E-rickshaw / utility cart axles from China

[HughF]

Does anyone have any experience with the e-rickshaw axles that come from Aliexpress? I have a small petrol powered utility cart that has a very unreliable briggs & Stratton petrol on it, 5hp (which is overkill really) that would be much safer and easier to use if it was electric.

I think one of these axles would be an ideal way to convert it, it currently has a simple forwards/reverse gearbox with no suspension.

Can anyone point me to a good supplier of such an axle?

 

[speedmd]

I swapped out a 24v brushed axle on a small 4 wheel one person mobility cart with a 1 meter wide 800 watt brushless rickshaw axle a few years back for a customer. They wanted to be able to use it around their larger estate so the added width was a anti rollover advantage.

Tons of shops making them. Some are not manufacturers so it is good to ask. I was looking for a smaller unit so shopped quite a bit before finding a supplier that came close to fitting the application. Sounds like what your looking for is a more standard 1000 -3000 watt unit. Most of the manufacturers will be able to help size one and help with suitable reduction ratios based on your weight, speed, climbing requirements. They had Controllers and throttles to match. Simple momentary switch worked great for reverse.

My recollection is Amthi.com for the one I used but had several that looked excellent. Most of the install issues were mating suitable sized wheels / tires as they are setup for much larger carts. You should have less of a issue on a UTV. Brake options are something also you will want to look at. If you have not dealt with suppliers from the mainland, patience is required. It takes more time then expected in most cases.

 

[HughF]

Thanks for the information, good to know. I will take some measurements and see what my options are. Ideally I want to go 48v because I have a 'spare' Eltek FlatpackHE 3kw power supply I can use as a charger. Perhaps a stack of nissan leaf cells will do.

 

[speedmd]

For 3KW range, most I was finding will want to run 12 or 14s. 12 to 1 reduction worked well for our low speed cart with 16s LIFEPO4 pack. 6 of them will work or 7 series leaf modules if you want a bit more speed. Low voltage cutoff on most 48v controllers should work acceptable for either. Also check on two speed axles with disk brakes many are showing these days if your looking for more speed.

 

[Dui ni shuo de dui]

Does anyone have any experience with the e-rickshaw axles that come from Aliexpress? I have a small petrol powered utility cart that has a very unreliable briggs & Stratton petrol on it, 5hp (which is overkill really) that would be much safer and easier to use if it was electric.

I don't have experience per se, since I never used one myself, but living in China I see those kind of things everyday on the street.
They seem to be pretty reliable given the harsh condition they usually face and how little maintenance and care they see from their owners.

As someone else already said, go for a 2000-3000W unit, it should be plenty. 48V should be ok, basically going higher in voltage will mostly result in a higher top speed.