There's a ton where you don't need to necessarily spent $35k. A Hyper9 motor or a UQM motor with all the accessories like chargers, cooling kit, etc can be had for $10k or even less, depending on what you choose for parts. Also, skip the Tesla overpriced batteries for something more reasonable like LifePO4 or build your own 18650 pack and you can get that down to $5k. Convert your existing car you already have and save another $10k. Realistically a $20k budget these days, if you are just converting a car you own, is definitely doable. You won't have a Tesla with 300mi range or 0-60 in 4 sec, but an EV with respectable range and acceleration
Thank you. My wife and I are in our late 50s and own 5 vehicles. I hate the idea of trashing my paid for vehicles and start all over with an expensive EV carnote. Thanks for your input.
I'm on my second EV conversion (some vids on my channel). I can confirm, this is not for everyone. Even with a kit, you need to be experienced with auto mechanics and electrical theory. Like understanding how brake vacuum boosters work, or how to design a battery pack for the correct capacity and current draw for your motor controller. Just because I find EV conversion fun and intellectually stimulating, doesn't mean everyone will. Oh, and however you do an EV conversion (ground up DIY, kits, salvage parts, have a shop do it all for you, etc), you're going to need lots of $$$.
@@jlove24 It depends on a lot of things like if you are doing the work yourself and how much you can get a junked Tesla to harvest the components. If I were doing a Maserati myself, I would budget $12-$18k for a junked Tesla and another $8-10k in additional materials. If you're paying a shop to do all the work, I would budget over $50k.
we have a few electric pickup truck projects that people started and never finished sitting at our shop click on my profile picture to get to the website
The only reason I would convert instead of buy new: Avoid EV tab fees here in Washington State by converting a classic car and putting classic plates on it (no tabs required). As a bonus: you get to drive a classic car as a daily driver.
I've wanted to convert an old Subaru Brat to electric for decades. I love the look of them, they're very simple to work on, and there's plenty of room for batteries. Plus the part time 4wd would be nice here in Colorado. But the project would cost as much as a new Tesla while not having any of the features, the range, or the performance of a Tesla.
We just need the "Honda Civic" of electric cars. A lowered El cheapo that can be easily modded to the user heart content. Wonder why the Japanese aren't leading the way to a cheap EV.
It's a great idea. But, I'd rather buy a used RC F. Thank you to every auto journalist who gave the Lexus RC F a less than excellent recommendation. It has dropped in price a lot. Well done!
I contacted a well-known EV conversion shop in southern California, asking about buying the parts to do my own conversion. Granted, I asked for Tesla parts, but that's what they were using on their work. They quoted me $50K for parts. This was right when Tesla released their new model for $35-40K. You do the math.
For those of us that build our own water cooled PC's, it was interesting to see XSPC supplying the cooling components for this vehicle (@ 1:26 to see an XSPC radiator in the engine compartment).
There are over 30 different electric vehicle models to choose from in 2020 / 2021. Used EVs are pretty inexpensive but have less range than the newer ones. Electric vehicles are great. No noise, no emissions, less fuel costs, less maintenance costs.
I had no idea you were as positive about EVs as you are showing yourself to be here. I did a BMW conversion 11 years ago that is on RUclips, and the process was not a simple one. I am glad there is someone such as yourself helping to show the way for neophytes. Please stick with it! We need to retire the fossil fuel industry! Thank you.
I wish car companies could retrofit a hybrid drivetrain with warranty on their older cars, it would be far cheaper than $30.000.00 -&100K + and help the environment out more than new cars with 3--6 years of payments, especially in suv's and they could make better profit margins then on cars.
EV conversions are really cool, but they are not meant to be a substitute for factory-built EVs. Think of it as a very involved engine swap - it's great for hot rodding or if you have a specific car you want to build, but for the majority of people, the better (and cheaper) option will be to buy a Leaf, Tesla, Mach-E, etc. That said, I have a very long list of custom electric cars I want to build someday.
Someone online created their own Tesla conversion and it does quarter mile in 9.8 seconds using just one Tesla motor. They are working on a 2 motor version one wonders how fast that will be for sure. This 818 could very likely run a quarter faster then a Lamborghini Aventador SV.
An 818 with a model s rear drive unit would be an absolute rocket ship, the 818 weighs very little and the model s motor makes a TON of power. You could smoke a whole lot of stock cars in that
Best Buy if you wish to go BEV today is the VW e-up at €20.000 runs almost 250 km. It’s small but with 5 doors and with German quality. Soon we will see a €15.000 BEV almost free of services and charged at night at a very low cost.
If the hardwares already support it (which they do, lots of rooms), some physical logics in software updates will progressively change these EVs. The idea is pretty simple. Batteries can self charge but you can always add more juice in them for novel energies.
I want to build 2003 to 2007 chevy silverado electric trucks but I’m currently researching the parts powerful enough and durable enough for a trucks use. This video helped with that a little
Rich Rebuilds did a video on this. Another guy, at EVTV, stopped doing conversions because Teslas are better and cheaper than what he could build, even with a decade plus of experience. Conventional wisdom says:You’re better off with a used Tesla if you want a cheaper EV. If you have $100k burning a hole in your pocket (ie money is no object), go the kit / conversion route.
