Electric Motor Car Conversions Are Catching On

All electric vehicles (EVs) have gotten no where near the press their half brothers have gotten, but their number and variety already dwarf any commercially manufactured models. Between the time GM shut down production of their all electric car and Tesla and Zenn stepped in to produce very high end and very affordable all electric neighborhood vehicles, there were no commercial alternatives.

Ordinary Americans stepped into the breach.  Many of them created EVs from scratch, but many more of them found ways to convert their existing gas burning vehicles to battery power. They have come up with a wide variety of ways to overcome (at least to some extent) the biggest hurdle to electric domination; battery capacity and costs.

Today there are several small tech, environmental, or start-up automobile companies looking for venture capital to complete their electric car projects.  Others are content to set up shop as local “backyard” conversion experts.

Les and Jane Oke set out nearly 15 years ago with a goal of “living off the grid” completely without giving up the conveniences of electricity.  They worked out ways to generate their own heat and home electricity.  Powering their car with electricity they generated themselves proved a little more difficult, but in the end they worked it out.

Their electric car had a top speed of 50 mph and a range of about 100 miles.  That’s not far off from the performance of the new Zenn electric cars slowly spreading across the US from Canada.  But with an average conversion cost way under $1,000 to the new Zenn costs of between $12-15,000 that’s where the similarity ends.

The Okes have recently ventured online to sell, not their cars, but the plans, equipment lists and instructions needed to convert any gas or diesel car, SUV or diesel to be powered by electricity.  We have not reviewed or built an electric motor car, but found their information approachable and understandable enough for our “non-technical” research. We would have been happy to pay the $49 price tag just to get a better undertstanding of what all is involved in the process, but were pleasantly surprised to see the bonus material they have added to their offer.  (To be frank, I would have bought this just for the book on biodiesel to see how that compared to other guides covering that fuel.

Here’s where you can find more information on turning your vehicle into an electric motor car, or purchase the guide.

If you know of someone who has completed a conversion using their plans, or would be interested in completing one and sharing their results with us, we ask that you have them get in touch with us at: info@wemakehybrids.com

Tags: Automobile Companies, Battery Capacity, Battery Power, Car Conversions, Car Projects, Commercial Alternatives, Conveniences, Conversion Cost, Conversion Experts, Diesel Car, Electric Car, electric motor car, Electric Vehicle Ev, Electric Vehicles (EVs), Ev Conversions, Half Brothers, Home Electricity, Hurdle, Living Off The Grid, Neighborhood Vehicles, Okes, Top Speed, Zenn Electric Cars