Acknowledgement:   The author would like to express grateful appreciation to Jeff Clearwater, who built the first known version of "CivicWithACord" years ago, and re-built it in 2001.  Jeff provided crucial details and a lifetime of experience to make the project possible.
 

Disclaimer of Liability and Assumption of Risk:  Working with high voltages in electric vehicles can be dangerous.  Working with welding equipment or plasma torch or sawzall necessary to fabricate battery racks or create holes necessary to lay the battery racks within an electric vehicle can be dangerous.  This text has taken great pains to anticipate potential sources of injury, but every reader has varying levels of expertise for each step, and Civic gliders will differ by trim line, model year, and production line.  Finally, the author is obviously not present to supervise nor inspect the manufacture or installation or use of components recommended by this text.
 While every effort has been made to avoid injuries during the construction and operation of this electric vehicle, the purchaser/builder solely assumes all risk.  Further, the purchaser of this book, and builder of the vehicle, agree to hold harmless Robert M. Bath and any associates from all loss, liability, or damage resulting from any failures or defects in any project completed with these instructions.  It is suggested that the builder follow common-sense safety procedures, such as the utilization of gloves where working with high voltages, and ear protection and goggles when working with power tools.

Copyright:  CivicWithACord is © 2002 by Robert M. Bath.  All rights reserved.  This online document may only be reproduced via printer by individuals who have purchased the DVD that accompanies this website.  Furthermore, the DVD and the journal  are both _not_ to be transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic (facsimile, scanning, e-mail, photocopying, tape recording, videotape recording, etc). or mechanical, (except as indicated between individuals who have purchased the DVD) without the express written consent of the author/publisher, except where permitted by law.

General Disclaimer:  Honda is a registered trademark of Honda Motors, Inc. and is in no business relationship or affiliation with CivicWithACord.

General Notes:
 This text is in reference to conversion of a 1992-1995 model year (also known as "5th generation") Honda Civic sedan with manual (S20) transmission to all-electric power.  Other Civics can be converted, but construction techniques likely will need to be altered in many places.  The weight of successive Civics increases by about 200 lbs. 4th generation Civics lack an airbag, and are likely not quite as crashworthy, nor do they have as much space for batteries.  As a result, I feel optimum performance is likely to be realized with this particular glider.
 This text assumes the reader possesses a Helm manual, which is currently the factory authorized manual for Honda automobiles.
 The weight works as follows:
A stock DX Civic sedan with air conditioning and a manual transmission will weigh 2220 lbs.  The GVWR of the car is 3070 lbs. You'll remove roughly 270 lbs. of engine block, heat shields, exhaust, and fuel filler neck and fuel tank.  To the "glider" you've prepared, you'll add: 18 batteries at 64-67 lbs. each = 1206 lbs., plus 123 lbs. of electric motor; total: 1309 lbs.  The car's new weight will be around 3300 lbs.; about 230 lbs. over the GVWR of the car.  Fortunately, engineers design vehicles with a bit of "wiggle room", so to speak.  The original CivicWithACord has driven 15,000 miles without incident in this configuration. Needless to say, when you drive, keep adequate following distance.
 

List of Preferred Equipment, Sources, and Approximate Costs:
8" Motor Advanced DC Motors 1400  (Have heard raves about "Netgain" motors, too).
DCP Raptor Controller DCP-1200         2400
Main Contactor        70
Heinemann Circuit Breaker  170
E-Meter                           430
Shunt                                    21
50 Ft. Welding Cable               150
Belktronix DC/DC Converter                395
Belktronix e-meter power supply   20
Adapter Plate (Electro-Automotive?)    720
Relays       16
Barrier Strip      10
Vacuum System  (Gast pref. to Thomas)  350
Manzanita Micro Charger      PFC-20 1500
Interconnect Lugs       50
Heater Core & Sw/spk. suppr.  112.50
Powdercoating   (needs to be epoxy, not polyester!)     50
Coil over and shock/strut upgrade    950
Welding               75
Batteries                 1260
Fusible links              84
Subtotal                 $ 10,243.50
A little searching will determine whether the components listed above are readily available EVParts.com, ElectroAutomotive.com, Belktronix.com or EVAmerica.com.

