Motor placement for measurement

The adapter from RebirthAuto finally arrived late last week, photos of the adapter and the spline connection on the Siemens motor are here.  I was planning to build up the whole drivedrain and assemble the flywheel and clutch, but the flywheel bolts were backordered.  They should arrive this week.  But the clutch is not needed to bolt the motor and transmission to the adapter.  I first bolted the adapter to the transmission.  All of the top bolt holes and the two alignment pins lined up but to my surprise two of the bottom bolts were not even close to being in the correct place (photo).  I checked the paper work and it seems RebirthAuto sent me an adapter for a 2002 BMW transmission even though I had ordered an adapter for a 320i.  The transmission bolt patters are close but obviously somewhat different.  I don't know if missing these bolts would compromise the integrity of the drivetrain. The bolts are 7mm bolts and are not part of the load bearing area of the transmission. I emailed RebirthAuto about this issue - see what their response it.  Even without those two bolts I bolted the Siemens motor to the adapter - that was perfect.  I need the whole drive train assembled and placed in the car so I can measure where the motor mounts need to be to support the electric motor.  My plan is to use the same mounts that were used with the ICE if possible.  Using an engine lift (cherry picker) I was able to get the whole assembly in the engine bay.  However, once I got the motor assembly in I found that the engine lift arm was not long enough to position the assembly so I could attach the transmission to its mounting points.  I had to remove the front bumper and part of the air damn to get the lift in far enough.  I also had to jack up the front of the car so that I could work under it to mount the transmission.  I realized to get an accurate position I also needed to have the driveshaft mounted.  Pictures of the motor assembly in the engine bay are here.  One problem I found with the motor assembly is that there is not enough room in front of the motor for a double row battery box that I had planned on using.  I might have to make a smaller width  box or possibly a box that fits between the frame, where the ICE radiator was.  A battery box that size would hold less cells, but more than a single width box that spans between the wheel wells.  Another part of this motor assembly placement is to determine where the DMOC can be mounted.  The DMOC is much longer than the motor, almost 6" longer so it might be difficult to mount it in the same orientation that was used in the eTransit Connect.  Once the motor assembly was in it appears the DMOC is too long so in needs to be rotated 90 degrees and mount between the wheel wells, parallel to the firewall.  That orientation would require the motor to be rotated 90 degrees so the electrical connections would be on the top, instead of the side as they are now shown.

Comments   

0 #3 Al 2014-04-02 02:46
This DMOC fitment issue seems huge. What is the clearance problem? Does it appraoch the firewall too closely on the driver's side? Can you rotate the motor 180 degrees so the DMOC would then be on the passenger side of the motor? Is the clearance issue about the proximity to the wheel well? I see cardboard cutouts with measrements drawn on them. You really cannot rotate the motor 90 degrees without changing the adaptor plate, or can you?

Keep in mind all of these components must remain accessible for service, right?

Are there any heating issues to contend with, such as a heat shield for the master cylinder?
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0 #2 Al 2014-04-02 02:35
Ed, could you configure a battery box built around the protrusion of the front of the motor?
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0 #1 Al 2014-04-02 02:18
" All of the top bolt holes and the two alignment pins lined up but to my surprise two of the bottom bolts were not even close to being in the correct place (photo). I checked the paper work and it seems RebirthAuto sent me an adapter for a 2002 BMW transmission even though I had ordered an adapter for a 320i."

Ed, I suspect those bolt holes on the transmission bell housing were for a cover plate that went between the engine and bell housing, just a dust cover, essentially. I doubt they are critical to the operation of the engine/transmis sion.
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