FAQ
Frequently Asked Questions
For those questions that come up often, we have created this FAQ page. The answers are in a blog format on our sister site. Clicking on a question will open that blog page in a new window. After reading the answer you can close that window to come back to this index.
We hope this FAQ will help you find appropriate answers to questions you may have. If your questions are not answered here or in the current manual, please send a question to your dealer.
The current manual can be downloaded from the downloads page linked to the left.
FAQ Index:
Zilla setup and function issues
- Safety Considerations for Zilla Installation
- How to protect the Hairball while wiring the car?
- What Hairball settings to use?
- What are the speed sensor requirements?
- When is the 12V too low for the Hairball?
- How do I use a USB port to communicate with the Hairball?
- How do I enter a new value in the Palm Pilot?
- What about the setting for "Z1K Scaling" in the Hairball?
- The car won't start or runs slowly. How to use the DAQ?
- Rough starts with a Zilla.
- Zilla cuts out after a few seconds or under high load.
- What's the scraping/hissing sound when I drive slowly?
- What are the details for using data from the DAQ?
- Questions about S1 and S2 on the Zilla wiring diagrams.
- How do I wire two contactors for higher voltage use?
- How do I wire a second contactor into the negative lead of a Zilla system?
- Can I upgrade Voltage ratings at a later date?
General EV and application questions
- Can I hire Cafe Electric to help design my EV?
- What batteries should I use in my car?
- Shift gears, or direct drive?
- Can I electrically reverse a motor even if the brushes are advanced?
- How Does Series/Parallel Shifting Work?
Business and design questions
- When are you going to make a controller with regenerative braking?
- Two Processors in a Zilla?
- How to build a controller.