List of Tools and Supplies:
Helm, Inc. Manual            62
Polypropylene Sheet (3/16") and welding rod 70
Welding Gun for above   190 or rent
Air compressor for above    rental
Crimper    40
"True RMS" Voltmeter   70
Socket set: metric and imperial  14mm deep socket for suspension work; 10 mm shallow socket through 15 mm will be your best friend for most other work.
Wire in Orange, Red Yellow, Black, White, Green, and Blue colors, 12 guage 20
Wire, 8 guage, in red & black, 30 ft. 10
Welding gauge crimper & cutter
Shrink Tubing for above
Dremel, or comparable cutting tool
Tape measure
Level, pref. post type, for working in 2-dimensions
Drill bits, all sizes, and both cordless and AC drill
 

Initial Prep Work:
 Once you get your glider, several steps will need to be completed to make it ready for electric power.  Those are delineated below.  At the same time, there may be some components (interior, headlights, etc.) that need refurbishing so that you can be proud of your project once it hits the road.  I suggest you obtain them from a salvage yard that specializes in Honda components, such as http://www.partsadventure.com/

MECHANICAL:
1)  Remove the engine block, leaving the transmission mounted. Save all transmission bolts, engine mount bolts, etc.  Save the flywheel & clutch with all applicable bolts.  Remove the fuel tank, and the fuel filler neck.
2)  Carefully remove the clutch assembly.  Using a micrometer, measure the distance from the bell housing on the motor, to the front-most surface of the flywheel.  It should be between .800 and .815.  (I lacked a microm. with a wide flange, thus the range).  ElectroAuto can provide you with a suitable adapter plate for the Civic.  Just mention that it needs to fit an S20 tranny.
3)  Note the cluster of 4 mm steel tubes running from behind the steering rack, under the driver's seat, and toward the rear.  The two outermost pipes are fuel related, and can be removed.  The innermost are brake related, so be especially careful not to crimp or cut them.  This detail is not clearly illustrated in the Helm manual.
4)  Sedans come with a power steering rack.  Available space is at a premium, and most will choose to keep expenses down, so it will be necessary to replace the power rack with a manual one from a CX hatchback, for example.  It is possible to run the power steering from an electric pump.  (Cost is about $800, from Canadian Electric Vehicles).  It will draw about 6-30 amps, depending upon speed, angle of turn, etc.  Realize that the cooling tube for the power steering is currently routed right where one of your batteries will go, so that would need re-routing.  Otherwise, purchase a manual rack, plus the following Honda spacers: 53504-SR3-A00, A.K.A. 396040 "Steering spacer" and 53503-SB2-010, AKA "steering grommet".  Be careful to turn the steering wheel as little as possible during the steering rack replacement, as it is possible to damage the "cable reel," (part of the Supplemental Restraint System).
5)  You'll need to remove the air conditioning system. (Sorry!)  Take the vehicle to a licensed AC mechanic, and have the refridgerant removed.  The rest is pretty straightforward, but note that you'll need to have a heater duct (P/N 20041 on Majestic Honda's webpage, (or hit the local junkyard).  The DX models come equipped with this duct, where the AC would normally reside.
 

Prepping the Electrical Harness:
1)  After removing the engine, you'll have a long main wiring harness I call "the snake".  Locate wiring connector C110 and C112.  Mark them in some conspicuous manner.You’ll need to carefully strip it down-- take all of the electrical tape and plastic sheathing off.
3) Trace C110 (yel, grn/blk) to C126.  This runs your back-up indicator light.  You’ll need to save C126.  The rest of the snake can be discarded.
3)  Trace C112 down the snake (yel/wht, yel/blu, blk) to C126.  This runs the speedo and/or tach.
4)  Follow the white/blue wire going away from connector C126.  It is the indicator for the 12V battery, and would make a suitable point for indicating that the EV is "on".  Note that it will connect to ground, not hot, to complete the circuit and indicate your vehicle is "on."
5)  Now you can cut and tape off the remaining connections to C126.
6)  Pull C303 away from the snake.  Take note of the black/yel heavy guage wire.  This will be the beginning of your low-voltage EV system, going to the DCDC converter and 12V aux. battery eventually.

Dash panel:  Decide if you intend to run a heater using the existing ductwork, and also if you want your E-meter to go in the grey part of the dash where the remote-operated side-view mirrors are located on the LX and EX  models.  If the answer to one or both of these questions is "yes," you will need to remove the dash panel to access the heater core.  This is no small operation!  Allow a full day for the project, then proceed to step 1 in section A.  Otherwise, go to section B.

