1. Attachments are working again! Check out this thread for more details and to report any other bugs.

The Hybrid Convertible Project Prius v

Discussion in 'Prius v Technical Discussion' started by Bill the Engineer, Aug 8, 2014.

Thread Status:
Not open for further replies.
  1. Bill the Engineer

    Bill the Engineer Senior Member

    Joined:
    Jun 6, 2013
    1,044
    2,272
    467
    Location:
    At the beach in Delaware...
    Vehicle:
    2010 Prius
    Model:
    IV
    Sadly, neither is skipping over Winter in Ohio...

    Bill the Engineer

    Three photos approximately 12 months apart covering the last 2 years.

    [​IMG]

    I'm looking forward to next year!

    Bill the Engineer
     
  2. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

    Joined:
    May 11, 2005
    107,571
    48,862
    0
    Location:
    boston
    Vehicle:
    2012 Prius Plug-in
    Model:
    Plug-in Base
    us too! Merry Christmas!:)
     
    Prodigyplace likes this.
  3. Bill the Engineer

    Bill the Engineer Senior Member

    Joined:
    Jun 6, 2013
    1,044
    2,272
    467
    Location:
    At the beach in Delaware...
    Vehicle:
    2010 Prius
    Model:
    IV
    I really miss working in the garage, but at least I'm still planning and scheming...

    [​IMG][

    Bill the Engineer
     
  4. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

    Joined:
    May 11, 2005
    107,571
    48,862
    0
    Location:
    boston
    Vehicle:
    2012 Prius Plug-in
    Model:
    Plug-in Base
    planning is everything. i spent months designing our addition, it really pays off to think about things, and possible alternatives.
     
  5. alanclarkeau

    alanclarkeau Senior Member

    Joined:
    Feb 24, 2016
    7,041
    7,580
    0
    Location:
    near Brisbane, Australia
    Vehicle:
    2016 Prius
    Model:
    N/A
    Aren't you allowed to install a vice and welder in the kitchen?
    20161128_093305-1_resized.jpg
     
    #705 alanclarkeau, Nov 27, 2016
    Last edited: Nov 27, 2016
  6. Bill the Engineer

    Bill the Engineer Senior Member

    Joined:
    Jun 6, 2013
    1,044
    2,272
    467
    Location:
    At the beach in Delaware...
    Vehicle:
    2010 Prius
    Model:
    IV
    LOL. No!
     
    alanclarkeau likes this.
  7. Raytheeagle

    Raytheeagle Senior Member

    Joined:
    Jul 1, 2016
    11,251
    15,474
    0
    Location:
    Bay Area, California
    Vehicle:
    2019 Prius Prime
    Model:
    Prime Plus
    Couldn't you argue that it could aide in knife sharpening:p?
     
  8. mikefocke

    mikefocke Prius v Three 2012, Avalon 2011

    Joined:
    Nov 3, 2012
    3,626
    1,623
    0
    Location:
    Sanford, NC
    Vehicle:
    Other Hybrid
    Model:
    Limited
    I've enjoyed reading about your build. Haven't commented until something that happened today must have prompted me to.

    A friend called today and was telling me about what happened after she hit a deer at 70MPH. 8-point buck. She had been taught "anything smaller than an elephant, just hit it" and she did, But she must have twitched a bit, ran up against the guard rail, flipped over it and down an embankment rolling the mini-van 2.5 times. Unibody construction, 4 passengers. Seat belts fastened, everybody badly banged up but no fatalities except the deer. Side curtain airbags, etc deployed and kept everyone in the car.

    Have you though about how unexpected stuff can happen in designing this build?
     
    Bill the Engineer likes this.
  9. Bill the Engineer

    Bill the Engineer Senior Member

    Joined:
    Jun 6, 2013
    1,044
    2,272
    467
    Location:
    At the beach in Delaware...
    Vehicle:
    2010 Prius
    Model:
    IV
    Of course I am always thinking about safety when I am working on the design of the Firebrid. I am a degreed machine design engineer with 37 years of experience, half of which has been with vehicle components. I breathe safety.

    Think about what I was starting with. I had a 1967 Firebird convertible with a compromised rust-holed underbody. The car when it was new was so bad structurally that GM had to add sprung weights to all 4 corners to eliminate body flexing that at highway speeds would send the car off of the road. Considering I found one of the engine sub-frame anchor points rusted through and a broken spring leaf on the rear, the car as I had it would have been dangerous to drive...period!

    The car was not designed by GM with a full frame, so in an front end accident the dashboard could end up in your lap. There were no crumple zones designed into the car like with the Prius v chassis I am using. I am mounting the chromed steel Firebird front bumper to the original Prius v mounting points using Z-shaped brackets that I purposely designed to fold up in as front impact even before the crumple zone parts of the chassis take any damage. I feel sorry for any modern car that tangles with that chrome monster of a bumper.

    I am still deciding if I want to use the Firebird steering wheel on the Prius v steering column. If not, then the driver's airbag could return. It is not possible to put one on the passenger side. Airbags weren't even invented yet when the Firebird was built.

    On the sides, the Firebird 4-layer rocker panels are being welded to the tops of the full Prius v rocker panels, making them even stronger. Yes, I have no side airbags, but then with the top down there is nothing to mount them on. The safety issues with a convertible in a roll-over situation are well known but unavoidable. I do not plan to install a roll bar. It's not a race car.

