Re: Batteries - EV Conversion

On 2/27/2025 5:10 PM, bp@www.zefox.net wrote:

Bob La Londe <none@none.com99> wrote:

>
"The sheet metal behind it is all perfect for its age. 2013 Dodge Ram
1500 Extended Cab.  Its a Dodge.  I am sure there is stuff that doesn't
work, but cosmetically it could be a nice truck."  Yuma, Az
>

Apologies for the oversight....must have skipped it.

Its all good.  If it wasn't more a rant than a creative post it would have stood out more.

 

I rarely if ever offer anything for free anymore.  To many vultures out
there who profiteer off of it, rather than people with a real need who
would appreciate it.

 2013 is much newer than I imagined. Is scrapping it an improvement?

My initial thought was to be good to a renter who had been good to us, and may come back to the area at some future date.  Disposing of a vehicle without any cost to myself.  That it turned out to be a rather nice truck was a bonus (and a curse).  Scrapping probably pays for the time I will have in dealing with it since they gave me the title.
Its a curse because if it wasn't decent I would have no issue with dragging it up on a trailer and hauling it to a salvage yard.  Straight body, haven't noticed any rust, and the interior is intact.  All the bits and pieces laying in the bed to put the grill back together look okay too.  I have a hard time just "throwing it away," even if I'll get paid for it.

I used to, but I grew weary of chasing off carrion
eaters.  If I stumble across somebody, but not to the general public
maybe.

 

There are people who cruise the marketplace, craigslist, next door, etc looking for opportunities to profiteer.  I don't have an issue with it on principle if they are not vultures preying on the weak or tweakers looking for a quick buck to buy an 8-ball.  There are legit salvage and rebuild buyers as well.  Unfortunately when I see far more of the former than the later when I offer something cheap or free to help somebody out.
I'm not against a good deal, but I am against theft.

If you have the time that seems like the most productive use for it.
If it could be put back on the road for something close to the cost
of a similar used truck it sounds worthwhile. A straight, rust-free
body is irreplaceable.

Yeah, putting a new reman engine in it would the most labor, but the least cost in materials to put it back on the road.  I'm still actually leaning towards an EV if I can find the right stuff.  The Chinese are leaps and bounds ahead of the US EV market.  I can buy a new Chinese 200hp (which would be good for this application) even cheaper than the Ford Mach-E, but I find the same problem.  A lack of supply (that I can buy) for everything to make it work.

Thanks for writing,

You are welcome.  I hope you got some entertainment from the reading of it.  At least as much as the stress reduction I received from writing it.

bob prohaska
 

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Bob La Londe
CNC Molds N Stuff
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