SECTION A:
1)  Using a screwdriver, pop out the cover for the side-view mirror cutout.  Measure 0.5 cm up from the cutout.  This will be the top of your 2" circle.  Mark a 2" radius around this with a pencil, centering it on each of the sides.  Using a Dremel tool, remove the top and bottom of the arc, so that the E-meter fits in.  (I think Honda made this cutout for EV enthusiasts)!
2)  You’ll need to have twisted pair orange and green wires for the shunt (see E-meter manual).  A cordless drill makes the job much easier.  Remember that the twisting process will slurp up some length of wire, and you really want about 6-8 ft. of length after the job is done.  Cut (but don't twist) your red, blue, and black leads to the same length.  Tape them all together carefully, so that you wire the meter properly.
3)  Feed the ends of these wires through the dash, then finally through the firewall.  Wire the E-meter as indicated on the manual, using twisted orange/green for the shunt, etc.  You can tape the 5 wires together.

4)  Now you can finish installing the ceramic heater core, and pull the old core.

SECTION B:
Pull out the black instrument panel, using instructions from the Helm manual.  You'll need to slide a small screwdriver under the hazard light mount, and pop it out.
 

Best option for the E-meter, especially LX/EX:  Going on E-bay, type in "pod pillar".  This is a mount for nitrous oxide, etc.  It can also be used for an E-meter.  I got one for about $20.  It attaches next to the windshield (the pillar).  You route your wiring through the dash, and up to the e-meter.  Visibility will be the best here.  The meter will jut out of the pod a bit, but some fancy plastic welding or epoxy will do the job just fine.

Other options for mounting the E-meter:
In the DX model, the side-view mirrors are hand-controlled, so the left-most part of the dash has unused plastic tabs.  You can insert a screwdriver in to pop them out. A 2" hole will need to be Dremeled out here.  Another option is to re-mount the hazard light switch, and mount it there.  Use the top of the clock mount for the guide to the top of the hole.  Your bottom will be where the hazard light used to be mounted.  Retain and re-mount the hazard light somewhere else.  Note that it has multiple switches inside it, and cannot be replaced with a simple SPST switch.
 

Heater Prep:
 There is an unused switch cover right next to the defroster.  Slide a screwdriver in to pop it out.  Dremel or drill your mounting hole for a switch to control the heater, and remove any plastic that will interfere with this switch sitting in the housing.  Connect 6' of #16 white (constant hot), grey (device hot), and black (ground) wiring to it to run to the heater relay.  Thread them through the hole on the passenger side of the car, back to the engine compartment.  Mark them heater control.  Using hot glue, set the switch and housing in place.
  Meanwhile, prepare your ceramic heater element by soldering connections between terminals 2 and 4, and also connecting 1, 3, and 5 with any color #10 wire.  Solder a #10 6' length of black wire to pin 2, and solder a #10 6' length of red wire to pin 1, as it will carry close to 13A of juice.  Weave these through the housing of the heater element, and insert the element into the old heater casing.  (I’ve presumed you've removed the old heater core by now).
   You’ll need to fabricate a piece of sheet metal that is 5/8" cm x 4"  or so to cover the old holes for the heater core pipe.  Also, at the 2" mark along this strip, hacksaw a groove that is 1/4" deep.  It should now fit perfectly.  Thread the two wires from the ceramic element through the only hole remaining on the heater casing (it's rectangular, roughly 1 cm square in the bottom).  Thread these to the engine compartment, and mark them heater core.
Heater Relay:  Cut a 5" x 3-3/4" x 1/8" (13 cm x 9.5 cm x 0.3 cm) piece of aluminum.  Use template (1) as shown.  Give a 22 degree bend on each of the dashed lines.  Mount the components as indicated, and also the discrete components at this time to supress arcs that occur as the circuit is activated.  Mount the relay next to the controller and the strut mount.  You’ll want to run the high voltage wiring separately and protect it as it enters the cabin.

Vacuum Pump:
 The goal is to mount the pump next to the braking system it will assist.  I found space right above the drivers side motor mount.  (see template).

