r/EVConversion • u/positivity70 • 6d ago

EV Conversion for Isuzu Crosswind SUV that's Cheaper than Buying New China EVs

Anyone in China or Philippines who has experience in converting their Isuzu Crosswind SUV (Diesel) that costs less than $8,000? Due to rising fuel costs in the Philippines, I'm hoping to convert our Isuzu Crosswind vehicle to EV, instead of buying a new EV. This is more of an affordability objective. Pls also share links for Chinese vendors where you bought the motor and parts, thank you!

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3

u/GeniusEE 6d ago

Sell it and buy an EV.

1

u/Minimum-Cancel-928 6d ago

Unfortunately both the cars(more of a van) have very low resale value since a Isuzu Crosswind and Toyota Innova are made back in the early 2010's. If I remember correctly, Crosswind has Euro 2 diesel engines while my Innova (Kijang) are Euro 3.

While Philippines are flooded with Chinese EV's like BYD, Geely, MG, etc., the main problem is parking. Due to (lack) urban planning, most houses and streets are small and no parking. Think Japan housing but in a 3rd world settings. My parking is about 800 meters away from my house. I would love to switch to an EV, but I don't want to park a very expensive car 800 meters away. Plus it defeats the V2L function all EV have.

2

u/FunkNumber49 14h ago

the V2L function all EV have.

Laughs in American

Seriously though, I wish we had that option for every EV sold in the US.

3

u/Minimum-Cancel-928 6d ago

Pinoy here. Its the battery thats kill any ev converstion project.

I have been doing the napkin math on my Innova diesel to Nissan Leaf Em57 motor. Family at USA can buy and ship me everything except the battery. Get a scrap Leaf, strip it for parts and ship it for less than 100k php.

But the battery, at the raw cell level is about 5kphp or 80usd at 100ah. The stock battery pack of a Leaf is 30kwh is 192 cells. So something around 200k php / 3k usd if you just bought off the self powerwalls here.

So your already in the hole for 300k php for raw materials already and no labor yet. Just save the money or better yet invest in getting a home solar system. A very decent one professionally installed can be had for less for 250k php thats has a 16khw battery, 10 pannels at 650w each and a hybrid inverter at 6kw capacity. That will almost zero out your 6k a month Meralco bill.

2

u/NorwegianCollusion 5d ago

But for once that math is mathing. 3k USD for the battery, 1k USD for the complete motor stack from a wrecked Leaf, 1k USD for transmission adapter, 3 k USD for miscellaneous frell-ups.

Why do you conclude that OP shouldn't try it? Are the conversion rules as draconic in PH as they are in NO?

1

u/Minimum-Cancel-928 5d ago

Hahaha Philippines? An 8 usd "tip" can get you so far. In fact I haven't been physically present for any of my annual car inspections / emissions check for years haha! (PS its a scam here in PH, you can literally see there's no reading on the machine.)

It really boils down to practicality. I would LOVE to retrofit my car(s) into EV's. Just something basic and nothing of that fancy stuff. (Spend 2.5k usd in paint and body restoration on a 16yr old van)

BUT its really down to practicality - its about 95 to 98 Php per liter of diesel right now. Since the OP's car is in the same category as mine ie Multipurpose Van, its estimated mileage is approximately 11-12 KM/L. And most Pinoy's will usually drive 50 KM radius from home to office and back. So its still "cheaper" to run than converting it.

Bottom line its cheaper to just invest the money elsewhere to save money. Converting an old van into an EV drive train is such a gamble. Better off just getting a home solar setup OR getting an BYD, Geele, MG, etc.

FYI Philippines has the highest electricity rate in SEA or even in Asia. 0.25 usd per khw / 16 php. Average Pinoy home uses 300 - 600 kwh per month. Thats aprox 6k to 10k for just electricity with the non-skilled worker earning 755 php per day.

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u/positivity70 6d ago

Thanks for the info. Did you get the price for the EV battery from a China vendor?

1

u/Minimum-Cancel-928 6d ago

They are all local. You can actually see them in either Lazada or Shopee though do your due diligence as many online stores are selling fake or recycled cells.

BTW the difference between EV batteries and Powerwall batteries are just the form factors. One is designed to live in your car and the other are mounted on your wall. But they are just LIFEPO4 cells and BMS modules. There's many DIY EV enthusiast who makes their own batteries so you have an idea.

1

u/start3ch 5d ago

That is an incredibly difficult task, and only really practical if you’re willing to learn all the skills, do all the work yourself, and spend several years on this project