If you want an old French car but also want something electric, you’re in luck. Renault is teaming up with French EV retrofitters R-FIT to crank out authorized electric powertrain retrofit kits for several of its classic models. Although they certainly the most high-tech retrofit options on the market, these kits are a pretty neat concept for opening up the expensive world of EV conversions.
These kits include everything a Renault 4L, 5, or Twingo owner needs to switch to electric power from a 10.7 kWh lithium iron phosphate battery pack to a motor controller to professionals doing the installation. There’s even a two-year warranty, and R-FIT will sort out registering the vehicle as an EV. Oddly enough, Renault claims that the kit uses the 4L’s original gearbox, in case you want to row gears in an electric car. At €11,900 for the Renault 4L kit, it’s expensive. Offering just 50 miles (80 km) of range and no DC fast charging, it’s not an option for those who road trip classic cars either. However, Renault seems to have the right idea when it comes to an electrified Renault 4L because the car’s powertrain isn’t a huge part of its character.
I believe that the ideal cars for OEM EV conversions either aren’t massively engaging to drive or aren’t feasible for anyone short of a magician to keep on the road. After all, the thrum of a good engine and the tactility of a sporting chassis make so many classic cars iconic. We wouldn’t want to ruin all that with heavy batteries, would we? [Ed Note: I agree that the best EV conversion candidates are the cars for whom driving excitement isn’t the main selling point — namely, most vehicles with automatic transmissions. The Renault 4 above, though? Have you seen the weird stick shift?! Plus, I hear they’re fairly reliable (relatively). I’d love a stock one, but yeah — they’re not exactly meant to be sportscars. -DT]. What’s more, their makers still need to exist in some form, so things like Bristols are out of the question entirely. Ideally, those makers would even have experience building EVs, so kits can be fitted by local dealerships. So what sort of cars am I thinking of? Well, here are four.
1961-69 Lincoln Continental
Let’s start off with an obvious choice. The clap-door Conti is an effortlessly cool cruiser, a car designed for the stylish ‘60s to travel arrow-straight interstates for as long as a full tank would last. However, those full tanks are getting expensive, so wouldn’t it be great if you could fill one up with electrons?
Not only does the Lincoln’s huge size help provide space for batteries, its body-on-frame constructions means they can be slung underneath, allowing for a truly gargantuan frunk. Sure, it might weigh as much as a moon when the EV conversion is done, but with a zero-to-sixty time that can’t be described as quick, it won’t take an egregious number of kilowatts to improve on the factory acceleration. Plus, imagine the smoothness once powertrain vibrations are virtually nil. Electric power could really take this luxurious land yacht to the next level.
Rover P5B Coupe
If you want to blame a marque for the rash of four-door cars being called coupes, blame Rover. The P5 Coupe is a misuse of language, but also a style icon, and the P5B was the last and most popular of the bunch. While the sedan version with its traditional roofline was favored by Prime Ministers and royalty, the coupe had a more rakish image.
While the 3.5-liter Rover V8 is fairly reliable, these weren’t exactly quick cars. Combine that with the luxury bent, and EV conversions make a degree of sense. [Editor’s Note: Just gonna pop in with another opinion: If V8 or manual (and especially if that’s an “and”), then not ideal EV conversion. Unless the V8 sucks, like the one in the Jeep Grand Wagoneer (which is an ideal EV candidate). -DT]. The remnants of Rover Group are now owned largely by Chinese carmaker SAIC, and it’s no stranger to EVs. In fact, it has several EVs for sale in the UK right now under the MG brand, so it already has a network of dealers used to servicing electric vehicles. It seems like a lot of the groundwork is there for OEM (sort-of) EV conversions, and who wouldn’t want to waft along in a trouble-free silent Rover?
Pre-1987 Maserati BiTurbo
Remember the last time you saw a running early Maserati BiTurbo? Me neither. These plushly-appointed performance cars were unfortunately saddled with serious unreliability. Not only was the cam belt interval just 24,000 miles, oil leaks were routine, the cooling systems just weren’t built for hot climates, and high under-hood temperatures would just cook rubber bits. Small wonder that a running BiTurbo is a rare sight indeed.
As Porsche and the “turbo” buttons on old PCs will tell you, the word “turbo” has almost lost its meaning. Couple that with a reputation for unreliability, and you have the perfect base for an electric conversion. A Maserati BiTurbo Folgore, if you will. Once all the really fiddly bits are swapped over to EV power, you’re left with leather that smells like an expensive purse, lively handling, and some of the finest browns Italy had to offer in the ‘80s. Sounds wicked, yeah? Derelict BiTurbos litter America and it’s about time we did something with them.
