EAA-PHEV
 There are always a few intrepid folks who aren't satisfied with mass-produced products. These tinkerers always look to improve upon or tweak items churned out by assembly lines.
Ryan Fulcher is one of those dudes. A self-confessed "dabbler" who became interested in hybrid car technology when he bought a Honda Insight back in 2000, he's the man behind EAA-PHEV. Those seven letters are music to the ears of anyone who's interested in breaking away from the gas pump. His Electric Auto Association/Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicle site is a repository for information related to converting hybrid cars into plug-ins. Why on earth would you want a car you could charge in a wall socket? For starters, you might like getting 100 miles plus per gallon of gas. In fact, Ryan's currently getting that sort of MPG in his modified Prius Blue. The oh-so-knowledgeable Mr. Fulcher was kind enough to put on the brakes for a bit and chat with us about electric vehicles, his site, and how it all began... Hey Ryan, how did EAA-PHEV get started? I was the Webmaster for SEVA (Seattle EVA) and it came out of the hybrid pages I was writing for the site. Why did you choose a wiki format for the site? Well, once I started contributing to Wikipedia (mostly to the various Hybrid and EV pages) I realized how amazingly convenient it was to edit a page. It sure beat back end HTML editing. I also thought it would help to get more community contribution What's the response been like to the site? The response is pretty good. Not quite as much community as I had hoped for. We have about 5 regular contributors, but it's mostly me. It gets about 250-500 visits daily. What's been most gratifying about running it? Mostly getting the information out there for others to be able to use. I'm an OpenSource-kinda guy so that's where that comes from. I like to answer questions that people have. Repeating the same answers over and over gives me a chance to refine them and use them on the site. However, it's apparent (to me, anyway) that the site still needs lots of constant work, just like life in general. What was your first hybrid car experience? Well, in 2000 I bought a Honda Insight and thought it was the next great thing. What did you own prior to the Insight My first car was a D-50 Dodge pickup, then I drove a LeBaron, then a Bronco II, then a VW Vanagon (my favorite). The VW was breaking down, and I was left with my Kawa EX500 motorcycle, so I needed a new car. And I had my eye on the Insight before its release, so I got it as a birthday gift for myself when I sold the van. What attracted you to the Insight? There are so many interesting aspects to the Insight. It's all Aluminum, you can tweak the ICE (Internal Combustion Engine), it's more aerodynamic, etc. I think of it as the Acura NSX's little brother since they were built in the same factory. Were you being environmentally conscious in your decision making? That was part of it. I'm more of a driver though, I really like driving. I did autocross with the Insight for 2 seasons. You did street racing in an Insight? Heck ya! That thing is a blast. They aren't the quickest, but they are only 1700 lbs. wet and they corner like mad. Search on YouTube for Insight Racing—there's a guy that chases down Mustangs in an Insight. Do you still have the Insight? Yup, still have the Insight. That's my daily driver. It's looking a little raged, but it still drives fine. So this sparked your interest in EVs. When did you buy a Prius? Well, in mid-2004 Ron Gremban of CalCars demonstrated the PriusPlus, the first Prius PHEV conversion. I had been discussing the idea in theory for some time before that, but I didn't care for the Prius up to that point. The drivetrain was overly complex and the first Priuses looked like ugly turtles. Hondas were much simpler to explain to people, and the Insight looked much better in my opinion. But, in 2004 the Prius started to look more like the Insight... Ron proved it could be done and then I was all about the Prius. I got into researching it more intensely, so I could do it myself. I wanted to tell others how to do it and further the general idea, demonstrate that it was technically possible, show the advantages, and collect data for myself. I had been trying to help document the conversion process, so they chose me for their second conversion. They wanted me to help advance the documentation and get another car on the road in another state. [Ryan lives in Washington, outside of Seattle] That led to your Prius Blue? Yeah, I was the 10th Prius PHEV conversion. A team at the first Makers Faire converted it. What's next for you? There are all sorts of things that I would like to do. I'd like to do a sport-oriented EV conversion. Ever heard of NEDRA (National Electric Drag Racing Association)? Nope. You want to make an EV drag racer? Heck ya! I'm currently working on converting my Kawasaki EX500 motorcycle, and have plans to double the available horsepower in my Insight by dropping an EV conversion in the trunk to power the rear wheels, Then it will truly eat up cars at both the drag strip and autocross track. What sites do you frequent when you're online? Not that I can keep up with them, but (you'll like to hear) a number of EV/Hybrid related Yahoo! Groups. Plus Wikipedia, Slashdot, YouTube videos about EV's and Hybrids, Priuschat.org, and Pluginpartners. And of course, the sites that I run both as part of my job (DigiPen.edu) and just for kicks (SeattleEVA.org and EAA-PHEV.org) Wrap it up for us. What are your final thoughts about EVs? People are into EVs and PHEV's for all sorts of reasons. Fuel efficiency, fuel choice, economics, environment, national security, oil addiction, etc. But I think folks should get into EVs because they will love their performance. Thanks, Ryan! We know we can count on you to zip around town with utmost efficiency. Keep up the great work.
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