EV and portable gens go together
 

We've all seen those memes right?
Yesterday my wife noticed one of those tall sprinter vans next to her at a traffic light with what she first thought was a gas station nozzle sticking out of the side of it. When it pulled away she saw a portable generator in the rear mounted on one of those receiver hitch cargo trays with the cord plugged in.
Yep, they're out there.

Re: EV and portable gens go together
 

My brother-in-law early in his engineering career was on a team that literally drove a van mounted generator in So Cal to service the GM EV1.

Re: EV and portable gens go together
 

That's how they did the development of the GM EV1 at the Proving Ground.

Pulled around a little trailer with a generator on it.

It's where the idea for the Volt came from.

K

Re: EV and portable gens go together
 

Kinda like this.

Re: EV and portable gens go together
 

Gotta' Love It, ! :lol::haha:

Re: EV and portable gens go together
 

Could it have been a camper conversion? I don’t think Sprinter vans are available as an EV . I’ve used the generator in the motor home while on the road but it’s built in .

Re: EV and portable gens go together
 

She said it was one of those "sprinter type" vans so...

Re: EV and portable gens go together
 

So, rather than use an emissions equipped to federal standards gas-powered engine blowing exhaust through a catalytic convertor, Run an electric motor and gas-powered generator with no emissions equipment that puts out as much pollution as a modern motor vehicle.

I'm no engineer, but why can't electric vehicles run a generator powered by their wheels as they drive?

Re: EV and portable gens go together
 

It violates the law of conservation of energy and mass.

You can't get back more than you put in.

You can, however, redeem the situation a bit through regenerative braking. Energy gathered during vehicle braking or engine braking can be put back into the battery pack.

K

Re: EV and portable gens go together
 

A friend has a Volt. For him, it is a nice vehicle. Full EV for most OKC area trips. Charges at home. No range issues when he visits his daughter who lives in the DFW area. He bought it used for a good price as the previous owner had concerns about the battery pack. One thing he has to track is how old the gas is if it has been a while since making a trip to the daughter's place.

Re: EV and portable gens go together
 

I assume like this? I seen this a couple years ago I wondered if it was an EV or a camper.

Re: EV and portable gens go together
 

I'm no engineer. I thought there could be like a dual system with an isolator and gearing off the wheel to spin the generator faster than the wheel

Re: EV and portable gens go together
 

That could work, but I think you'll find you generate enough energy to run a fan or something small.

K

Re: EV and portable gens go together
 

It would violate both the first and second laws of thermodynamics. You would have to have a system with zero heat loss - none whatsoever, and even then it could only power itself. It couldn't propel anything else - like a vehicle or a passenger.

Re: EV and portable gens go together
 

Can electric cars be charged with a generator? Isn't that what these vehicles are doing? Not questioning the science. Just want to understand. Are these generators on vans to run refrigeration to not rob the batteries of charge needed to power the vehicle?

Re: EV and portable gens go together
 

Camper roof air and vents. They don’t unplug because the generator has a remote start . My Champion 3500 generator has a wireless remote to start it