Inductive Throttle Mount:   I found that the strut tower and the original engine mount make wonderful places to place the throttle cable.   (see template)  Some people use a potentiometer (potbox), but the resistive element eventually wears down.  On the flip side, that inductive throttle will affect your FM radio reception.

DCDC Converter: Mounts easily in the space left that you removed the battery from.  The 12V and relays harness is still there.  MAKE CERTAIN you have PLENTY of AMPS on the aux. line.  Originally I had a DCP (30 ampere) model of DCDC converter (featured in the video), but have since changed it to a (higher power) Belktronix (60 ampere) model.  In other words, when you are driving in the winter, your aux. battery capacity will already be less.  Add to that wipers in the rain, your rear defroster, headlights, heater blower, and possibly stereo-- will you have enough amps on your low voltage line, or will your headlights go dim, your wipers slow, and the logic board of your controller turn off?  NOT GOOD.  Use a high amperage DCDC unit!

Firewall battery rack fabrication:

Decision time: On the DVD, there are two configurations for this rack: 4 x 1 (done on the sedan and hatch), or 2x1x2 (done on the del Sol).  I have not personally attempted mounting the DCP controller with the del Sol rack configuration, but the del Sol configuration can accompany a 9" motor.  At this point, you'll need to decide which motor you are going to use, and thus which firewall rack to use.

Note that if you're using US8VGC batteries, that the batteries are 9.5" high _after_ excluding the electrolyte fill caps.  The point is that the bottom of the brake reservoir cap will serve as your indicator for the placement of the batteries; ie, the top of the rack will be 9.5" below the bottom of the brake fluid reservoir cap.
To accomplish this, the following mounting tabs must be made to the rack itself:
left front:  measure 3.5 " back from the front of the rack.  The tab will extend down 2", from the middle of the angle iron.
left firewall: must go down 2" toward the firewall, after going down 2"
right front:  measure in 1" from the front of the rack.  Go out 4 1/8", then down 1"
left front: must go down 2", then over 3 1/8”, but must be angled out such that it goes toward the firewall about 1/2".

Headlight Battery Rack:  Again, remember that the rack can't protrude any higher than 9.5" below the front headlights.  The center left battery must be pushed forward slightly to avoid the slave cylinder for the clutch.  Since the bolt heads on the tow hooks lose you 3/8" on each side, you'll need to make a decision:  You can either remove the bolts that attach the tow hooks, and weld them directly to the car, or b) or remove 1/8" of the bolt head on each side, and measure the batteries individually to make them fit.

Rear Battery Rack:  The frame rails are 32.25" apart in the rear of the car.  If you're using US8VGC batteries, do the math and note that you'll need 30.75" for the batteries, plus about 3/16" more for swelling as the batteries age.  Add the space that two ends of a polypropylene box to put them in occupy, and you've just added 3/8" more.  That means that your basket that the polypropy box fits in MUST be slightly less than 32.25 to fit between these frame rails.
  Next:  If the whole box is too far forward, you'll run into suspension components.  If you go too far backward, you lose a tow hook, and you're affecting the steering by placing more weight in the rear.  Sooo, locate the drain plug in the center of the spare tire well.  Measure 2" forward of this plug.  Said another way, either plasma torch or sawzall just right behind that suspension member and work toward the rear of the vehicle.  (Ie, this will be the frontmost point  on your rack, and you’ll extend a line between the two frame rails that bisects this point).  From side to side ,you will be cutting into a frame member.  Since the car rarely will have a passenger on the right, it makes sense to cut into the passenger side frame member.  This cut need only extend about 1/2" into the frame member to accomodate the size of the battery rack (above; also on paperwork included with DVD).