@@autophile525i I have seen Indians in India do cheap electric car conversions it's very amazing what they can do. Practically plug & play. And I'm not very mechanically incline. I'm very impressed with it can do. And I have a $40,000 factory electric car.
Convert your car into an EV at the low price of 32 thousand dollars + ? That is an outrageous price to conclude for an EV conversion. Sure if the high end sports car with unlimited spending will cost that much, But! an EV conversion can be done to any low cost manual transmission gas powered car by removing its motor and buying an adapter mounting plate for the electric motor so it can be mounted to the transmission. Buying seats , accessories , ext. is a complete waste of money. What we need today is the same thing that Ford did in the early 20th century with his Ford T-model car but with Electrical Converts. Taking a gas motor car , put cost of removal of motor, cost of electric car motor, cost of batteries, and controller you're looking about 7-10 thousand dollars tops for a decent fully operational EV conversion that would be simple and basic enough to jump start a very high demand for cheap EV conversions to be put out onto the market. Taking a expensive gas motor car and converting it into a deluxe EV is like buying a frame of a car then spending tons of money to build the entire car like if you were on the TV show "Pimp my Ride" Really all that is needed is someone to build a reliable low cost/basic EV converted car chain that can be produced by an assembly line just like Ford did with his T-Model and you'll have so many buyers with such high demand you wouldn't be able to pump out cars fast enough to fill the demand just like what happened when Ford couldn't build T-Model cars fast enough to meet his demand. The EV conversion Gold Mine is just waiting for someone to fill that void, assessing the cost like this guy did will get you no where but in a huge financial hole.
@@HoomerbirdG2 It can be done that cheap, it would be a lower grade car more light weight car with little cargo room. If you dont carry much cargo and just people then 5 grand would get you a decent EV, but if you need something more long distance and can carry cargo then it will cost more 6-8 grand im guessing
@@TheZafootz do you know a rough approximation of the horsepower output a decent electric conversion could make in a small 4door? Im considering an electric conversion but if its going to cost over 8 grand Im just going to buy and put a honda j35 engine into the car myself, that should make 144 more horses than the stock engine and about 120 lb feet of torque more than stock.
@@HoomerbirdG2 There's lots of different motors and controllers to choose from but it comes down to having start-up torque at low speed with low torque at high speed or steady speed ith constant torque. If you want high speed then u need to have a low torque at high speed motor, if you need hauling torque then you gotta go with the 2nd option. If you give me some more info i can go into more depth but unless i know the car you want to convert and what kinda voltage you want for the control system I can't really advise you any farther...
Hello there Roadshow, I have been wanting to do a DIY hightop Van gas to EV conversion and then build it into a motorhome with solar panels. Do you have any info on a van conversion idea?
People get wrecked BMWs and use those for electric drivetrain swaps all the time. That knocks ten grand off the project from the start and a kit car is going to be hard to register because you need receipts for everything to prove nothing is stolen. The small advantage of a electric car is that you need receipts for fewer parts
Just like so many informational articles, they omit the magic word: insurance; with an home built, you either can not get any insurance, or your premium will be sky high.
I am mixed in this. I rather get the Audi eTron or a Tesla (gulp) over doing a project like this. Right now in 2020, I can see this being a problem. But give it a few years, it can take off. This also points the way at some point to converting the ICE into an EV.
This is the most thoughtful comment I’ve read. In a few years, when batteries are cheaper it will be much more affordable and by that time everybody will be buying evs. So what are we gonna do with our ICE used cars if everybody wants EVs? Convert them since selling is not an option anymore.
Hi Roadshow, what about insurance for a car 818, any difference between gas and electrics? Also I seen lots of videos cars conversions to electric, how about a video on how to convert diesel trucks into electrics? Thank you.
Question, if we quit using gasoline power, where will the material come from to produce tires and asphalt. We still need this stuff with electric cars, don't we?
Nowadays EV conversions only really make sense if you are either really smart or are an enthusiastic doing this as a fun project. Because the cost of this is nearly enough to buy a brand new Tesla Model 3 that will have more range and is a functioning car with features and Warranty.
Cost is clearly not a motive here, even EV kits are not cheap. This is something to do for the fun and challenge. Those EV crate engines look really fun when they get cheaper. I’d love to put one in a Chevy SSR. Think of how many extra batteries you could got in the covered bed of that thing. Good use for the underpowered ‘03 and ‘04 ones.
8000RPM I hope to find an old Hummerw a rust free body that’s got 300,000 miles on it do a frame up on the thing and then make it Electric now I’ve got a 50 $60,000 car for the cost of... 15 to 25,000 😉
@@gitarzzan1 Exactly! I was expecting to watch the video and hear about conversion kits getting cheaper. Going from $10k-$20k for a conversion down to maybe $5k-$10k now. But hearing $30k? New Tesla model 3 low end is $35k, why would I build an EV just to save 16%?
