Cool idea for vintage cars that were unremarkable when it came to driving characteristics or where only the frame and/or body survived with no drivetrain and hard to source donors.
Electric motors don’t have torque curves. It’s all available right away. As a kid I remember reading in Wired about an electric car scene in California where they had to learn things the hard way and one guy’s maiden voyage ended still in his driveway with the backend split in two.
This is essentially the "area under the curve" argument. But it's been polluted to absurdum by interenet fanboys with an agenda
No amount of fanboy screeching is going to change the fact that it's only 200hp. The 500+HP LS crate motor and transmission combo (i.e. what this is being cross shopped against) are going to make more than that from ~2500rpm on up.
If you graph power available at a given output RPM with an electric motor you get a line. With an ICE you get an upward and then tapering off curve. When you add transmission gears to the ICE it's a series of essentially overlapping saw teeth except on the first gear where it goes all the way down to whatever power you make at 1500-2000rpm (so like a little under 100hp for a ~500hp engine, probably like 30hp for an ICE that makes ~200hp stock)
When comparing to cars of about the same horsepower the ICEEVis gonna win every time. Even if the areas are approx. equal you don't have to pull back to shift (even CVTs "shift", it's for longevity reasons) and the ICE is probably not geared deep enough for best initial acceleration (though for "modern" power levels both cars have more than enough to roast the tires).
Compared to a bone stock 70s/80s car that made 200-250hp from the factory this will 200hp EV will be a riot. But that's not what it's being compared against.
And frankly I think it's absolutely moronic that they make you use their 4spd transmission. There are tons and tons and tons of cars out there that either still have the original transmission or someone swapped an SBC into them in 19-whatever. Being able to just replace the engine would make the swap a ton more accessible because you don't have to also add transmission mounting, controls, driveshaft, etc. to the list.
Buying motors and batteries from Aliexpress you can probably get under $15K-$10K even ( and that is probably BOM of Chinese car manufacturers for such the engine and batteries), yet having it as a US factory package $27K doesn't look that bad for me.
I'm not sure a direct drive is possible with EV conversions. You still need to match effective RPM range with diffs. And replacing transmission with a simpler specialized diff would cost much, much more than just using the existing transmission in place.
Presumably so it's an easier conversion - you replace the motor but don't have to replace the rest of the drivetrain, and maybe you want the gearstick inside for the look of the thing (although I imagine you likely wouldn't have to use it most of the time).
Probably to interface with existing cars by replacing the engine, retaining everything after, including the existing transmission, differential(s), and suspension.
"The current eCrate kit requires a GM 4-speed automatic transmission with an external mode switch (e.g., 4L60, 4L65, 4L70, 4L75 Transmissions). This helps to make the eCrate conversion easier for vehicles that already have a conventional driveline, plus it provides extra torque in lower gears and extra speed with overdrive. We are working on bringing a direct drive variant option to our eCrate portfolio."
Reduction ratios, greater comparability due to interfacing links, attachment points, just a few guesses. Most ev conversions I've seen keep the gearbox.
Your comment seems off topic. I think the conversion package is great and should come with all the available cars. If we really care about ecology (but apparently we don't)
I watch a couple of great YouTube channels that do these types of EV conversions. In Wales/UK: https://www.youtube.com/@ElectricClassicCars In Utah: https://www.youtube.com/@electricsupercar In California: https://www.youtube.com/@EVWest (seems dormant right now though)
Cool idea for vintage cars that were unremarkable when it came to driving characteristics or where only the frame and/or body survived with no drivetrain and hard to source donors.
First thought was this should make for some fun resto-mods.
If I had infinite time and money, I would do this to a DeLorean.
For anyone looking to do an electric conversion. Chevy have a "crate motor" package based on one of their electric motors.
A “crate” motor you can’t install yourself.
I was excited about this idea until I found out it's $27k
I didn’t have any context, so I went shopping and it looks like you’re right https://www.gmperformancemotor.com/category/ENG.html
Which is a bit wild to me because I looked into adding a supercharger to my 2010 Camaro last month and it was 7-9k DIY.
I’ll be honest 200hp doesn’t exactly blow up my skirt
But the extra torque might sizzle your drizzle
266 lb/ft? Nah. Maybe for a go kart.