Rear Battery Box:
A battery box is incorporated to the design for several reasons: transporting anything metal in the trunk could cause a short across the batteries; charging produces minute amounts of acid vapors; charging releases hydrogen gas to the cabin-- esp. the electronic charger, causing open traces.  A battery box designed to vent the acid vapors and hydrogen addresses these issues.  Port Plastics is a good supplier of polypropylene, which is durable and withstands both battery acid, and the baking soda you'll use to remove the battery acid.  You need a special welding tool to weld it with wire polypropylene.  It costs about $190.  I used 3/16" poly and 3/16" wire rod.  Exact dimensions of the box (to hold 9 8-volt batts.) are 31-3/4" x 22" x 11-3/4".  This is due to the dimensions of the batteries being 10.25" x 7-1/8", (multiply each dimension by 3).
Some handy tips: a) Poly propylene welders _really_ get hot; be careful.  b) They work best at exactly 3 PSI-- Too little air press. and the PP melts into threads all over the place.  Too much, and the heat isn't enough-- it requires a TON of muscle; c) Leave about 1/16" to 1/8" between all of your pieces, you’ll fill them in with the wire rod as you feed it. d) prep work is everything (ie, vise things together, hold with wood, clean, etc.  e) A wood file and a chisel work great at undoing extra blobs which would intrude on battery space.  f) For strength, weld both sides, not just the one facing the batteries.  g)  When welding in high humidity, try to use an inline dehumidifier, as the water makes bonding more difficult.
 The top will eventually be held down by steel.  But to keep the battery box top square, line it with foam insulation, and make some tabs on the top which will line up the box.  In other words, inset these tabs 3/16" from the corners.
 

Circuit Breaker:  Slide under the car, at roughly the location of the handbrake.  What a convenient location to disable the electrical end of the vehicle as well, right?  Note the cross piece there.  We need to mount the breaker right behind that.
Using the Helm manual, remove the plastic cover on the manual shift, and the handbrake.  Remember that the Heineman breaker has a switch that is 3/4" wide, and 1.5" long.  You're going to file and Dremel the plastic to make a rectangle of that dimension--
Intrude forward into the plastic cosmetic cover that covers the hold-down bolts about 1 cm.  Go back from there the 1.5".  Now you have a critical distance template to know where to mark on the vehicle.  Mark the points with a Sharpie marker, and use a jigsaw to cut your rectangle.  (Sorry I wasn't as religious here about including some better landmarks)!  Drill your mounting holes which are about 1/4" past your rectangle.  After mounting the breaker, you'll need to hack out some more of the handbrake cover and plastic cosmetic cover, because the throw of the breaker is of course, longer than the actual opening you need.

Aux. Battery.  You'll need to make a choice: either to use an 33 Ah AGM motorcycle battery on the passenger side, sitting on the frame member right over the hole where the resonator used to be, or to clip the positive lead going into the under-hood fuse box, and move the battery into the trunk, running a 10 gauge wire down the center tunnel, along with the HV welding cable.  If you move it to the trunk, since the charger is on the fuel filler side of the vehicle, mount the aux battery on the right.  There are some dimples that need to be hammered out for the original tie-downs to hold the battery securely in place.  Simply drill two 1/4 holes on either side of the battery, and insert the metal j-hooks.  Sand an area off of the trunk to get a good ground.  Re-connect the original battery cables.  You'll route the 12V hot along the high voltage line down the center tunnel.

Controller, Shunt Mount:  Cut a piece of 1/8" aluminum that is 18-1/2" (47cm) long, and 8-1/2" (21 cm) wide.  At 1-1/2" at each end you’ll be making a 90 degree bend.  But the catch is that the bend on the long end will go down and get holes to mate to the adapter plate.  To the left of that bend, there will be a lip that goes up the length of the long end.  That will provide you with space to bolt the controller and shunt onto.  (This means taking out a 1-1/2 x 1-1/2" square from the corner so these lips can be made).  Also, on the passenger’s side of the vehicle, there is an inverted, U-shaped bracket on the transmission support mount.  A hole through both the controller mount and the bracket is a great 3rd place for the controller mount to tie into (see template).  Note the location of the grounding strap.  There are holes related to that to tie into as well.

Main Contactor, Heater Relay, Terminal Strip:
On the passenger’s side frame member, right behind the headlights, there are two holes with tack-welded bolts on underneath.  If you choose, use a 10 mm bolt to anchor the aluminum plate that you will mount various components on.  Note:  The original CivicwithaCord used polypropylene mounted against the controller for these components, but I chose not to.  The net result was a saving of space near where the resonator used to be that can be used to position a motorcycle aux. battery, instead of using a regular group 45 mounted in the trunk.
If you use the template included, you will mount the following components (in order): 1) Heater relay.  (You’ll use the same hole for the main contactor on one side).   2)  Main contactor.  (Recess a tapered screw to get a flush mount.  The barrier strip goes right over that screw).  3)  Barrier strip.