Chevrolet Corvair Rampside Pickup
While General Motors doesn’t seem massively proud of the Corvair, downplaying this incredibly innovative vehicle feels like a crime. When Chevrolet set out to build an economy car, it didn’t scale down a traditional American car, it changed everything it new about carmaking. The shift to EVs is essentially doing the same thing, so it only feels right to give this landmark car its due with a factory EV conversion using GM’s Ultium batteries.
My model of choice is the Corvair Rampside Pickup because come on, it’s just the perfect candidate for an electric drivetrain swap. It already comes with a bunch of space behind the rear wheels for battery modules, which means that you shouldn’t lose any cab or bed volume. Even better, the motor will still be in the back and most of the weight will hang out over the ass end, ensuring some of that Corvair spirit stays intact.
So there we are, four awesome candidates for OEM EV conversions. Sure, converting these cars to electric won’t be cheap, but I have a feeling it also won’t detract too much from what makes them lovely. I could go on and on about possible EV conversion candidates, but I’ll end it here with a question. What classic car do you reckon would be great with an electric powertrain?
(Lead photo credit: Renault)
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As I keep telling folks, there actually is some math behind battery weights. And of course, as you increase the weight, you now get into having to make very significant modifications to the frame, suspension, and driveline. (You can’t just add 2000lbs over factory payload capacity, no matter where you put it.)
Which makes most big cruisers the WORST candidates.
The 1969 Lincoln Continental besides being one of the most complicated vehicles to ever leave Detroit, is fucking ghastly. It is the absolute worst EV candidate you could possibly pick. Because one, it’s not a full frame – it’s a unibody. That’s how they made suicide doors work. Two, it’s 5,500lbs empty. That’s not even touching on the hydraulics, vacuums, and electronics required to make the windows and tops work. Oh, and the wipers – which are hydraulically driven by the power steering pump.
Deleting the 460 under the hood doesn’t buy you significant weight, either. You’re talking 700-750lbs and another 150-200lbs for the transmission. That’s it. So you need enough batteries and motors to move 5,000lbs (car with passengers and luggage,) which then has to be increased for the weight of the batteries and motors, which increases the battery demand, so now you have to re-engineer the suspension, which adds to the car weight, so now you need more battery weight, right into the death spiral of “makes the Hummer EV look lightweight.”
And just to MOVE the car you need a huge amount of torque. The Conti was dog slow with the legendary Ford 460, a motor I’m quite familiar with. Horsepower? Meh. It’s a classic American cruiser motor; mountains upon mountains of instantly available torque. Over 388ft/lbs of it, to be precise. That’s the absolute minimum EV motor CONTINUOUS output to achieve highway speeds.
So you’re into a minimum of a PowerPhase HD250+ at 600VDC operating. Which yes, means you need liquid cooling and a lot of it. (Oh, and a $27,000 pricetag.) So 88lbs for the motor, 150lbs for cooling ancillaries, and over 280lbs per 14kWh usable. So for 200 miles you’re already at (scribblescribble) 2,100lbs of drivetrain which means you need another 28kWh+ putting you up to 2,700lbs and so on and so forth. You get the idea. Death spiral. (Nevermind the packaging!)
Seriously. You took a dead slow car at 5,500lbs, reduced the torque and horsepower, and increased the weight to over 7,250lbs. What did you think was going to happen?
All true but, more to the point, the correct way to add thousands of pounds to a Lincoln Continental does not involve battery packs:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sYWJz1nUP0w
Indeed. And there’s math for that too!
At 700 gallons, well, let’s just say their “10,000lbs” estimate is rather conservative.
Then consider the frontal area and drag of that old boat. This is going to be a 600+ Wh/mile car by the time it is converted.
With modern batteries, you could easily shove a 50 kWh pack in it without going over its stock GVWR, but range is going to be under 100 miles, which sort of defeats the purpose of this type of car because these are long distance cruisers.
Now a plug-in series-hybrid OTOH, can work. Neil Young had one custom built.
https://www.whichcar.com.au/features/neil-young-lincvolt-electric-1959-lincoln-continental-mark-iv
I agree with a lot of your list, especially underpowered and unreliable sports cars like the 850 or TR7, having owned both. The NA Miata is a tough call. While I’d like a little more power, the car is so well balanced and the engine so bullet proof. Also, as a hobby car driven relatively little, the environmental gains would be in the noise.