Electric motors don’t have torque curves. It’s all available right away. As a kid I remember reading in Wired about an electric car scene in California where they had to learn things the hard way and one guy’s maiden voyage ended still in his driveway with the backend split in two.
This is essentially the "area under the curve" argument. But it's been polluted to absurdum by interenet fanboys with an agenda
No amount of fanboy screeching is going to change the fact that it's only 200hp. The 500+HP LS crate motor and transmission combo (i.e. what this is being cross shopped against) are going to make more than that from ~2500rpm on up.
If you graph power available at a given output RPM with an electric motor you get a line. With an ICE you get an upward and then tapering off curve. When you add transmission gears to the ICE it's a series of essentially overlapping saw teeth except on the first gear where it goes all the way down to whatever power you make at 1500-2000rpm (so like a little under 100hp for a ~500hp engine, probably like 30hp for an ICE that makes ~200hp stock)
When comparing to cars of about the same horsepower the ICEEVis gonna win every time. Even if the areas are approx. equal you don't have to pull back to shift (even CVTs "shift", it's for longevity reasons) and the ICE is probably not geared deep enough for best initial acceleration (though for "modern" power levels both cars have more than enough to roast the tires).
Compared to a bone stock 70s/80s car that made 200-250hp from the factory this will 200hp EV will be a riot. But that's not what it's being compared against.
And frankly I think it's absolutely moronic that they make you use their 4spd transmission. There are tons and tons and tons of cars out there that either still have the original transmission or someone swapped an SBC into them in 19-whatever. Being able to just replace the engine would make the swap a ton more accessible because you don't have to also add transmission mounting, controls, driveshaft, etc. to the list.
I get this is a pretty nice product that they won't sell in huge volume, but that is really steep, was expecting something <20k
It includes a 66 kWh battery. This might be a strategy for offloading all the Bolt EV batteries they had to refurbish.
yesterday post here about Tesla-fied Mustang - $40K of parts https://electrek.co/2026/05/02/tesla-1966-mustang-ev-convers...
Buying motors and batteries from Aliexpress you can probably get under $15K-$10K even ( and that is probably BOM of Chinese car manufacturers for such the engine and batteries), yet having it as a US factory package $27K doesn't look that bad for me.
But they keep the 4-speed transmission? For what purpose?
This is a straightforward way of electric conversion. You plug in the motor in the place where torque is expected and let the rest do its job.
Gearboxes in EV conversions are usually locked in the highest gear with clutch and lever removed.
How much friction loss do you get going through a transmission compared to direct drive?
I'm not sure a direct drive is possible with EV conversions. You still need to match effective RPM range with diffs. And replacing transmission with a simpler specialized diff would cost much, much more than just using the existing transmission in place.
Negligible. Roll the windows up if you want that range back.
I still think it's dumb and they should package it to replace the transmission and stuff all the batteries where the engine would go.
Presumably so it's an easier conversion - you replace the motor but don't have to replace the rest of the drivetrain, and maybe you want the gearstick inside for the look of the thing (although I imagine you likely wouldn't have to use it most of the time).
Probably to interface with existing cars by replacing the engine, retaining everything after, including the existing transmission, differential(s), and suspension.
It says:
"The current eCrate kit requires a GM 4-speed automatic transmission with an external mode switch (e.g., 4L60, 4L65, 4L70, 4L75 Transmissions). This helps to make the eCrate conversion easier for vehicles that already have a conventional driveline, plus it provides extra torque in lower gears and extra speed with overdrive. We are working on bringing a direct drive variant option to our eCrate portfolio."
Reduction ratios, greater comparability due to interfacing links, attachment points, just a few guesses. Most ev conversions I've seen keep the gearbox.
I wouldn't be excited when their cars comes with a spy package that sells every information when your are in it.
It won't take years for they to think that they can pry in private conversations in the car for whatever purpose they want
Your comment seems off topic. I think the conversion package is great and should come with all the available cars. If we really care about ecology (but apparently we don't)
You wouldn’t want a newer gas car then. Pretty much anything these days has the ability to track you or disable you remotely.
Got OnStar? https://www.onstar.com/features/location-sharing