Fuel Filler Neck; outlet.
The most versatile and effective outlet for this space is a 14-50 type.  Cut a piece of polypropylene that is 3-3/4" x3-7/8", and drill according to the template.  You’ll need to build up the outlet by wrapping some electrical tape around the outside of it.  Drill a 5/8" or so hole into the frame where the filler neck used to be, so that you can route the wires to the charger.  I'd add a grommet, or cut some tubing to fabricate add'l protection to the HV wires. 

Transmission & Motor Mating:  Use Blue 123? Loctite (pretty sure that's the number; it was in a red bottle, though) to seal up the set screws on the flywheel, as well as the (6) 12-point flywheel bolts.  It's a good idea to check the clutch and replace it now; about $82 for factory Honda parts. See video for details.
 There are several checks to make on your motor.  You need to advance the brushes in the clockwise direction, and make certain your A1 is connected to S2, as the Honda driveshafts rotate opposite of most all other vehicles on the road through at least 1995.  To do this, go to the commutator end of the motor, and push the brush springs behind the little retainer bars that were made for this purpose.  Next, remove the 4 1/4" x 20 screws holding the casting on.  Nudge the housing back about 1 cm.  You should be able to turn the casting 34 degrees clockwise.  Back out the allen screws sitting in the holes.  (Sometimes they're located pretty deep).  You can now put the allen screws in the counterclockwise settings (the retard position).  With the casting advanced, you can place the 1/4" x 20 screws back in.  HOWEVER:
 This is also a good place to make certain that your brushes and commutator are in good repair.  Keep pulling the casting a little further, and it will come off.  Check:
1)  Are your brushes seated?  They really need to have a slight concave appearance.  If they don't, EVparts can sell you a stone that will grind them slightly concave.  Also, if the brushes are low, this is a good time to purchase a new set.
2)  Are your brush holders in good repair?  If not, purchase another for about $50.
You're now ready to mate the motor to the transmission!
 Since my motor was 123+ pounds, I used a floor jack.  Raise the car, put it on stands, and jack the motor into place.
NOTE: Nels keeps dust & road grime out of the tranny with a flange that goes between the tranny and the output shaft.  You will definitely want to remove the half shaft by pulling the steering tie-rod, the lower arm, and the damper fork.  You shouldn't need to undo the spindle nut, unless your CV axles are toast, but if you do, it’s a 32mm socket.
 Now you’re ready to install the banjo plate.  This relieves pressure from the transmission, keeping the motor mostly horizontal.  It should be fabricated out of 1/4" steel, or 7/16" aluminum.  The pattern is included, and is fairly accurate.
 The bolts that secure the mount to the motor are 9/16".  The bolts that secure the mount to the existing motor mount should be 14 mm or so, with washers on either side.

Suspension Upgrade:
To carry 1206 lbs. of batteries, you'd best beef up the suspension.  Ground Control, in Shingle Springs, CA can equip you with Coil-Overs, and adjustable Koni shocks/struts for $948.    You will want item 4530.02, 1200.250.0275, 1200.250.0200 on the coilovers, and 8041-1152 for the front struts, and 8041-1153 on the rear.  They will include a spanner wrench.  You furnish the spring compressors.  The main deal is that you're putting in 2" longer, stiffer springs to handle the extra weight.
 The car gets raised, wheels removed, and in the case of the front, brake hose bolts are taken off.  Meanwhile, the two nuts that hold the STRUT in place are removed, as is the fork below.  At this point, the strut ass'y can be removed.  This is the dangerous process: The spring is compressed, and the strut shaft is held in place with an allen wrench, while the nut is released.  Ideally, it takes place in a vise, such that in case of slippage, it does't go too far.  Next, the perch can be hammered off, and the spring slowly released.
 I set the coil-overs at 1" as measured from bottom of the coil-over to the lower perch. This will leave a ride height of 24-1/2",which is the usual.  Keep in mind that you will pressurize your tires to about 40 psi, which will give a rather jiggly, harsh ride.  To compensate, you may wish to give the shock adjustment a full turn in the "looser" direction.

