EV Conversion of Classic Car

[jyl]

I have noticed ads or articles about electric conversions of classic cars. Here's one.

https://electrek.co/2018/08/23/jaguar-e-type-zero-production-electric-ev-conversion/

Has anyone here done such a conversion DIY, or know anything about how you'd do it?

Hypothetical: suppose you found a little sports car that was cheap, no crime to convert, good chassis, quite underpowered, engine no good. Like a Fiat X1/9, early Miata, Alfa Convertible, Opel GT, etc. What would it take to replace the engine with one or more electric motors, maybe still using the rest of the drivetrain, and use lithium batteries to get "fun" range (50+ miles) without too much bulk or weight. Would the result be entertaining? Somehow I think it would accelerate like a rocket, up to a point.

I mean, there must be plenty of first-gen Leafs out there as donors.

[aigel]

I was at laguna a couple years ago and there was a guy in an electric shelby cobra. It went like stink in the red group. There is a whole e-racer enthusiast world out there. They build their own cars and compete.

On a related but slightly off topic note. There was a Tesla 3 this spring at Laguna that I could not keep up with in the 993. No chance in terms of acceleration of course, but it also it did surprisingly well in turns. It had BIG R compound tires and suspension work and I also thought the driver was very aggressive (I am 7/10 around the track).

G

[sc_rufctr]

This company is the best known right now and they've done a bunch of conversions.

Not cheap but not over the top crazy either.

[asphaltgambler]

I've driven a few older conversions- basically like a legal golf cart. No heat, no regenerative braking, was connected to a manual gearbox. Bleh........

Just like anything else it needs to fully integrated/ engineered so it's a seamless experience for the driver . I have yet to see one......

[unclebilly]

In university I did some contract engineering for Canadian Electric Vehicles. They got their start doing conversions in the 90’s.

I remember driving one of their conversions and was impressed by the off the line performance. It was no Tesla but still pretty cool.

I designed the original frame and drive system for the Might-E-Truck. I imagine it has changed since then but the truck looks pretty similar.

https://canev.com/

[dafischer]

Turns a classic car into a non-classic car.

[javadog]

Originally Posted by dafischer

Turns a classic car into a non-classic car.

The ones I’ve seen turn a nice, classic car into a ****box. Very crude installations and utterly pointless except to say you’ve done it. That’s a badge of honor only for the true idiots that think they are car guys but are not.

[group911@aol.co]

Seems like they're getting close. https://www.electricgt.com/
I have to admit, I'd like to have some of my old American cars converted just for the ease of being able to just get in and go without the upkeep associated with ICE

[red-beard]

Originally Posted by jyl

Hypothetical: suppose you found a little sports car that was cheap, no crime to convert, good chassis, quite underpowered, engine no good. Like a Fiat X1/9, early Miata, Alfa Convertible, Opel GT, etc. What would it take to replace the engine with one or more electric motors, maybe still using the rest of the drivetrain, and use lithium batteries to get "fun" range (50+ miles) without too much bulk or weight. Would the result be entertaining? Somehow I think it would accelerate like a rocket, up to a point.

Or a 914...

[Sooner or later]

Originally Posted by group911@aol.co

Seems like they're getting close. https://www.electricgt.com/
I have to admit, I'd like to have some of my old American cars converted just for the ease of being able to just get in and go without the upkeep associated with ICE

https://www.digitaltrends.com/cars/electric-crate-motor/

Because of this ability to mate electric motivation with a transmission, the e-Crate motor that hooks up to your stock transmission should certainly be on your shortlist for potential engine swaps. While the whole “V8” crate system starts at $60,000, the installation process (and the corresponding shop labor rate) will be much shorter and easier. These systems are relatively bolt-and-go. The first 10 systems sold will even include free installation in a prepared vehicle done by Electric GT themselves.

[sc_rufctr]

Two engines, 400 to 600 Hp!
From 1000 to 1200 foot pounds of torque. (voltage dependant)

Note: This video is 6 years old.

[Jims5543]

How Classic? there is a guy I follow on Instagram that converted his E30 Vert. It has Tesla underpinnings. He is still programming it for max performance, right now it is a 11 second car.

[Racerbvd]

[RWebb]

No. Not if the engine is part of the driving experience of the car. (sports car)

Yes, if it is not (classic Vanagon or VW bus) - a guy put a Chevy Bolt powertrain in his vanagon and toured the US recently. Gives a new meaning to "just chev it"

[aigel]

We had a discussion here before and one of the points I made was that these kits will be outdated very quickly, so if you upgrade your nice classic car now, it will be soon an outdated setup. That goes against what a classic car is supposed to be - timeless and increasing in value.

So, I think this is a cool toy idea on a medium interesting car like that BMW, but it is not something I'd attempt on a car that's worth some money like a Jag E

G

[Captain Ahab Jr]

Originally Posted by sc_rufctr

Two engines, 400 to 600 Hp!
From 1000 to 1200 foot pounds of torque. (voltage dependant)

Note: This video is 6 years old.

when F1 engines went hybrid in 2014, a 150hp motor was the size of a Coke can

[petrolhead611]

Two Coke can sized motors in the back of an old Smart For two would make it scoot a little.The current ForTwo and ForFour( and Twingo) are suffering a lot of engine failures due to oil/ filter changes using non-recommeded products that causes sludging severe enough to ruin the very expensive to replace solenoid operated valve gear , so they would likely be candidates for electric propulsion too( although Smart are now only intending to sell those models as EVs)

[Won]

I agree, an EV conversion of an E-type for example, takes the soul of the car out of it. What I do like is taking an old, inefficient, pedestrian car and turning it into something suitable for driving around town. Take this Citroen 2CV for example - no more dinky aircooled flat twin. It's a 2EV now! I would love to do something similar with a Beetle if/when I move back to Canada.

2EV:


Original:

* This one's got a BMW twin, apparently.

Another example:

[jyl]

I have my old Vespa that is just mouldering away. Not interested in riding a two stroke (extremely high pollution) and it was never that reliable. I'm thinking about figuring out an EV conversion. For that, 20 miles range would be plenty.

[group911@aol.co]

Originally Posted by jyl

I have my old Vespa that is just mouldering away. Not interested in riding a two stroke (extremely high pollution) and it was never that reliable. I'm thinking about figuring out an EV conversion. For that, 20 miles range would be plenty.

Look around on Alibaba. I found an electric axle conversion for my Lambro on there.