1998 Dodge Dakota

ELECTRK Pickup truck

Unspecified

Manual

1B7GL22X9WS631130

Electric

BATTERY ELECTRIC PICKUP TRUCK Since this truck only has 7591 miles on it and has been parked mostly indoors for the last twelve years it is in almost new condition inside and out. I purchased this vehicle new in January 1998 for the purpose of turning it into a battery powered truck. After driving it about 5000 miles on the engine that it came with I personally oversaw every aspect of converting it to electric drive and as you can see everything was done in a professional manner. If you have driven an electric vehicle you already know the unbelievable experience of completely silent power and totally vibration free driving that is so compelling. I have driven this truck at 70 mph on the freeway so it is not just a glorified golf cart. I invested significant $$ and chose top rated components for this project and although the truck worked well my interests shifted to making biodiesel and using that as my daily transportation fuel. I had always thought I would someday get back to this ELECTRK project and update it to lithium batteries as the current battery pack is used up, but my focus now remains on biofuels so it is now time to part with this truck. Some of the primary electric vehicle components I used are a Kostov DC motor, an Auburn PWC600-192 1200 amp water cooled controller, a Zivan NG-5 charger, plus other specialty components. Some other extras that have already been installed are load assist air bags on the rear suspension, a hydraulic brake lock, plus dual element ceramic heaters. Of course I retained the power steering by installing an electric hydraulic pump and the power brakes were retained by installing an electric vacuum pump and reservoir. The truck is fully functional and runs today, but the current 168 volt battery pack, 28 Trojan T125s, is "used up". Here is where you can make this project your own and yet not have to do a total electric vehicle conversion to do it, which is a lot of work I can tell you from experience. The quickest and least expensive route to be able to drive this truck daily would be to replace the existing 168 volt battery pack with 28 new 6-volt deep cycle batteries such as the Trojan T125s that are in it now. If you are willing to invest more $$, better still might be to step up to more current battery technology such as lithium type batteries (about 500 lbs of batteries instead of 1800 lbs) and significantly improve performance and range as well as possibly regaining full use of the pickup bed. The pickup bed has a tilt feature and there are professionally fabricated aluminum battery boxes under the bed that could contain a new battery pack. Other possible reconfiguration ideas are only limited by your imagination and willingness to further invest in this 1998 Dodge Dakota ELECTRK. If this unique opportunity appeals to you, but you may have further questions please e-mail me at pjoefoss@hotmail.com.