The AEVA field day at Annangrove was pretty basic in format - just a big open shed with lots of electric car enthusiasts poring over the cars. There was even an electric go-kart - with neck-snapping acceleration!

This year’s field day for the Australian Electrical Vehicle Association, held at Annagrove in western Sydney during late October, had a range of interesting electric and hybrid electric vehicles on show.

Some were fully converted cars that are driven on a regular basis while others were "works in progress" which may be up to a year or more away from completion.

There was also a Toyota Prius which had been modified with extra battery capacity and an on-board charger.

At the outset it must be said that anyone who decides to convert any conventional vehicle to electric drive is taking on an ambitious project. Typically, the way they go about it has never been done before: to convert exactly that vehicle type or model, using that combination of motor, batteries, controller etc.

So the AEVA annual field day is very much a display of DIY electric vehicle conversions rather than an expo of the latest up-to-the-minute technology. And no doubt, all the owners would go about such a conversion quite differently if they were going to repeat the process – such is the value of on-the-job experience.