Thank you for this excellent video. I have a 2007 Sport Luxury Cadillac CTS that I love so much. Is comfortable, powerful, elegant, Regulations in EU 🇪🇺 are changing and they are prohibiting high gas emissions cars to enter into cities like Barcelona... What's the best kit for my car, to don't lose performance, power, torque, CV and still feeling proud of driving a great American 🇺🇸 car here?
10 years ago conversion was a viable and somewhat affordable plan. In those 10 years however Tesla has reduced their costs and will give you better range and performance for a close price.
Now if you just want to have a fun car at a budget then you can just get a used forklift motor and hook it up with some lipos. Sounds sketchy but there's sketchier builds than that
Also remember when do the conversion you put the go juice at Home (at night for cheaper rates) is you primary fill up while you sleep! Almost like having you cake and eating it too with a cool car!
I want a ev work truck a flat bed probably on a 250 or 2500 frame to have something to do farm and construction work out of. It would be nice to be able to pick up a feed order or lumber package but I would need 150 miles in range or better doesn't need to be fast like what they are talking about.
Can we see competitive businesses converting old cars into EVs in the future? They may be very competitive and dropping prices, especially in countries with the available tech supply chain of electronics such as China, Japan, Taiwan, the EU, and the US. Hopefully, it will spillover to other South countries fast.
EV conversions are expensive at the moment but if you already own something like a classic Porsche by the time EV's become practically manditory I'm sure components will be far cheaper and dedicated drop in kits will exist by then.
If you don't mind that it's not a sports car and not a completely new vehicle then you could get a used Nissan Leaf and just put new batteries in it. Wouldnt the total cost for a very high capacity Leaf be around $20,000-$28,000?
For a Toyota MR2 conversion kit by EV west is just under 8K, the conversion I'm gonna do is at most gonna be like 35K, which is fairly priced considering it'll be faster than the stock and cheaper than a tesla
I checked out EV West the conversion kits are nice and the Tesla battery is $1,500. I think a Toyota MR2 Spyder would be a cool project. When you finish it you’ll have to Post it and let me see it 3 yrs from now.
I would say the cheapest and safest way to do it would be to get a kit car like 818 and then get a reck Zero motorcycle but with a working power train, you get up to 100 HP and all you need motor battery an controller for around 5k, the only problem would be the range but this is just a commuters car any way.
man... it would be cool but damn.. with that much cost and not including labor if you can't do certain parts of the project yourself... you could legitimately buy a lower cost ev. but... yeah its frustrating dealing with this current gas situation.
So if you are going to have a car without a warranty, wouldn't a used Tesla be a better car for about the same price? Of course you would not have as racey looking car as an 818, but I have a hard time imagining the performance is going to be very similar if not better (if you found a performance version).
Enter Rich Rebuilds now with a sub $5K build closer to $3K after selling parts off car he used as a body donor. Coming down exponentially. Just wait until hub motors become ubiquitous and easy to install.
Too many hoops to jump through, seems like a good way to waste your money. I rather just get an EV car at that point. Not now, possibly later when EV vehicles improve even more.
If the batteries only cost $1800 to buy you put in at least two separate systems and then you always have an extra auxiliary and then you use your own 200 amp alternator & converter... & charge one: using the other one
I don’t care of the batteries cost three times as much... it is still worth it... Instead of polluting the planet with poison ... and blowing fuel in the sky
The "hard part" is getting doors to work and keep water out. Even welding up a frame is easier. There are ZERO kit cars available for a lightwieght, cheap, simple, humble commuter, EV or otherwise. The Riely XR3 does not have a prebuilt body...yet It would be a great cannidate for Crowd Funding
I could just use a 5.3l GM motor. Save o idk about 25k...) then any time it blows up, starts smoking or whatever. Bam 500$ you got a new motor... 35000! Just buy the model 3.
Rich man's toys. By the time he's done building it it will cost over $50,000 and still get about 60 miles out of a charge. It would be fun if it was in the 20 to 25 thousand range
Its crazy that states are offering incentives to buy new EVs -- and at the same time -- charging extra to register them. You asked a rhetorical "why" - and the answer is BECAUSE THEY CAN. People have a lot of knee-jerk reactions as to whether this is a good idea, but they rarely try to find out how roads are funded and/or what gas tax money is spent on. The right hand of government needs to know what the left hand is doing.
Yes and no. The Tesla model 3 starts at $35,000 and doesn't require tons of gas and maintenance costs. So if you are comparing a Toyota Corolla, yes, gas is cheaper, but otherwise no
@@nerdnairbnordnirbu9044 well gas was about one dollar to one dollar and fifty cents this summer and fall So with a car that got to mpg it was way cheaper than electric, unless you have already paid off your solar panels. Not only that gas heat is way more cheaper than electric and you actually feel the heat.Eve get terrible range in the cold and heating the cabin is a huge drain on them. That’s why I would go hybrid first, or an ev with a gas generator in back. Never put everything in one form of energy
5 TESLA Model S battery modules in series is 125 vdc maximum, while the minimum voltage to operate the TESLA Model S drive is 275 vdc. In other words you cannot build it the way you stated in this video.
