Electrical Work and a Horn

I mounted the lower electrics tray today and began wiring up some of the components. Unfortunately as soon as I'd begin working on one component, I'd realize I needed a connector I didn't have, so I'd move to another only to find the same thing. Instead, I did what I could and made a list of connectors that I need.

Those of you who have been paying close attention will notice that the component on the upper right (in this picture) is different from the one I was planning to use, pictured in an earlier post. That is the position I set aside for the relay for the heating element. The original relay is really only designed for 10 amps at 150 VDC. Well, with the change in batteries, there was a change in voltage as well. The new pack will have as much as 165 VDC, and the heater can draw nearly 20 amps. I mean I want the heater to warm the car, but not by setting it on fire. So, I needed something else. The cylinder like component you see there is a high voltage contactor. It's really kind of overkill for the application, but it will work. I'll be using a similar one to actually turn the car on and off. I originally bought it to use as the relay for the DC motor I was going to use to power the A/C compressor. But when that motor didn't fit, and I had to redesign things, that contactor was going to go unused. Well, not anymore! I should get heat, with no fires. Always a good thing in a car.



I also mounted up the pedestrian horn today. Since the car will likely sneak through parking lots and streets in a virtual stealth mode, there's always the possibility that I'll need to make someone aware of my presence. I actually borrowed this idea from GM and the original EV1 car. The pedestrian horn is on a separate switch, and is about half as loud. There's a little screw on the back of the horn that lets you set the volume. No need to scare someone out of their skin with a blast from the regular horn.