    In the rear, safety is greatly enhanced since the old Firebird gas tank sat next to the rear bumper. I am using the Prius v configuration which is much safer. Plenty of crumple zone back there now.

    I could go on about other safety and suspension improvements, but that would be for another time. In any case, the car will be MUCH safer than the original Firebird even when it was new. It will never be up to modern standards, but it is not a modern car.

    Yes, I am constantly thinking about safety.

    Bill the Engineer
     
    rogerv, m.wynn, usnavystgc and 5 others like this.
  10. 2010pri

    2010pri New Member

    Joined:
    Oct 29, 2016
    8
    7
    0
    Location:
    Quincy Ca
    Vehicle:
    2010 Prius
    Model:
    IV
    I've always liked hi tech stuffed into the old iron it's a nice project to my thinking. When I look at your pictures what really takes me back is how I fell in love with those exterior tachs coming out of the hood.
     
    alanclarkeau likes this.
  11. alanclarkeau

    alanclarkeau Senior Member

    Joined:
    Feb 24, 2016
    7,041
    7,580
    0
    Location:
    near Brisbane, Australia
    Vehicle:
    2016 Prius
    Model:
    N/A
    I'm really interested in what you're doing - going back 15 yrs I contemplated doing something similar on a much smaller scale - I had in mind something like a '60s Jag (or Rover?) saloon with modern (reliable) mechanicals, nothing like as adventurous as a hybrid conversion. Circumstances changed, I lost interest - it probably won't happen now.

    And, yes, I'm certain that it would be far safer than when it was new, let alone after 50yrs of rust and fatigue.
     
  12. Bill the Engineer

    Bill the Engineer Senior Member

    Joined:
    Jun 6, 2013
    1,044
    2,272
    467
    Location:
    At the beach in Delaware...
    Vehicle:
    2010 Prius
    Model:
    IV
    Having more time to plan and scheme in the cold weather can pay off. All the comments about the length of the nose extension kept gnawing at me, since deep down inside I also thought it was too long. After some gymnastics on the CAD system, I have come up with a way to shorten the nose extension from 10.5" down to 4.5", while still using modified versions of the brackets that I already have made. That's as short as I can make it since other things start crunching together if it gets any shorter.

    Existing on left, modified on right.
    [​IMG]

    As it will be installed for the 4.5" extension.
    [​IMG][

    Now I REALLY can't wait for Spring to arrive!!!

    Bill the Engineer
     
  13. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

    Joined:
    May 11, 2005
    107,571
    48,862
    0
    Location:
    boston
    Vehicle:
    2012 Prius Plug-in
    Model:
    Plug-in Base
    that's pretty darn good, considering it takes toyota two generations to pull something like that off, and gm, six.
     
  14. xliderider

    xliderider Senior Member

    Joined:
    Apr 19, 2012
    7,842
    3,099
    0
    Location:
    Honolulu, HI
    Vehicle:
    2011 Prius
    Model:
    Three
    4.5 inches would probably go unnoticed by everyone, except a purist. Hope it works out. (y)
     
  15. gafortiby

    gafortiby Member

    Joined:
    Jul 29, 2015
    74
    45
    2
    Location:
    Colorado
    Vehicle:
    2012 Prius v wagon
    Model:
    Two
    Bill, I can't wait for spring either.
     
  16. Bill the Engineer

    Bill the Engineer Senior Member

    Joined:
    Jun 6, 2013
    1,044
    2,272
    467
    Location:
    At the beach in Delaware...
    Vehicle:
    2010 Prius
    Model:
    IV
    Seriously! This greeted me outside today.

    [​IMG]

    Bill the Engineer
     
    Prodigyplace and alanclarkeau like this.
  17. Bill the Engineer

    Bill the Engineer Senior Member

    Joined:
    Jun 6, 2013
    1,044
    2,272
    467
    Location:
    At the beach in Delaware...
    Vehicle:
    2010 Prius
    Model:
    IV
    Just playing with pixels to see what the shortened version will look like.

    As-is today:
    [​IMG]

    Proposed shortened version:
    [​IMG]

    C'mon April...

    Bill the Engineer
     
  18. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

    Joined:
    May 11, 2005
    107,571
    48,862
    0
    Location:
    boston
    Vehicle:
    2012 Prius Plug-in
    Model:
    Plug-in Base
    blech. snow here as well. 15 degrees thursday, and zero on thursday night. c'mon global warming!(y)
     
    Bill the Engineer likes this.
  19. ChapmanF

    ChapmanF Senior Member

    Joined:
    Mar 30, 2008
    23,073
    14,982
    0
    Location:
    Indiana, USA
    Vehicle:
    2010 Prius
    Model:
    IV
    Wha'd you think was powering your arctic air express delivery service?

    -Chap
     
    bisco likes this.
  20. gafortiby

    gafortiby Member

    Joined:
    Jul 29, 2015
    74
    45
    2
    Location:
    Colorado
    Vehicle:
    2012 Prius v wagon
    Model:
    Two
    Bill,
    Nice. I am particularly impressed that you edited the grey storage bin in the corner to make the picture look good.
     
    Bill the Engineer likes this.
Thread Status:
Not open for further replies.