I prefer the cobbled together approach. An electric motor bolted directly to an IRS differential housing. Batteries from numerous EV manufacturers will work and fit under bonnet or in trunk. The cheaper a conversation the better. You just have to mimic the battery cooling systems from some of the EV manufacturers. 😨😨😨😨😂😂😂😂
What States Charge extra Fees/Charges for owning A Hybrid and/or Electric Vehicles like the state of West Virginia? an the Car companies like Toyota who have Factories in these States!
AL added $200.00 extra to the base tag charge for an EV and $100.00 for a hybrid. A great deal of the road fund comes from sales tax. So, if you ride a bicycle, motorcycle, Hummer, Ferrari doesn't have that big of an effect on their budget. I think it was done to try and appease the petroleum industry and legacy auto makers who don't want to compete with Tesla. My next EV will be a Tesla if I buy another one at all.
Something tells me that having another backyard project on the road .. with dangerous levels of current would not be a good thing. Seems like for that price.. they could simply purchase a used Tesla and get 10 times the performance, distance, reliability and warranty. It might make sense to convert a car.. but kit car, probably not. America has enough to worry about than introducing another vehicle that comes out of a box.
don't care for pure EVs, but what I want to build is a hybrid which does pure electric at low speeds, where internal combustion is inefficient, and the electric motors act as a supercharger in sport mode.
33 Grand and a whole lot of work? How does this make sense? safety inspection, VIN issues, possible screw ups? Too much work, too much risk, this is silly, just purchase an EV.
This was an impressively honest and accurate discussion. Neat hearing what ideas others come up with!
Just register in Florida. I'm not even sure we have a DMV down here.
There's a ton where you don't need to necessarily spent $35k. A Hyper9 motor or a UQM motor with all the accessories like chargers, cooling kit, etc can be had for $10k or even less, depending on what you choose for parts. Also, skip the Tesla overpriced batteries for something more reasonable like LifePO4 or build your own 18650 pack and you can get that down to $5k. Convert your existing car you already have and save another $10k. Realistically a $20k budget these days, if you are just converting a car you own, is definitely doable. You won't have a Tesla with 300mi range or 0-60 in 4 sec, but an EV with respectable range and acceleration
I have been wanting to do this to my 2001 BMW.. Do you have any resources that you can recommend?
Thank you in advance
Thank you. My wife and I are in our late 50s and own 5 vehicles. I hate the idea of trashing my paid for vehicles and start all over with an expensive EV carnote. Thanks for your input.
This is perfect for what I have in mind, converting a 2006 Dodge Charger SRT8 from Gas to electric.
We can buy a new EV car in $8k why go through that hassle.
I'm on my second EV conversion (some vids on my channel). I can confirm, this is not for everyone. Even with a kit, you need to be experienced with auto mechanics and electrical theory. Like understanding how brake vacuum boosters work, or how to design a battery pack for the correct capacity and current draw for your motor controller. Just because I find EV conversion fun and intellectually stimulating, doesn't mean everyone will. Oh, and however you do an EV conversion (ground up DIY, kits, salvage parts, have a shop do it all for you, etc), you're going to need lots of $$$.
Now I have to look at that. 😎👍
Yeah that is where you come in and save the day.
How much more or less would it cost to convert my Maserati to a Tesla model s power train?
@@jlove24 It depends on a lot of things like if you are doing the work yourself and how much you can get a junked Tesla to harvest the components. If I were doing a Maserati myself, I would budget $12-$18k for a junked Tesla and another $8-10k in additional materials. If you're paying a shop to do all the work, I would budget over $50k.
Me: I don't have the time to wait for the Cybertruck. I'm gonna get a EV from EV West right now!
EV West: Waiting period is 5 years.
That's for Building by them, for DIY Parts they will get it delivered in weeks.
Me: Cyberduck looks made puck. I'm gonna get a EV from a car company without AC (autocrash)....
@@nc3826 HI NC nice seeing you again, you do realize that "AutoCrash" is a PAID Option. You have to PAY to get it. Typical troll defying the facts.
Typical mindless cult drone troll mentality to want pay extra to the cult to add AC data to the mothership.... FLMAO...
we have a few electric pickup truck projects that people started and never finished sitting at our shop click on my profile picture to get to the website
The only reason I would convert instead of buy new: Avoid EV tab fees here in Washington State by converting a classic car and putting classic plates on it (no tabs required).
As a bonus: you get to drive a classic car as a daily driver.
And just another plus. You WON´T need a specialized mechanic to keep it on the road.
For reals. I want to convert an already fuel efficient geo metro. Mainly bc i want to also make it awd.
I've wanted to convert an old Subaru Brat to electric for decades. I love the look of them, they're very simple to work on, and there's plenty of room for batteries. Plus the part time 4wd would be nice here in Colorado.
But the project would cost as much as a new Tesla while not having any of the features, the range, or the performance of a Tesla.
We just need the "Honda Civic" of electric cars. A lowered El cheapo that can be easily modded to the user heart content. Wonder why the Japanese aren't leading the way to a cheap EV.
Nissan is there, but not necessarily on the "easily moddable" front. the Leaf does have the best support, but its hardly a Civic.
It's a great idea. But, I'd rather buy a used RC F. Thank you to every auto journalist who gave the Lexus RC F a less than excellent recommendation. It has dropped in price a lot. Well done!
