Projects: Passenger Side Wind Deflector

This has been something my wife has been complaining about for years… When the TWIKE’s canopy has been removed, the resulting draft on the passenger’s side is a pain for anyone with longer hair or sensitive muscles around the shoulders. I’ve thought about how a solution could look like – other than her looking like Grace Kelly with a scarf and all… A wind deflector, attached to the existing snaps for the canopy, easily removable, should do the trick. This entry will show you how to create such a deflector. First of all, it’s time to go shopping at the […]

Repairs: Wood console restoration

It’s time to tackle a new project: last year’s display restoration entry hinted at me wanting to start the process of restoring the main console and other wooden parts in my TWIKE. Using wood as the main working material for all the visible console and control surfaces and casings seems like a good and sustainable idea. 23 years later, the wood is showing the strains of being exposed to bitter Swiss winters at -26°C and scorching heat. The wood is splintering and breaking and all my attempts to keep the wood clean and in oread about the repairne piece were […]

Update: Compact 3.7kW charger project

Picking up after where we left a week ago: After some debugging, I’ve been able to start communicating with the charger. Assuming the hardware-related problems I had to solve before successfully receiving my first CAN packet are rare, I must say that the steps required to actually get packets from the bus and on the bus are quite simple. Every car today relies on a CAN bus and has 70-150 CAN-nodes. Listening to and manipulating these values is not only interesting but can also unlock hidden features and make your car more run more efficiently. I strongly suggest anyone interested […]

New Project: Compact 3.7kW charger & configuration

After installing TW560’s latest battery pack and testing it thoroughly, one of the points I definitely want to address is reducing full-charge time. With a potential maximum of 18.9kWh having to go into the batteries, my current setup with 6.8kWh peak charging capacity means I’m charging for at least 3 1/2 hours. Adding chargers is simple, but there are some limitations to consider: Weight: my current chargers are at about 12kg each, adding more isn’t really an attractive option Price: Each charger cost me CHF 960, extra chargers will not be substantially cheaper if I insist on a hardened automotive […]

DRL project completed!

i am happy to report that the drl project for TW560 is completed. below i will share the details of how the project came together and how the bom looks like. after ordering the switchback led’s from a US-supplier and blinker covers in germany i was perfecting my DRL amtel-chip powered LED switchback solution and even created a pcb according to the prototype i wrote about in one of my last posts. after only one week – this during the festive season! – the led’s and the covers arrived and i was very happy not to have had to pay […]

DRL > a new project for TW560

18jan14-update: project finished, see result here. swiss road laws are changing. from january 1st, 2014 onwards, every vehicle on switzerland’s roads must have DRL – daylight running lights – when in motion. older vehicles without dedicated DRL can comply with this law by keeping their main lights on during daytime. a TWIKE, obviously, doesn’t have any dedicated DRL and keeping the main lights on during daytime is not an option for most TWIKE pilots, including me: using 210-260W on just a bit of lighting just seems a tad wasteful and – in tw560’s case – will shave of 6-10 kms […]

under the hood #1: adding a GPRS module to TW231

a few years ago, with the arrival of the new dreifels controller, modern micro controllers employed within offered many benefits: handling complex charging scenarios more and detailed vehicle data overall better vehicle performance …and a few optional hardware extensions to extend overall vehicle usage comfort. one of these options is a sms module, which – three years ago – i think TW560 was the first one to have officially. the module (in its current release 1 feature level) can help alleviate problems ev-drivers experience when charging: unauthorized unplugging during charge, missing power from the grid, knowing when exactly the charge […]