[sschueller]

Aren't EV conversions a horrible idea? All the EV conversions I have seen have all kinds of quirks and safety issues as well. Most could be consider project cars and would be illegal to operate in Europe (not sure about California).

Safety calculations like crumble zones and weigh distribution go out the window. The car will weight more and the other parts may not support it, breaking distance may change, etc.

[jaclaz]

There is even a TV show (based in UK ) where they do classic cars conversions to EVs, called "Vintage voltage", the conversions they make consider all the related issues (weight/braking/etc.), though they don't look like cheap at all.

No idea how they actually manage to have the modified cars approved for street use, though in the UK AFAIK there are more possibilities (for prototypes and similar) than in the rest of Europe.

But there has been recently another show, this time Italian, called "Electromod con Mario Biondi", so there must be some way even in other EU countries.

[dharmab]

There's a small market for converting vintage cars to EVs. The cars are already unsafe, so it's a way for enthusiasts to save a car's body long after the drivetrain has failed.

[olivermarks]

>'There's a small market for converting vintage cars to EVs. The cars are already unsafe, so it's a way for enthusiasts to save a car's body long after the drivetrain has failed'

This is wildly inaccurate. There was a trend for a few people customizing popular classic cars into electric drivetrains. The reality is any desirable VW Beetle, Porsche, Jaguar etc has a huge parts aftermarket for full restoration back to 'brand new' originality. Converting a classic car to be electric typically devalues it (classic cars are an asset class).

The challenge when putting heavy batteries in an older vehicle that was designed for a heavy engine at the front or back is that it changes the suspension, steering and handling characteristics, while the extremely rapid acceleration possible with any electric vehicle means the braking system design may need to be radically altered. We see way too many 'aesthetic' conversions of classic cars that are beautiful death traps in the hot rod world, and now in the EV bodge up world too.

[rightbyte]

I would not worry about weight distribution too much. That is the easy part. You just pile upp batteries where the engine block used to be and the luggage department up to the original weight.

The main concern is probably electrical safety and fire protection for the batteries.

[AtlasBarfed]

LFP and Sodium Ion don't have fire issues. That's NMC chemistries.

[olivermarks]

https://www.koreaherald.com/view.php?ud=20210328000109

[AtlasBarfed]

There's a name for trying to fit as much power in as small as space as possible, which is what batteries are doing: a bomb.

I'm sure there's SOME way to get LFP on fire. But the article basically is trying to point to one or two poorly documented instances of fires. That is a very small number.

Anyway, we'll see...

[olivermarks]

https://www.ntsb.gov/news/press-releases/Pages/NR20210113.as...