Thankfully only the pride was hurt.

I had a big day yesterday in my Freelander EV as I drove it to a MG dealer approx 39 miles from home to see a MG5.
TBH I had no intention of buying it but I wanted to have a test drive in one as I am thinking of replacing my old C Class estate and the MG5 seems to fit the bill. The problem with the one I went to see is the range as it is the smaller battery 52kWh model and for my work I really need the 62kWh version. The charging infrastructure in Northern Ireland is pretty poor and for work I often end up driving up to 200 miles in rural areas so having a range of 150 to 180 miles is just not enough.
Realistically the 62kWh model has a summer range of 220 to 240 miles if driven sensibly but a winter range of 200 miles max but this is enough for me to make it home 99% of the time. I should be able to give it a 10 or 15 min top up on the way home if necessary.
The great news is I was shocked by how nice the MG5 is to drive. It was comfortable, quick, had all the toys I want, didn't feel at all cheap, and even passed the Mrs test so I am actively on the lookout for a suitable car in this country. Unfortunately there are very few around so it is a waiting game. The one I looked at yesterday was a 2021 model with around 35k miles and they were only looking £11k for it which I thought was a great price.

The other big news is the Freelander was fantastic for the 78 miles drive and we made it home with plenty of power to spare.
I charged it today to the same level it was at before we left and it took 28kWh to refill with electrons.
So if it took 28kWh to drive 78 miles that is 2.8 miles per kWh, which is pretty amazing for a DIY EV conversion of a not very aerodynamic car. The journey was approx 60% dual carriageway at 60 mph, 30% country roads at 50ish and 10% town driving.
In theory with a mpkWh of 2.8 and a battery capacity of 38kWh the range is 106 miles and I'm fairly confident that would be possible but I should probably say 90 miles is the range and have a 10 to 15 mile buffer.

The thing I need to be careful of is the odometer is around 7% off because of the smaller tyres I have at the moment. When we got home the odometer was reading 85 miles for our 78 mile journey so this is something I need to take into account until I get new tyres fitted.

Alibro said:

The thing I need to be careful of is the odometer is around 7% off because of the smaller tyres I have at the moment. When we got home the odometer was reading 85 miles for our 78 mile journey so this is something I need to take into account until I get new tyres fitted.

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I remember somewhere back in the mists of time, wheel sizes and their respective impacts on range and performance were discussed on this thread. What's your thoughts now on the best compromise?

kernowsvenski said:

I remember somewhere back in the mists of time, wheel sizes and their respective impacts on range and performance were discussed on this thread. What's your thoughts now on the best compromise?

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I'm not at all worried about either range or performance as I can always adjust the gear I use for a given speed, something OEM EV owners cannot do.
Currently I never use 1st gear so maybe with bigger tyres I might, also I normally don't change into fifth gear until I'm doing at least 50mph but this might change with standard Freelander tyres. I'll report back when I change them and have driven a few miles. Now I have the rev counter working better it is easier to monitor the rpm.
From reading the results of others in the EV community I don't think the tyre size will change much in reality.

Used the car again for the sort of jobs I built it for.
Yesterday I drove to the airport to pick up my Mrs and daughter, and today I borrowed an old horse trailer and used it to bring home two large round bails of hay.


The trailer is stupidly heavy and the Mrs Ford Kuga really struggles to tow it as it's clutch is't great and the engine hasn't much torque.
Normally in the Freelander I don't use first gear as it isn't necessary but when towing this trailer I use first to get moving and cross roads quickly. Pulling through slow traffic was a breeze however I don't like pulling up long fast hills with the constant high current load. Maybe I'm being silly but I was glad to get it back to it's owner.

It’s a fair size trailer, so you can safely say “it works”. Great to see it proving itself.

It's been a while since I updated this thread or released a video.
This was recorded a few months ago but only been edited and uploaded now.



Since the car was converted to electric I've driven over 3000 miles and it is now my only tow vehicle as the clutch in SWMBO's Kuga is not great. There are a few things I'd like to improve like the the charging but TBH I can't be arsed, the 3kW charger is fine 99.9% of the time. It does mean it will take around 10 hours to charge from empty to full but most of the time I don't let it get below 30 or 40% and only charge to 80 or 90%.

Curious, is there any weight difference?

kermit_rr said:

Curious, is there any weight difference?

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Yes mate, it's a couple hundred kilo over the original dry weight so maybe 100 over standard with a full tank of fuel.
The front is close to standard so all the extra weight is in the boot and it does feel a tiny bit tail heavy but not enough to be an issue. If I keep it long enough I might replace the rear springs with heavy duty ones.

I wonder if that's the case for most ICE to EV conversions ?
At the Goodwood Revival the other weekend there were a couple of stands who were displaying their EV conversion wares, not cheap I might add.

Andy Warren said:

I wonder if that's the case for most ICE to EV conversions ?
At the Goodwood Revival the other weekend there were a couple of stands who were displaying their EV conversion wares, not cheap I might add.

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Not necessarily but as with everything you pays yer money.
In my case the modules I'm using are heavier than most as they were used in the eGolf without any thermal management. Other cars that mollycoddle the batteries can get more power from a lighter pack but even then to get decent range takes a lot of weight.

Alibro said:

Not necessarily but as with everything you pays yer money.
In my case the modules I'm using are heavier than most as they were used in the eGolf without any thermal management. Other cars that mollycoddle the batteries can get more power from a lighter pack but even then to get decent range takes a lot of weight.

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I suppose it must be difficult to keep the weight down with conversions given they weren't designed for electrical perpulsion in the first place. I didn't think to ask if the series & defenders on display were heavier than std once converted , next time...... Still amazed at what you've achieved .