Wiring Theme:  All 12V "hot" lines should really be kept RED.  Heater switch on/off to relay is grey/black.
Although the bl/wht. charge light should splice to BLK, I left it in BL.  RD/WHT is high voltage  hot to the controller.  GRN is HV hot.
Wiring, Low Voltage:
Coming out of the dash, going into the engine compartment are 5 wires from the E-meter, a phone jack coming from the controller indicator, and three wires coming from the heater switch.  Let's trace each.
E-meter: orange and green get twisted and go to the shunt.
Wiring, High Voltage:
You’ll need about 6' of 2.0 welding cable to go from the rear battery pack, through a drain hole behind the seat, along the center tunnel, to the circuit breaker.  You'll need another 6' of cable to go from the breaker to the main contactor.  Figure 14' of cable going from the rear battery rack to the next battery in line.  All of this needs to go in about 12' of spa PVC tubing.  Feed a 10 gauge red wire to connect your 12V system to the front of the car inside this spa tubing, and also a 10 gauge black wire to hook up the charging system.

High Voltage Line:  In the trunk, there are two pre-cut holes, one on each side.  They are just barely over the size of the 2.0 welding cable.  So the goal is to have the pos. & neg. separate at first, and bring them close together under the car.  As they are brought together, they enter protective tubing, be it electrical conduit, or in my case, just a pool hose.  This conduit must end at the circuit breaker, then begin again, to get to the front battery pack.

Driving CivicWithACord:
    You'll use the clutch. 1st gear will take you from 0-25 or so, but since there's so much torque with it just use 2nd from 0-45 mph.  These are roughly 6000 RPM, so safe for both motor and controller.  3rd past that.  When you come to a stop, you can leave the car in gear, making the flywheel come to a stop also, or take it out of gear, and leave the clutch depressed.  If you jerk it up, the flywheel may still be spinning, making the car jerk.  So I prefer braking to a stop with the car _in gear_.
    To prolong the life of the batteries, keep the voltage above 126.  The reason for this is that a battery cell gets reversed if its' voltage drops below 1.75.  If you figure that there are 72 cells in our 18 battery pack, that's 126V.  Usually the voltage only drops that low if you're gunning the juice up a hill.  This activity requires more current, which causes more resistance in the batteries, which causes the voltage to sag.  Best to ease off the accelerator, and go slower, higher RPMs up the hill.  A related issue is that if you are crawling home, due to low batteries, it's best to pull over, let the batteries recover for awhile, then do the rest of the trek.  Or better yet, grab an "opportunity charge" while you're stopped.
    Since there is no parking gear, and no resistance on the motor, it is CRITICAL that you SET THE CAR's EMERGENCY BRAKE when you have finished driving.
     Keep in mind that your range will drop a certain percentage for every 10 degrees farenheit. At zero celsius, you can count on about 65% of your normal charge.   You should have at least 35 mi. going about 55 mph at 60F unloaded.

CivicWithACord owner’s manual
 v.2.0, Nov. 19, 2007

Driving:  Turn the key and the dash light for the battery will turn on.  If the circuit breaker is in the forward/on position (see under the handbrake), and the car is in the proper gear, simply depress the accelerator and you'll move.
If the car is not in the proper gear, depress the clutch, shift, release the clutch, depress the accelerator.
a)  The car can be driven from either first, or second gear.  I only use 2nd gear, but if you use first, shift to 2nd by 25 mph, and from 2nd by 60 mph.  This will avoid unnecessary motor and transmission wear.
UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCES WILL DOWNSHIFTING HELP TO BRING THE CAR TO A STOP.  TO THE CONTRARY, DOWNSHIFTING AT A SPEED ABOVE WHAT IS INDICATED ABOVE WILL DAMAGE THE WINDINGS OF THE MOTOR.

b)  When you come to a stop, you may leave the car in gear.  The car will not "stall", as with a combustion vehicle.  On the other hand, IF you take it out of gear as you come to a stop, the motor and flywheel will still be moving.  As a result, you will want to engage the clutch slowly to avoid a jerky start.
c)  When you accelerate up a hill, there may be a "rattling" type of sound.  This is due to extra torque on the motor causing a small shift in the position on the motor mounts, and has occurred since the car was converted.  It is nothing to be concerned about.
d)  Don't ever accelerate so fast that your amp draw goes high enough to make the voltage on the e-meter indicate lower than 126 volts.  This will cause irrepairable battery damage.  Similarly, don't let the pack voltage drop lower than this on normal commutes, or up hills, when amp draw increases.

