The vacuum pump

Manufacturer: MES-DEA
Cost $280
Available from Metric Mind Engineering

Almost all modern cars these days have vacuum assisted braking system. At least my CRX does. So to restore the functionality of the power brakes (which is more important than before since the car weighs more now), the source of the vacuum needed. A Swiss company MES-DEA makes real nice 12V vacuum pumps just for that purpose. While the case is all plastic, this is not el-cheapo pump. These units are manufactured for OEM EV market and conform to the tough automotive standards. Nice feature is integrated electronic vacuum sensor with preset hysteresis. The vacuum is automatically maintained between 600 and 650 mbar, which is the same values used in regular ICE cars. Low acoustic noise level is the main advantage of this unit and if it is mounted such that mechanical vibration is isolated, the functioning of the pump is virtually unnoticeable. I installed it as far as possible - near the rear bumper in the cavity next to the rear battery box. On the road I can't tell when the pump is cycling. Frankly, after checking it out few times and the vacuum level it creates, I lost my interest to know. All I care about is to have sound brakes at all times, and I do. By the way, the hard plastic tube going under body to the pump plays role of the vacuum booster tank. I don't have a separate one.

The pump as comes from the factory
This spot will be new home for the pump
Plastic feet are off. Also the bracket holding and protecting the pump is shown.
Shaping the bracket to fit.
Extra insulation for dampening vibration and acoustic noise.
Installed pump. I can barely hear it.

The water pump

Manufacturer: Bosch
Cost $175
Available from Metric Mind Engineering

Since both the motor and the inverter are water cooled, an electric water pump is also needed. The choice is not as easy as it seem: just like the vacuum pump, the water pump must withstand constant vibration, temperature changes and other tough treatment in automotive environment while being small, and quiet since will run all the time. I use special water pump made for the car pre-heat water circulation. This is highly reliable and small pump made by Bosch. It has totally enclosed water chamber, magnetic impeller drive and brushless DC motor. At 14VDC it puts out over 4 GPM of water flow, which is more than adequate for the cooling system required. There is nothing else really I can say about the pump, other than it consumes little power when running and that I can't hear it unless put my ear 2 inches away from it. The pump has waterproof connector (as all other under hood components connectors), and held in place by special rubber retaining ring mounted on the bracket which in turn is mounted on the radiator.

There is nothing else I can say about this pump. As other highest quality components, it works flawlessly day in day out running at least 8 hours a day - other than while driving, it pumps the water through the charger when the car is charging too. In this case it is supplied from the mains via step down 12V transformer with simple rectifier on its output.

The water pump
The pump mounted near the hood latch.
Top view.