Evaluation of Electric Vehicles as an Alternative for Work Trip and ...

the state-of-art ALAB car. All of the problems in the ALAB car were
believed to be repairable.
It was necessary to replace the 95 Ah ALAB battery pack with new
85 Ah ALABs. The manufacturer had discontinued production of the 95 Ah
batteries sometime in 1996 and began producing a slightly smaller ALAB
with 85 Ah capacity. The manufacturer stated that the 85 Ah ALAB had
been developed for one of the big three automakers that intended to use
the ALAB in their battery-electric minivan. It was believed also that
the ALAB would remain “healthier” if charged at a quicker rate. A dual-
amperage charger was installed for 1997, which operated at either 30 or
50 Amps. Finally, a new low-voltage cut-off guideline of 1.8 V/cell
(10.8 V/battery) was established.
The revised project work plan called for resuming the ALAB-car
evaluation. Once all the repairs were completed, the Department's
evaluation resumed in May 1997.
85 Ah ALAB Car – May 1997 to March 1998
The repaired 85Ah ALAB car was delivered in time for participation
in the 1997 American Tour De Sol (ATdS), again with the support of
Rideshare. Results from the 1997 ATdS were again positive; details are
reported in Appendix B. On odd-numbered years, the ATdS featured hilly
and mountainous highway terrain. The ALAB car had no problem driving
the Kancamagus Highway. The drives on this highway reached an elevation
of 2,800 ft above mean sea level and involved climbing grades of up to
12.7 percent at 35-40 mph.
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