The latest Porsche news is that the vintage Porsche 912 car has transformed itself into an electric car. This was made possible with the transplant of the electric car Tesla s model. A California-based company Zelectric who specializes in converting vintage cars to electric made it possible. The Porsche 912 model made in 1968 was recently was shown in the popular web series Jay Leno’s Garage.
Electric converter Porsche 912 from Zelectric
CEO of Zelectric David Bernado and Director R&D, Trent Wonsley, showed on the Jay Leno show how they converted the classic Porsche 912 model into a high-powered electric car.
Zelectric is specialists in converting only Porsche and Volkswagen models between 1950 and 1970. The demand for conversions is such that its customers pay a booking Fee of $5000 to reserve a spot for production. The company order book is full till 2023.
The reassuring thing about this conversion is that the classic model did not suffer any cut or weld, and there is an option to reconvert it to its original state.
The new converted model uses the original Porsche 912 body shell, which earlier had a 4-cylinder engine. The electric model has a power unit at the back of the car and drives the rear wheels. The electric motor is mounted around the same area as fitted in a Tesla Model. The motor adds around 300 pounds of weight to the car without passengers, taking lesser space.
The reconverted model is around 2505 pounds with its 34 kWh of batteries split into two places and weighs half the weight of a Tesla S model. The Tesla motor manufactures 536 HP, more than a standard 90 PS with a gasoline engine.
The new 912 Porsche electric model now has a maximum speed of 135 mph. The upgraded model has modifications made to its brakes and suspension. The range of the new backpack is between 120 miles and 140 miles and takes about five hours to recharge.
The new trend
Though it is not cheap, the trend of converting classic cars into electric is growing. The new demand has its share of problems. According to co-founders of Zelectric, this reconversion is a brand-new industry, and only a handful of people know how to do this. They can rightly be classified as some kind of pioneer because no automobile school teaches conversion.
Every reconverted car is different. With very few people having the conversion skills and with no certification available, the learning process is on.
The popular notion is that not all classic cars should be converted to electric vehicles.
The flip side is that people who reconvert their cars to electric want to keep driving them regularly while preserving the original beauty of the vintage classic cars.
According to the owner of brand Hagerty, some vintage classic cars will never be converted. For example, the 1968 Ford Mustang Bullitt GT. They can at best be kept in a museum but never electrified.
Maybe two hundred years from now, somebody may make gasoline for it, but that’s about it.
In the meantime, classic car lovers are reassured that the Porsche 912 can be reconverted to gasoline if the need arises.