I contacted a well-known EV conversion shop in southern California, asking about buying the parts to do my own conversion. Granted, I asked for Tesla parts, but that's what they were using on their work. They quoted me $50K for parts. This was right when Tesla released their new model for $35-40K. You do the math.
$10000 did the math .
@@raychambers3646 are you this petty in real life?😂😂😂😂 I love it..
@@shimeih2287 well if I was being I would say it's not math its maths ,but being really petty i would say it's simple arithmetic! Hows that ?
@@raychambers3646 😂😂😂😂🙌🏼🙌🏼🙌🏼
I heard used batteries and wiring from wrecked cars are the way to go
Great video guys. EV conversions and kits are the way of the future and certainly more interesting than buying new off the showroom floor!
For those of us that build our own water cooled PC's, it was interesting to see XSPC supplying the cooling components for this vehicle (@ 1:26 to see an XSPC radiator in the engine compartment).
Yeah that was cool to see
There are over 30 different electric vehicle models to choose from in 2020 / 2021.
Used EVs are pretty inexpensive but have less range than the newer ones.
Electric vehicles are great. No noise, no emissions, less fuel costs, less maintenance costs.
I had no idea you were as positive about EVs as you are showing yourself to be here. I did a BMW conversion 11 years ago that is on RUclips, and the process was not a simple one. I am glad there is someone such as yourself helping to show the way for neophytes. Please stick with it! We need to retire the fossil fuel industry!
Thank you.
I wish car companies could retrofit a hybrid drivetrain with warranty on their older cars, it would be far cheaper than $30.000.00 -&100K + and help the environment out more than new cars with 3--6 years of payments, especially in suv's and they could make better profit margins then on cars.
Good point!
I’ve heard 55-80k or more, depending on the batteries.
EV conversions are really cool, but they are not meant to be a substitute for factory-built EVs. Think of it as a very involved engine swap - it's great for hot rodding or if you have a specific car you want to build, but for the majority of people, the better (and cheaper) option will be to buy a Leaf, Tesla, Mach-E, etc.
That said, I have a very long list of custom electric cars I want to build someday.
Someone online created their own Tesla conversion and it does quarter mile in 9.8 seconds using just one Tesla motor. They are working on a 2 motor version one wonders how fast that will be for sure. This 818 could very likely run a quarter faster then a Lamborghini Aventador SV.
At first when the taxes were mentioned, I was wondering why. But it well explained. Makes sense. Thanks.
An 818 with a model s rear drive unit would be an absolute rocket ship, the 818 weighs very little and the model s motor makes a TON of power. You could smoke a whole lot of stock cars in that
Brooooo Cooley has a new channel!?!?! I remember loving his "Make it mag" videos
Best Buy if you wish to go BEV today is the VW e-up at €20.000 runs almost 250 km. It’s small but with 5 doors and with German quality. Soon we will see a €15.000 BEV almost free of services and charged at night at a very low cost.
If the hardwares already support it (which they do, lots of rooms), some physical logics in software updates will progressively change these EVs.
The idea is pretty simple. Batteries can self charge but you can always add more juice in them for novel energies.
I want to build 2003 to 2007 chevy silverado electric trucks but I’m currently researching the parts powerful enough and durable enough for a trucks use. This video helped with that a little
This sounds like a fun and terrible idea, just like most “project cars”.
Because it is a Project Car with similar level of frustration and difficulty. Not any worse or better.
Rich Rebuilds did a video on this. Another guy, at EVTV, stopped doing conversions because Teslas are better and cheaper than what he could build, even with a decade plus of experience. Conventional wisdom says:You’re better off with a used Tesla if you want a cheaper EV. If you have $100k burning a hole in your pocket (ie money is no object), go the kit / conversion route.
Like "project" anything at home!!!
@@autophile525i I have seen Indians in India do cheap electric car conversions it's very amazing what they can do. Practically plug & play. And I'm not very mechanically incline. I'm very impressed with it can do. And I have a $40,000 factory electric car.
Steven Correa Could a kit like that be imported? They’re safe, right?
Shoot me an email: travlr2010 (at) gmail
Convert your car into an EV at the low price of 32 thousand dollars + ? That is an outrageous price to conclude for an EV conversion. Sure if the high end sports car with unlimited spending will cost that much, But! an EV conversion can be done to any low cost manual transmission gas powered car by removing its motor and buying an adapter mounting plate for the electric motor so it can be mounted to the transmission. Buying seats , accessories , ext. is a complete waste of money. What we need today is the same thing that Ford did in the early 20th century with his Ford T-model car but with Electrical Converts. Taking a gas motor car , put cost of removal of motor, cost of electric car motor, cost of batteries, and controller you're looking about 7-10 thousand dollars tops for a decent fully operational EV conversion that would be simple and basic enough to jump start a very high demand for cheap EV conversions to be put out onto the market. Taking a expensive gas motor car and converting it into a deluxe EV is like buying a frame of a car then spending tons of money to build the entire car like if you were on the TV show "Pimp my Ride" Really all that is needed is someone to build a reliable low cost/basic EV converted car chain that can be produced by an assembly line just like Ford did with his T-Model and you'll have so many buyers with such high demand you wouldn't be able to pump out cars fast enough to fill the demand just like what happened when Ford couldn't build T-Model cars fast enough to meet his demand. The EV conversion Gold Mine is just waiting for someone to fill that void, assessing the cost like this guy did will get you no where but in a huge financial hole.