Two things to add:
– The Maserati biturbo may have been an overpriced shitbox, but it was a gloriously-sounding overpriced shitbox. I’ve only seen one driving around in the 80s and I still remember it.
– Anything with lots of spare space in the engine bay —so there’s enough space inside the non-passenger bits to make for an easy conversion— where the drivetrain is forgettable makes it a prime candidate. Definitely malaise-era luxobarges would make prime candidates, but so would a lot of old deathtrap econoboxes from before that.
I think any car’s powertrain is absolutely a huge part of its character. An EV conversion just completely rips out that part of the overall feel of the vehicle.
Especially finicky vintage cars.
You might as well tow a rolling shell of your car behind another car.
As you might have guessed, I generally don’t like EV conversions, except in special cases: ICE cars with horribly bad engines.
Like the V4 in a ZAZ-968 or a Chrysler 2.7 V6 or a Toyota 3VZ-E. Those have nothing to lose, but are probably worth so little that we won’t see them converted.
I’d like an electric kei truck. Drive it to the golf course; drive it on the golf course.
I’m going with a 3rd gen Firebird, preferably a V6/auto car – you’d probably be a bit of a dork to go full KITT with it, but they’re plentiful, cheap, unloved, and still have a bit of retro-futurism about them (see also automatic C4 Corvettes and Ford Probes).
The slipperiest variants of that model have a 0.29 Cd value, there is a lot of space to fit batteries, lots of heavy ICE related components to keep glider weight low, and there is a large assortment of aftermarket components available. Can’t go wrong.
Anything with a shit engine is a good candidate; ex: delorean
I’d say the best candidates for electric conversion are cars that have unique styling but uninspiring engines. That way you won’t be accused of “ruining” a car by ditching the mechanical bits.
A Delorean would be a good choice. They sure look cool, but their engines were a weak point for sure. Is it true that they couldn’t even hit 88 mph for real (or was it just the speedometers of that era that didn’t show numbers that high)? Whatever the case, electric power would potentially give a Delorean the guts to back up the looks.
A Plymouth Prowler might be another good choice. Critics pan it for its V6 engine (though I found it to be plenty powerful for such a small car when I had the opportunity to drive one), so why not yank that engine out and replace it with electric motors? It might be tough to find space for batteries, though.
Or how about an Avanti? Those cars looked pretty cool and could probably really shine when powered by electrons.
Finally, go with a Grumman LLV mail truck just for the e-mail jokes.
No, the speedometers of the era didn’t register that high. A side effect of dimbass US policy during the “double-nickel” days. Hey, if we stop speedo numbers at 85, no one will ever go faster than that and waste fuel, right? Right.
Wrong. LOL
Citroen DS 19 or 21. Obviously a mechanical nightmare re parts. Few qualified mechanics. Electric conversion is good for the drive train and also for a small electric compressor for the hydraulic system.
There is someone doing this, they had to commission a bespoke compressor as all those that were available were too noisy!
https://www.electrogenic.co.uk/
Triumph TR-7 or Stag. Cool-looking cars with horrible engines that aren’t suitable for daily use anyway. If you can get 100-150 miles of range for a nice weekend cruise, you’re golden.
I’m reading comments to see what’s already been suggested so I don’t repeat any, and “very nearly every pre-1979 two-seater roadster” was going to be #1.
Wheeler Dealers actually did an episode with an EV conversion of a Bi Turbo.
Old Rolls Royce and Bentley’s seem good candidates as they were meant to be pretty silent in the first place.
I was about to say the same. IIRC it was already converted and they updated or fixed it?
and it still had the MT..
I agree with much of what’s been said here already. Large luxo-barges would be excellent, classic pickup trucks, and small econo-boxes top my list. The key is that you’re not ruining a rare classic. JaredTheGeek has it right, convert the non-special version of the car.
I have my beady eyes on a Rolls Royce Phantom VI. They are enormous and rather silly but there is a lot of space under the bonnet for batteries and the boot is big enough to hold small dinner parties in so losing some to some more batteries should not be terrible.
I think that it might even end up being a more usable car, this is the one I am considering,
https://www.carandclassic.com/car/C1138503
I love the Corvair Pickup.
I am basing my list on the cars being quite available. I don’t want to convert a rare car.
Also including wife’s level of disbelief as a rating.
My list would include:
1969-71 MB 280 SE Cabriolet – Daily Driver – Wife loves the comfort and style
1971 Datsun 510 – Gotta get that box look. – Wife is a little unsure why.
1976 Dodge Aspen Wagon – Love me some American Wagon! This is where my wife would probably question my choices.
1979 Chevy Van Sport – I love 70’s vans – Wife is happy I have a van because now I can live in it. She doesn’t want it anywhere near the house.
