Vespa P200E EV Conversion

[scusi]

Here's my build so far:




The goal of this project was not only to build an electric vespa, but also to gain experience building a custom battery pack, wiring power electronics, and programming controls because I will be doing more builds soon. Here’s the project for anyone interested, or if anyone is doing something similar.

I found a P200E that didn't run, and another person wanted the engine, so it sounded like a perfect candidate for the build.

I'll try to post about the build experience and some lessons learned so far. This was an absolute joy to ride and was incredibly quick.



BOM: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1eBHyzfmk1kTKUqbQJePtGcDvuT8c3tiMOzfL3Lh3pg0/edit?usp=sharing

 

[scusi]

Swingarm:


The way that the engine originally mounted to the scooter was not compatible with a hub motor, and I could not find an off the shelf solution anywhere, so fabrication of a custom design was the only way forward. I read about JimVonBaden’s conversion a lot which helped me figure out a similar solution for my swingarm.

The fit was really good, maybe a little tight. The only issue I found was the wheelbase ended up about 25mm shorter than expected.

I used an aftermarket mount for the mono shock

The swing arm was made using 1" x 2" and 2" X 2" square channel, a 4130 Alloy Steel Round Tube, 0.120" Wall Thickness, 1-1/4" OD, 26mm OD 14mm ID bushings, and a shock mount

 

[scusi]

Battery:


Cells: Samsung INR 18650 25R Lithium Battery Cells - By The Case
BMS: Daly Li-ion 20S 72V 100A BMS

I built the 72V battery from a total of 200 18650 cells (20S10P). I bought two boxes (100 each) from EV West. I knew it would be more work because they aren’t shipped with a heat shrink sleeve or insulating ring pre-installed, but the cost saving in addition to knowing the batteries would be good quality made it worth it.







In order safely output 100A, I used two 0.15x5.00mm nickel strips for each connection. I realized later that the parallel connections really don't need to be that thick, since those are just balancing the the voltage at that node. The spot welder was mostly pretty good, but it did have some trouble with that strip thickness. I tried to do all the welds near the outside diameter of each battery after hearing about damaging the battery if you weld right in the center.

 

[scusi]

Motor and Tires:



I used some tubeless tires, which were extremely difficult to install on the hub motor. They were also tough to air up.

In order to get the tire over the rim, I used the biggest zip ties I could get my hands on and put them around the tire after getting the first side of the motor in. I tightened them up, taking turns as I gradually worked the rest of the motor in. I tried some big screwdrivers and tire irons first and made some scratches and zero progress, so I'm glad this method worked well.



To air up the tire, I used a ratchet strap around the outside of the tire to compress it. I then removed the valve stem and blasted it with 100psi (I think, maybe it was higher). This cause the tire to seat on the motor and I was able to air it up normally.

I started with the disc brake on the left side because I thought the caliper would not fit with the shock mount, but eventually switched it to the right side.

 

[scusi]

I used 80/20 to prototype a configuration of my parts that would fit well and eventually found a good arrangement. I never got a good photo of the final layout, but I’ll try to get one soon, along with the wiring diagram.

The battery output is wired to the main circuit breaker, which is also used as a sort of disconnect switch occasionally. I used a 125A DC breaker that is meant as a safety mechanism in the event that the BMS fails to open upon overcurrent.

I used a TE automotive contactor and a ZEVA precharge circuit

Wiring also got cleaned up, but I’m still working on this part. I still want to get the electric brake working too.

Here's some photos of some of the components used and some of the layouts I tried

 

[scusi]

First motor rotation: https://youtu.be/M1-aNXbEMo8
First ride: https://youtu.be/-8GIeueYlfU
Last ride: https://youtu.be/zE-3BKzW_w0

 

[scusi]

Here’s the scooter on day 1

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[SlowCo]

Very nice conversion :thumb:

 

[kingkongshrimp]

Very nice build. Thanks for documenting. I am learning a lot from your build.

 

[scusi]

The Votol controller needs to have the battery voltage wired to the lock signal in order to turn on for programming and operation.

Here's the start to my electrical drawings, I still have a lot to add, but this is enough to spin the

 

[scusi]

I had a pretty unfortunate situation on a test ride and the project is on hold for now.

A negligent driver hit me head on while making an illegal left turn. I was only going about 25 mph, but the Vespa and I both took some pretty bad damage.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[kingkongshrimp]

OH NO!!!

Sorry to hear about your accident. Hope you have quick recovery.

 

[minsk]

thank you so much for documenting your build...im getting ready to p200e. ..my biggest question was the swingarm...your swing arm build is great..im a pretty handy welder think i can hendle it....do you have any measurements....haver you been driving it alot...did you recover ok from your accident...


daniel

 

[scusi]

I’ll try to dig up the cad file I made, but my measurements were off a little bit. I wish it was a little longer to match the stock wheelbase. I think it was like a half inch short. I rode quite a bit and no problems with this setup. I’m doing a lot better, it was mainly my knee that got messed up…

 

[MDG]

Beautiful work mate

 

[scusi]

swingarm cad files made in fusion 360, also a step file.

https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1N9ipLamvil75pUO-C4cXs6PVvQXp02u-?usp=share_link