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#Post#: 15102--------------------------------------------------
Napier Samson L48
DIR By: Kington99
Date: June 7, 2026, 5:20 pm
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Hello everyone,
after umming and arring for a couple of years I've finally
committed to building a cyclekart inspired by the Napier Samson
L48. The unique style and lack of complicated sheet metal shapes
drew me to this particular model, and it has some nice details
to replicate. I will be running an electric powertrain, mainly
because a lot of the major components fell in to my lap by
chance and the style of the vehicle leaves very little room
behind the seat for a conventional powertrain. Not sure if
anyone else is running electric yet so it may be quite a voyage
of discovery! The motor I'm using is a Bosch unit off a
lawnmower, which seemed fitting given the GX200's antecedents,
with a VW Golf 48V battery, which it turns out is a very cheap
way of getting hold of appropriate sized OEM quality batteries.
I've done some initial bench running using a 12S lipo and it's
looking like the setup has potential so it's time to build a
chassis to mount it to.
[attachimg=1]
[attachimg=3]
#Post#: 15103--------------------------------------------------
Re: Napier Samson L48
DIR By: Ade Colmar
Date: June 8, 2026, 3:54 am
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I love the copper pipework on your inspiration car!
Just a very basic observation. You might find the performance a
bit underwhelming with a 1kW motor, or are you planning to use
one motor per wheel?
#Post#: 15104--------------------------------------------------
Re: Napier Samson L48
DIR By: Kington99
Date: June 8, 2026, 6:58 am
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I believe the motor has a nominal power rating of 2.2kW on 36V,
initial testing on 48V is suggesting it should be good for the
5kW power limit, with sufficient cooling
#Post#: 15133--------------------------------------------------
Re: Napier Samson L48
DIR By: Kington99
Date: June 14, 2026, 4:30 pm
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Made some progress, the steel, wheels and springs are in, wiring
the battery controller has been somewhat repetitive but is
nearly there, I need to get this finished and proved and then I
can move on to mourning the springs to the end of the chassis
rails. I haven't decided how long the rails are going to be so
I'm going to build from the front back and see where I get to
#Post#: 15148--------------------------------------------------
Re: Napier Samson L48
DIR By: RhysN
Date: June 17, 2026, 6:55 am
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There is quite a bit of knowledge to be shared re electric if
you want. Cool choice of inspiration. I would say that :)
It would seem that there will be 3 Napiers within 25 miles of
each other!
#Post#: 15150--------------------------------------------------
Re: Napier Samson L48
DIR By: Kington99
Date: June 17, 2026, 12:10 pm
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I'm always interested in learning more, particularly if you have
any speed-load residency data so I can understand the likely
battery range and motor cooling requirements. Are there many
other electric CKs out there? I've only ever seen petrol ones.
#Post#: 15153--------------------------------------------------
Re: Napier Samson L48
DIR By: Jimr1999
Date: June 18, 2026, 1:14 am
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A bit of history around CKGB and electric powered cyclekarts.
The first U.K. electric build probably started with Marek's
Delage that ran under electric once at Brooklands...
HTML https://cyclekartsgb.createaforum.com/build-journals/delage-15-s-8/
This followed the American builds to a degree found on the
Gitreville web pages... Such as this one...
HTML https://gittrevillegp.com/2020/10/19/austin-seven-boulogne/
A few others have started an electric build like James'
Hanomag...
HTML https://cyclekartsgb.createaforum.com/build-journals/hanomag-210/msg10464/#msg10464
We have yet to have one running on a regular basis at CKGB
events, Mareks, we hear, is reverting to ICE power, most find
the build costs are often several times more than an ICE engine
and trackside charging seems to be a worry. With the battery
technology you have, the appropriate fire extinguisher may cost
significantly more than the dry powder ones.
That said, it has been done and can be done under our current
club guidelines. The aim of the club is to do this safely and
share knowledge to ensure that builds are at least as safe as
the ICE cyclekarts they will be with on track.
Hope this helps
JimR
#Post#: 15172--------------------------------------------------
Re: Napier Samson L48
DIR By: Kington99
Date: June 24, 2026, 4:24 am
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Thanks for all the info Jim, I believe I've overcome the
limitations of electric power you've mentioned, my entire
powertrain cost significantly less than a stock Honda engine and
should have enough longevity that one battery swap a day should
do me. I hadn't considered the fire extinguisher point but
fortunately they've come way down in price and a 6 litre
extinguisher that covers all fire types and lithium batteries
can be had for £75, so I've got one on the way as I should have
it for the workshop anyway. I'm hoping to have this rolling sans
bodywork by the autumn so I guess we'll find out then if it's a
viable alternative or a damp squib!
#Post#: 15173--------------------------------------------------
Re: Napier Samson L48
DIR By: Kington99
Date: June 24, 2026, 4:30 am
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Powertrain is now complete and operational, it will need
rewiring once it's laid in the chassis but fundamentally the
battery, BEC, VESC, motor, reverse switch and throttle pedal are
all talking to each other. Now it's time to put this aside and
start fabricating some chassis rails![attachimg=1]
#Post#: 15201--------------------------------------------------
Re: Napier Samson L48
DIR By: Kington99
Date: July 6, 2026, 4:43 pm
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Finally got to the metalwork, first chassis rail end fabricated,
which given my limited experience I was quite pleased with. I'm
terrible at freehanding things so I designed and printed a jig
to mark the cut out.
[attachimg=9][attach=10][attachimg=10][attachimg=11][attachimg=12]
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