I converted a Triumph GT6 for the following reasons:
-low frontal area. This allows me to obtain an extremely slippery car with aerodynamic improvements. The stock frontal area is only 14.9 square feet. If I am able to reduce the drag coefficient down to 0.25, I’d have an overall CdA value on par with a GM EV1
-low weight. The stock car weighs around 1900 lbs, and there is 700 lbs of ICE parts and related ancillaries/fluids to remove. This leaves a glider weight of well under 1300 lbs. With modern battery tech, this could allow you to fit a 50 kWh pack without exceeding the stock weight. I have almost 500 lbs of old-tech CALB LiFePO4 batteries in mine and it weighs fully more than 900 lbs less than a GM EV1 and slightly less than the stock ICE GT6. I originally designed this conversion back in high school when all that was available was lead acid batteries, and was intent on getting 80-100 miles range with half a ton of batteries shoved into the car, inspired by Alan Cocconi’s TZero, but I would have went over GVWR by 300 lbs to do so and would have had to reinforce the chassis and swap out the Rotoflex suspension to do it.
-lots of battery room. I have lots of space under the bonnet, and inside the spare tire well and trunk area to fit batteries. If I upgraded to a modern drivetrain, I could remove the transmission and fit batteries inside the transmission tunnel and driveshaft area.
-readily available list of aftermarket parts and stock parts. Parts for Triumphs are still produced and readily available from Victoria British, among others. Racing parts are available from a wide list of suppliers.
-minimal electronics. Everything is dumb on this car. I don’t have any processors to worry about other than what is in the EV drivetrain.
-rack and pinion steering. Direct feedback for feeling every bump and imperfection, and for precisely controlling the car as I intend.
The list of reasons goes on and on.
The goal? Reduce energy consumption as much as possible via load reduction. I was aiming for under 150 Wh/mile. Here’s a drawing of the aerodynamic modifications I had planned for the GT6:
https://i.imgur.com/oyA6lGH.jpg
Pics of my car:
https://i.imgur.com/E4pduC3.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/QSbZyhI.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/fhtXgK2.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/1g7dh1a.jpg?2
https://i.imgur.com/hmYMbwa.jpg?2
Here’s a list of what I think are also among the best choices for EV conversion, based upon similar criteria that I used to evaluate my GT6:
-Triumph Spitfire
-VW Karmann Ghia
-Fiat 850 Spyder
-Opel GT
-Datsun 1200 sedan or coupe
-Datsun 240Z
-Toyota MR2 (first gen)
-Toyota MR2 Spyder
-Honda Insight (1st gen)
-Volkswagen Beetle
-many of the VW kit cars, like the 550 Spyder replica, 356 coupe replicas, ect.
-Renault Alpine, both generations
-Renault Dauphine
-Citroen DS
-Toyota Echo
-Geo Metro
-Fiat 600
-Mazda Miata NA and NB
-1990s-era Honda Civic hatchbacks
-Austin Healey Bugeye Sprite
-MGB GT
-MG Midget
I could go on and on. Some of these are expensive today, but back in the early 2000s when I was seeking a donor chassis, most of these cars were affordable for an example that required some sweat equity, and on a cost per mile of range basis(batteries were not as cheap back then), were the best choices available. Now days, as well as back then, the most economical examples of the above choices to convert would be to find an example with a missing or destroyed engine. Save it from the crusher. With carefully designed aeromods, all of these can be sub-200 Wh/mile cars(some of them, like the GT6 and Spitfire, could approach 100 Wh/mile with aero work), but bone stock, will all be sub-300 Wh/mile cars when using ancient/inefficient series DC motors and sub-250 Wh/mile cars with modern AC or switched reluctance drive systems.
I also forgot to include choices better than most of that list:
-Saab Sonnett II
-Saab 96
I have to disagree on the first gen mr2, while the engines aren’t all that special, they have such charterer with the way they were set of from the factory. but I do have a bit of bias as my neighbor as a kid had an first gen jdm mr2 that is his pride and joy and I loved the car. I love your build, its such an awesome idea and it’ll be incredible when its done (as much as a project car is ever done)
There is plenty of space in the transmission tunnel for batteries and you can leave it mid-motor, rear drive. I’ve seen MR2 conversions where their driving dynamics were well retained, even if they may not have had the exhaust note.