needs to be more like 5grand for people to actually want to do this and have a shot at making any environmental impact. 32 k id just get a nice bmw
@@HoomerbirdG2 It can be done that cheap, it would be a lower grade car more light weight car with little cargo room. If you dont carry much cargo and just people then 5 grand would get you a decent EV, but if you need something more long distance and can carry cargo then it will cost more 6-8 grand im guessing
@@TheZafootz do you know a rough approximation of the horsepower output a decent electric conversion could make in a small 4door? Im considering an electric conversion but if its going to cost over 8 grand Im just going to buy and put a honda j35 engine into the car myself, that should make 144 more horses than the stock engine and about 120 lb feet of torque more than stock.
@@HoomerbirdG2 There's lots of different motors and controllers to choose from but it comes down to having start-up torque at low speed with low torque at high speed or steady speed ith constant torque. If you want high speed then u need to have a low torque at high speed motor, if you need hauling torque then you gotta go with the 2nd option. If you give me some more info i can go into more depth but unless i know the car you want to convert and what kinda voltage you want for the control system I can't really advise you any farther...
Blah blah blah...🥴😷
Hello there Roadshow, I have been wanting to do a DIY hightop Van gas to EV conversion and then build it into a motorhome with solar panels. Do you have any info on a van conversion idea?
Well said mate
Keepuo the good work and sensible guidance
People get wrecked BMWs and use those for electric drivetrain swaps all the time. That knocks ten grand off the project from the start and a kit car is going to be hard to register because you need receipts for everything to prove nothing is stolen. The small advantage of a electric car is that you need receipts for fewer parts
Going full electric on my sailboat. Cape Dory 30. Had a yanmar with around 15 hp. Gonna use a motor out of a Tesla, leaf or maybe a prius.
I’ve considered it. It’s a NO.
This is so detailed. Great job sir
Just like so many informational articles, they omit the magic word: insurance; with an home built, you either can not get any insurance, or your premium will be sky high.
Not true--- I have a Chevy pickup insured just as it was with an engine in it.
So much work. Model 3 Performance and boom, done.
I am mixed in this.
I rather get the Audi eTron or a Tesla (gulp) over doing a project like this.
Right now in 2020, I can see this being a problem. But give it a few years, it can take off. This also points the way at some point to converting the ICE into an EV.
This is the most thoughtful comment I’ve read. In a few years, when batteries are cheaper it will be much more affordable and by that time everybody will be buying evs. So what are we gonna do with our ICE used cars if everybody wants EVs? Convert them since selling is not an option anymore.
It's gonna be so funky to get spare parts
Hi Roadshow, what about insurance for a car 818, any difference between gas and electrics? Also I seen lots of videos cars conversions to electric, how about a video on how to convert diesel trucks into electrics? Thank you.
Thanks Brian good words of encouragement end guidance👍😎
Great video! Super informative and well delivered!!
Electrical engineer here: Lithium is non recyclable and batteries only have a certain amount of charges before they start losing full charge power.
Question, if we quit using gasoline power, where will the material come from to produce tires and asphalt. We still need this stuff with electric cars, don't we?
Nowadays EV conversions only really make sense if you are either really smart or are an enthusiastic doing this as a fun project. Because the cost of this is nearly enough to buy a brand new Tesla Model 3 that will have more range and is a functioning car with features and Warranty.
Cost is clearly not a motive here, even EV kits are not cheap. This is something to do for the fun and challenge. Those EV crate engines look really fun when they get cheaper. I’d love to put one in a Chevy SSR. Think of how many extra batteries you could got in the covered bed of that thing. Good use for the underpowered ‘03 and ‘04 ones.
When he said 30 grand,...I stoped listening.
8000RPM
I hope to find an old Hummerw a rust free body
that’s got 300,000 miles on it do a frame up on the thing
and then make it Electric
now I’ve got a 50 $60,000 car for the cost of... 15 to 25,000
😉
@@johnswartz7872 any project of this nature should be financed 30% over your calculated cost...
@@johnswartz7872 You'll likely spend a lot more than that just for the batteries to power something as big as a hummer, sadly.
If I am going to pay $30k... and have to put the work in.... I’ll buy a used Tesla instead
@@gitarzzan1 Exactly! I was expecting to watch the video and hear about conversion kits getting cheaper. Going from $10k-$20k for a conversion down to maybe $5k-$10k now. But hearing $30k? New Tesla model 3 low end is $35k, why would I build an EV just to save 16%?
Thank you for this excellent video. I have a 2007 Sport Luxury Cadillac CTS that I love so much. Is comfortable, powerful, elegant, Regulations in EU 🇪🇺 are changing and they are prohibiting high gas emissions cars to enter into cities like Barcelona...
