Western Michigan University physics professor converts 1992 Honda Civic into electric vehicle

Ambrosia Neldon | By Ambrosia Neldon | The Kalamazoo Gazette
on January 29, 2012 at 3:00 PM, updated January 29, 2012 at 11:45 PM
Paul Pancella.JPGView full sizeProfessor Paul Pancella stands next to his car, a 1992 Honda Civic, that he converted to an all-electric vehicle, in the parking lot outside of Rood Hall at Western Michigan University on Friday, Jan. 27. Pancella held a public lecture about how he converted the car.
KALAMAZOO — A Western Michigan University physics professor explained how his passion for efficiency convinced him to convert his car into an all-electric power car at a lecture on Friday.

Professor Paul Pancella, who specializes in experimental nuclear physics, has been a professor at WMU since 1990. In 2002, he became chair of the physics department.

Pancella recently converted a 1992 Honda Civic hatchback from its original gasoline-powered state into a car completely powered by electricity. The car, which he named "Hondatron," was the topic of the lecture.

"This is not new technology and by no means groundbreaking-type stuff," Pancella said. "But [electric cars] are difficult to get a hold of, and I thought I would try it."

Pancella bought the car slightly used and drove it on gasoline for 15 years. In 2007, when the engine went out in the Honda, Pancella was fed up with trying to fix it. Instead of scrapping the car, he decided to take the engine out and convert the vehicle into an electric car.

"I've been interested in electric vehicles sort of as a subset of my interest in efficiency and transportation in general," he said.

Pancella explained the method to his madness to a lecture hall full of science and math students at WMU.

Paul Pancella.JPGView full sizeBatteries in Professor Paul Pancella's 1992 Honda Civic are under the hood and also in the trunk. Pancella held a free public lecture in Rood Hall on Western Michigan University's campus on Friday, Jan. 28 to talk about his work on the vehicle.

"If you're going to use any energy besides your muscles to move you around, efficiency's got to be a value. There's really a huge difference in efficiency between an electric motor and an internal combustion engine," he said.

As he developed the car, Pancella realized how much money and energy he was saving himself. There were already electric cars being made and sold, but the number available to the public is limited.

Pancella received help from some friends who were more experienced with automobiles than he was, but did much of the work on the car himself.

"I'm not a car guy, but I know people," he said.

"I never thought that as a physicist that I would be taking a car apart, but it's a lot easier to take things apart when you don't have to worry about putting them back in," he said.

Most automobile converters up until this point had used lead-acid batteries, but 30-60 pounds of lead-acid are needed for every mile range, so he hoped to find an alternative to power the car.

"Fortunately now, there is a viable alternative available ... lithium iron phosphate (LiFepo4) battery which is rechargeable," Pancella said.

"I'm a lot more efficient using this than the lead-acid battery."

He started taking the old engine out of the car in July of 2008. The LiFepo4 batteries, a battery charger and a new electric motor replaced the old gasoline-powered motor.

"There are economic advantages for the consumer. Often since we're still in the early stages, they look expensive from the long end, but we're still doing research on how to make them cheaper," Pancella said.

The list of required maintenance items for an electric car is much shorter than the list of parts needed for an internal combustion engine.

"So, if you're like me you'll be happy that there's less stuff that can break," Pancella said.

On the front of the car is an electrical source that plugs into a three-prong electrical wall socket.

"I was happy (and surprised) to see that it works," he said.

Pancella said he hopes that soon more cars will be running on electric energy at an affordable cost for the public.

Contact Ambrosia Neldon at or 269-388-8524.