I recommend the 1st gen MR2 especially, because of its low CdA value. Lower than almost any classic car, in stock form. Drag coefficient of 0.31 and a frontal area of 18.7 sq ft. Plus it’s under 2,000 lbs. Bone stock, no aeromods, with weight kept similar to stock ICE, this is a 200 Wh/mile car, driving it without any regard for efficiency. With the exception of the Saab Sonnet, as stock-bodied cars go that don’t cost into the 6-figures, this is about the most efficient platform for conversion out there. Although, Triumph Spitfires and GT6s, with body modification, have greater potential for efficiency than the MR2.
A Toyota 2000 GT is even more slippery, but those are too rare to buy and molest for that purpose. Cd of 0.36 and also a frontal area of 16 sq ft.
Another excellent conversion candidate I forgot to mention is the Porsche 914. Otmar Ebenhoech converted one to EV to test his own custom designed Zilla controllers. In the early 2000s, it was doing 0-60 mph in around 4.5 seconds with a dual ADC 8″ motor setup and a lossy belt drive system, and only needed 240 Wh/mile driving on the California freeways, stock-bodied. 0.36 Cd, 17 sq ft frontal area.
I’ve been trying to think of something other than my usual take of “Old Luxury cars” which is probably still my #1 choice.
I think a whole host of Italian and French economy cars would make for fun EV conversions, as their styling is really what makes them appealing. Simcas, FIAT’s, Renault’s. Stuff like that.
Bad EV conversion? Full size American trucks from the 80’s. That doesn’t sound very appealing at all.
A Nash Metropolitan?
Don’t we know someone who has one of those? Hmmmm….who was it?
/s
My dream EV conversion would be a ’63 Bullet Bird hardtop. They’re gorgeous and deserve a better fate than the crusher. The car’s futuristic styling begs for a futuristic drive-train. As a bonus, Ford made a ton of them, so no blowback about converting a “rare classic.”
That would be an awesome daily driver, you would be well known around town.
I think an EV drivetrain in a Prowler would be cool.
You’d probably need the trailer accessory to tow the battery around.
I think Torch had a great answer to this question earlier this morning with his mention of the Renault Dauphine. It already kind of looks like an EV with it’s curvy body and grill-less front, plus it sounds like a person may even be able to count on some factory support!
The Rampside would be my choice for an EV from the presented list. It’s pretty much already my favorite existing pickup and is one of those “bucket-list” vehicles I hope to own some day. I wouldn’t mind at all if it was electric.
Forgot to mention pick for the worst: Pre-war classics such as a Duesenberg, V-16 Cadillac, or any of those type of cars where the engine itself was (to me at least) a large part of what made the car interesting.
That is really only true if the car you are starting with still has that interesting engine in a meaningful way.
If some asshole already dropped a 350 in it, there is no reason to not go electric anymore.
That could easily be its own classification – anything that’s already been street-rodded/resto-modded.
Hell, the Dauphine got EV-converted in period (as the Henney Kilowatt). A Canadian company tried to get them back on the road at the turn of the millennium (as Feel Good Cars, although they later evolved into ZENN with a generic early 2000’s micro-hatchback), but that largely went nowhere.
The 63-65 Buick Riviera, every Cadillac Eldorado from 1953-1970, Panther body Town Cars, and Jaguar XJ12’s/Daimler Double Six’s
Oooooooh! I love the idea of converting a 63 Riviera!
The cool part is that the Jag’s at least already have a process in place: https://retrofuture-ev.com/en/produit/the-premiums/jaguar-xj/
Not necessarily particular cars but any car that is the nonspecial version of a car. A Dodge Charge that was saddled with a V6 or same with a Mustang V6.
Best: Any American made full size car 1971-1979.
Worst: Everything else.
Early 70’s Buick Centurion convertible. Might have access to a few 🙂
Interesting choices.
“best”:
1. Land Cruiser
2. Panther body police or taxi.
3. S-10 pickup
4. Ford Ranger pickup.
5. Conversion van.
To many worst to list.
Totally agree on Land Cruiser! Sucks fuel, slow, dumb timing belt every 100k miles, etc. Preserving 4wd while offering any overland-able range will be tricky, though.
The TV show “Vintage Voltage” converted a Series II Land Rover. (I know, not the same vehicle but the same constraints as a Land Cruiser.) The range was terrible, if memory serves. They stuffed batteries everywhere, including turning battery containers into rear seating.
IMHO, an EV overlanding vehicle needs to be a clean-sheet design.
Was just about to say Panthers, especially the later more aerodynamic ones. An ex-livery service Town Car would be perfect.