What's the best kit for my car, to don't lose performance, power, torque, CV and still feeling proud of driving a great American 🇺🇸 car here?
10 years ago conversion was a viable and somewhat affordable plan. In those 10 years however Tesla has reduced their costs and will give you better range and performance for a close price.
Before you pull the trigger, get a signed concurrence note from the wife.
30K to start off... LMAO I've owned 6 cars and the sum spent to purchase those cars? $5250. I think I'll stick to gas for now
It costs as much and sometimes more than just buying a base Model 3 to build your own EV.
Now if you just want to have a fun car at a budget then you can just get a used forklift motor and hook it up with some lipos.
Sounds sketchy but there's sketchier builds than that
It would be cheaper if they used model 3 parts.
@Luca Duca Yes exactly, but you either have to work out how to brew your own fuel from lawn cuttings & a solar panel or you have missed the point !
But honestly it's worth it. I'd like to see S2000s and Silvias swapped.
Also remember when do the conversion you put the go juice at Home (at night for cheaper rates) is you primary fill up while you sleep! Almost like having you cake and eating it too with a cool car!
Using Old Tesla Model S EV parts... ☹
I want a ev work truck a flat bed probably on a 250 or 2500 frame to have something to do farm and construction work out of. It would be nice to be able to pick up a feed order or lumber package but I would need 150 miles in range or better doesn't need to be fast like what they are talking about.
Can we see competitive businesses converting old cars into EVs in the future? They may be very competitive and dropping prices, especially in countries with the available tech supply chain of electronics such as China, Japan, Taiwan, the EU, and the US. Hopefully, it will spillover to other South countries fast.
Me watching this as an owner of a Bradley GT.... damn I feel called out.
I just wanted to see if I could do this to my 2014 town and country! 😆
EV conversions are expensive at the moment but if you already own something like a classic Porsche by the time EV's become practically manditory I'm sure components will be far cheaper and dedicated drop in kits will exist by then.
If you don't mind that it's not a sports car and not a completely new vehicle then you could get a used Nissan Leaf and just put new batteries in it. Wouldnt the total cost for a very high capacity Leaf be around $20,000-$28,000?
That looks like a cool idea!
I would like to know how much would it cost to convert a 2012 Nissan Maxima S
I’ll wait till the price point comes down for these kits. Nonetheless, entertaining and looks like a lot of fun!
For a Toyota MR2 conversion kit by EV west is just under 8K, the conversion I'm gonna do is at most gonna be like 35K, which is fairly priced considering it'll be faster than the stock and cheaper than a tesla
@@NovaCaine2489 thank you for the great advise. I’m definitely going to do some research. Where do you buy your conversion kit?
I checked out EV West the conversion kits are nice and the Tesla battery is $1,500. I think a Toyota MR2 Spyder would be a cool project. When you finish it you’ll have to Post it and let me see it 3 yrs from now.
@@JonCamposTheIncurables bet
How about replacing a Ford 460 (7.4L) in a 1992 F-450/F-Super Duty with a 5 speed manual transmission
I would say the cheapest and safest way to do it would be to get a kit car like 818 and then get a reck Zero motorcycle but with a working power train, you get up to 100 HP and all you need motor battery an controller for around 5k, the only problem would be the range but this is just a commuters car any way.
man... it would be cool but damn.. with that much cost and not including labor if you can't do certain parts of the project yourself... you could legitimately buy a lower cost ev. but... yeah its frustrating dealing with this current gas situation.
So if you are going to have a car without a warranty, wouldn't a used Tesla be a better car for about the same price? Of course you would not have as racey looking car as an 818, but I have a hard time imagining the performance is going to be very similar if not better (if you found a performance version).
This is amazing
Without any battery cooling system then your recharging will be slower, and the battery life expectancy will be reduced.
True, but the batteries mentioned were Tesla battery packs, which are liquid cooled and heated.
@@JustWasted3HoursHere so where are the heating and cooling systems?
@@matthewbaynham6286 I would imagine that they are included in the package. He does say it includes "everything you need".
Do you think each state regulatory agency would be about the same as Ohio to deal with?
Enter Rich Rebuilds now with a sub $5K build closer to $3K after selling parts off car he used as a body donor. Coming down exponentially. Just wait until hub motors become ubiquitous and easy to install.
nice...i'm gonna get the car, you guys fund me for the conversion..
👍😁👍
The electric e type isn't going into production
Gas drivers don't pay for lung cancer. That's a bit more than road tax, especially since most of road costs comes from income and general sales tax.
Too many hoops to jump through, seems like a good way to waste your money. I rather just get an EV car at that point. Not now, possibly later when EV vehicles improve even more.
When the used market grows, DIY EVs will become a lot more economical.
Cerise M Improve more? Tesla owner here, they’ve already arrived.
If the batteries only cost $1800 to buy you put in at least two separate systems and then you always have an extra auxiliary and then you use your own 200 amp alternator & converter...
& charge one:
using the other one
Time will tell 😉
I don’t care of the batteries cost three times as much... it is still worth it... Instead of polluting the planet with poison ...
and blowing fuel in the sky
@@johnswartz7872 Remember if your electricity still comes from a coal burning power plant you have not solved the polluting issue.