Driving Distance:  The car is loaded at maximum gross vehicle weight rating.  Ie, the brakes will work fine, but to protect your investment, leave plenty of stopping distance, especially if on a wet road.

Pedestrians:  In a parking lot, they will not be able to hear you.  Either keep the stereo playing fairly loud, or be extra cautious of conditions around you.

Parking:  Make sure the emergency brake is engaged.  The gears and electric motor simply will not provide any additional inertia for the vehicle, such as if it is parked on a slope.

Maintenance:
a)  During summer, tire pressure will increase.  Check to make sure that they read 42 PSI.
During the winter, tire pressure will decrease.  Check to make sure that they read 42 PSI.

b)  Brakes likely will tend to wear faster.  Listen for the audible brake wear indicators.

c)  Motor brushes: Need to be changed every 80,000 miles or so.  They are a black block with a copper braid coming out of them, visible in the tailshaft end of the motor.  Monitor the height that the block sticks out, so you'll know when replacement is needed.  There is a special stone that you purchase to shape them, when the time comes.  Many companies can repair electric motors, ie, tell you how to install the brushes, and it's not difficult.

Troubleshooting:
If the controller fails to turn on, the green light above the e-meter will not turn on.  It may be due to a fuse that has blown.  The reason for the fuse blowing was that when the vehicle was in reverse, the transmission would shift location close enough to the main contactor to short it.  This hasn't occurred since I placed extra insulation around it, but check this concern if it ever happens again.

Using the heater:  Press the "re-circulate" button.  You'll get a warmer temperature by heating air from the inside, than the outside!  Crack the front window(s) just 1/2 cm to remove moist air. Turn it on.  It will add roughly 27-40 amperes to the load of the high voltage pack, depending on the blower speed.

Lead Acid Battery Care:
NOTE:  Make certain you order US Batteries with BAYONET, and NOT SPEEDCAPS.  If you like wiping up acid mist from your motor, mounting plate, batteries, etc. after every charge, disregard this vital piece of information.
This is a broad enough concept to write an entire manual on, but here is the condensed version:
Charge as often as you use the vehicle, to a voltage that depends on the ambient temperature.  During winter, the voltage needs to be set to finish off at 193 V.  During summer, the voltage needs to be set to 186V.  This is done by turning a tiny, gold screwdriver-adjusted control on the right side (as mine is mounted upside down) of the controller.  Use a voltmeter on the left terminal of the main contactor, (look for the huge bolts), and the battery terminal marked (-) that is closest to it.  But the difficult part is that you need to know when the current is dropping, and the voltage is rising.  That means a bit of babysitting the car.
(Ie, you’ll notice that when you first plug in, the amps shown on the E-meter will start off at around 16-17.  The black knob controls that.  As the charge gets complete, it will go down to about _two_ or less.
EQUALIZING means getting that current down toward 2A, (easier if they are new).  Take a hygrometer or refractometer reading from several cells.  The goal is to get _all_ of them to read about 1.275-1.300.  When they do, you’ve pretty much brought the low cells up with the rest of them.
 During equalizing, especially as the batteries age, you'll need to add some distilled water.  There is a special filller bottle that helps make certain the cells aren't overloaded.  The batteries should be equalized about every 4-6 weeks.
 If the batteries are seriously out of balance, it will bring some cells up for awhile, then the current and voltage both will drop.  Slowly turn the current knob back up, and the voltage will come up as well.  Keep it between 4-8A, and keep checking the pack and individual voltages of the cells.  You need to keep the voltage up to bring up the straggler batteries, but keep the current down to keep from removing active material off of the positive plates.  Checking every 20 mins. or so will achieve this.

As the batteries age, their plates will become thinner, and the internal resistance will rise. So instead of tapering to 2A, you'll taper to 4, 7, and eventually 10A.  At this point, it's time to think about a new set of batteries.

FINALLY:  Keep the battery terminals tight.  Over time, the lead will deform.  You want to keep a good, solid connection!  Also, keep corrosion off by washing them with water & baking soda, and finally, keep the tops of the batteries clean.  Over time, dust will accumulate, and conduct enough electricity that it will affect vehicle performance.  And if electrolyte leaks around the battery caps, that can prevent the current from increasing, and the amps from dropping as the should.