 With today’s gasoline prices soaring at record highs, imagine the thrill of whizzing past refueling stations in cars powered by homegrown electricity instead of foreign oil! That's what Don Cameron of Victoria, B.C. does everyday in his electrified VW Beetle, which uses a 300V+ battery pack coupled to a 36kw three-phase AC induction drive system.
AC drive systems offer numerous advantages over equivalent DC systems but until recently the induction drives were just too expensive for the electric vehicle enthusiast crowd. AC systems may still be slightly more expensive, but EV mavericks are already using these newly available components to build cars that set new standards in quality and performance. Don Cameron's precision engineering and careful attention to detail recently paid off with a 1st place "New Beetle Open Class" trophy from Volkfest 2005 in Victoria, B.C., Canada.
This trophy-winning '98 Beetle isn't just for show. It can easily do 110kmh (69mph) on the flats and travels 15 to 40 kilometers (9-25 miles) per day. We had some quesions for Don and here's what he had to say:
How is the acceleration? It seems like a single-gear AC system might be a bit slow off the line.
You are quite right about off the line. Basically I drive it in 2nd gear. Off the line is slow, but once up to 15kmh it zips along just fine. Probably similar to the standard VW beetle.
How far can you go on a charge?
Range was exactly what I calculated. To 50% DOD it is about 35-40km (22-25 miles). About once/twice week I would like to drive it about 70km (44 miles), but I do not want to limit the life of the batteries.
What do you like best about cruising in your electric VW?
-It is nice to drive a comfortable car while passing gas pumps at 1.09/litre (around $4 gal).
- Quiet and smooth
- the look on all the people's faces who drive the car (I like to let **everyone** drive it)
What would you change next time?
- lighter car, it would improve the range
- keep the clutch (better options for performance)
- better batteries for better range
What would you keep the same?
- Siemens or other OEM systems
- Deka Gel Batteries (if the budget was restricted to Lead Acid)
Victor Tikhonov at Metric Mind Engineering played a big part in your project. Did anyone else help you along?
I had lots of great help from Victor, Lee Hart, Roger Stockton, Al Godfrey, and Randy at Canadian Electric Vehicles. 
What is the status of your Cameron Motor Works project?
The VW project is basically complete. It was done for research purposes and has exceeded all of its goals. A team of engineers, car builders, drivers and designers are working together on a new project, which we expect to have a big positive impact on the EV market in the following year.
Hmmm… your website references something called Project Septimus, "Coming Summer 2006, something that will make the competition green with envy." Clues. We need more clues. Is it a new electric racer? A turnkey beetle conversion kit? C'mon!
Anticipation is a beautiful thing! Keep up the good work on the web site. You’ll be one of the first to know.
We hope so! Don's website is both educational and inspirational. He clearly describes details of the conversion process, blazing a trail for others to refresh their knowledge of EV physics, study how basic requirements are used to work out component selection, or see how various mechanical parts were designed and built. He's even solved the mysteries of interfacing to the existing instrument cluster. Look no further if you want to know what it takes to convert a newer Beetle from gas to electric power.
Don Cameron is the director of Cameron Software Ltd. and Cameron Motor Works. He has been doing enterprise computer systems for Government, Oil and Gas, and Health Care industries for over 20 years.
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Wednesday, September 08, 2010 
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