The "hard part" is getting doors to work and keep water out. Even welding up a frame is easier. There are ZERO kit cars available for a lightwieght, cheap, simple, humble commuter, EV or otherwise. The Riely XR3 does not have a prebuilt body...yet
It would be a great cannidate for Crowd Funding
I could just use a 5.3l GM motor. Save o idk about 25k...) then any time it blows up, starts smoking or whatever. Bam 500$ you got a new motor... 35000! Just buy the model 3.
Correction: Ohio has a $100 annual tax on hybrid vehicles. $200 annual tax is if your vehicles has a plug whether it is hybrid or pure EV.
the title: is literally what i was thinking. I think instead of building new cars, dealers should offer vehicle conversions
Rich man's toys. By the time he's done building it it will cost over $50,000 and still get about 60 miles out of a charge. It would be fun if it was in the 20 to 25 thousand range
Its crazy that states are offering incentives to buy new EVs -- and at the same time -- charging extra to register them. You asked a rhetorical "why" - and the answer is BECAUSE THEY CAN. People have a lot of knee-jerk reactions as to whether this is a good idea, but they rarely try to find out how roads are funded and/or what gas tax money is spent on. The right hand of government needs to know what the left hand is doing.
Right now gas is wa cheaper than ev's, I want to be able to use gas or electric or both to be ready for anything.
Weight and space distribution are the deciding factors. Too heavy and your wasting energy, time, and money
Unless you live in a country with high electricity prices I doubt gas is cheaper.
Yes and no. The Tesla model 3 starts at $35,000 and doesn't require tons of gas and maintenance costs. So if you are comparing a Toyota Corolla, yes, gas is cheaper, but otherwise no
@MANSQUITO Biden pretty much is making that a fact.
@@nerdnairbnordnirbu9044 well gas was about one dollar to one dollar and fifty cents this summer and fall
So with a car that got to mpg it was way cheaper than electric, unless you have already paid off your solar panels.
Not only that gas heat is way more cheaper than electric and you actually feel the heat.Eve get terrible range in the cold and heating the cabin is a huge drain on them.
That’s why I would go hybrid first, or an ev with a gas generator in back.
Never put everything in one form of energy
Vehicles just going to be motors, battery and a controller. We need an opensource standard that can be highway legal.
5 TESLA Model S battery modules in series is 125 vdc maximum, while the minimum voltage to operate the TESLA Model S drive is 275 vdc. In other words you cannot build it the way you stated in this video.
I prefer the cobbled together approach.
An electric motor bolted directly to an IRS differential housing.
Batteries from numerous EV manufacturers will work and fit under bonnet or in trunk.
The cheaper a conversation the better.
You just have to mimic the battery cooling systems from some of the EV manufacturers.
😨😨😨😨😂😂😂😂
What States Charge extra Fees/Charges for owning A Hybrid and/or Electric Vehicles like the state of West Virginia? an the Car companies like Toyota who have Factories in these States!
AL added $200.00 extra to the base tag charge for an EV and $100.00 for a hybrid. A great deal of the road fund comes from sales tax. So, if you ride a bicycle, motorcycle, Hummer, Ferrari doesn't have that big of an effect on their budget. I think it was done to try and appease the petroleum industry and legacy auto makers who don't want to compete with Tesla. My next EV will be a Tesla if I buy another one at all.
I think the only application for kits is classic cars.
We can buy a new EV car in $8k.
Something tells me that having another backyard project on the road .. with dangerous levels of current would not be a good thing. Seems like for that price.. they could simply purchase a used Tesla and get 10 times the performance, distance, reliability and warranty. It might make sense to convert a car.. but kit car, probably not. America has enough to worry about than introducing another vehicle that comes out of a box.
you should build a car with regenerative tech. You will have a longer commute and a faster ride. @Y
I’m begging you please do something about your intro music, I nearly ruptured my eardrum with my headphones on.
is it manual?
There's no point of a manual ev
Let's just remodify our existing vehicles to hybrid technology like via Motors
For $32,000 you could go for more "Car" with hvac, etc for the same kind (or less) of money, no thanks!
don't care for pure EVs, but what I want to build is a hybrid which does pure electric at low speeds, where internal combustion is inefficient, and the electric motors act as a supercharger in sport mode.
I want to turn my ford escape to ev conversion
Surely you can get an old Porsche for around $40,000 and drive it tomorrow.
What $40k 911 has over 500 hp and no lag?
Lol my ev west kit was 3000 and another 3000 for batteries. Done. 33000? What the hell?
33 Grand and a whole lot of work? How does this make sense? safety inspection, VIN issues, possible screw ups? Too much work, too much risk, this is silly, just purchase an EV.
Should be $15 K..
Should be 5k. An electric drive unit is now cheaper to produce than a comparable combustion drivetrain.
Now 2021 Kandi local car for $7,999 THEY ARE HERE 😱
ICE cars don't give people range anxiety.
A Tesla wouldn't, either. Anything over 200 miles of range would give me no anxiety whatsoever for weekly use with limited charging, if need be.
They can if you dont plan your trip accordingly. Same as a gas car derp