British EV conversion specialist Electrogenic has come up with a drop-in kit for a couple of classic Porsche 911 generations which bolts directly to the car's existing mounts, without needing to modify the chassis.
The conversion kit can be fitted to either a G-Body (1974-1989) or a 964-Series (1989-1994) Porsche 911, and there's a choice of two electric motors.
The entry-level E62 provides 214 horsepower and an impressive 2,360 pound-feet (3,200 Newton-meters) of torque through a pair of new driveshafts, allowing the rear-engine coupe to sprint from zero to 60 miles per hour (0-96 kilometers per hour) in 4.9 seconds.
The more powerful E62s kit raises the power figure to 322 hp and the torque output to 2,876 lb-ft (3,900 Nm), but Electrogenic says that this one "requires some careful thinking about suspension geometry and setup,” as the internal combustion engine variant of the 911 made a maximum of 250 hp, so it's quite a big upgrade, with the 0-60 mph sprint taking just 3.8 seconds.
Gallery: Electrogenic drop-in EV conversion kit for Porsche 911
Other than that, however, the conversion kit seems to be very well thought out, with no other modifications required. The 62-kilowatt-hour battery pack is split between the front trunk and the rear motor compartment, the electric motor sits where the old gasoline engine used to sit, and all system electronics are tucked away where the gas tank used to be.
The original gauges are used to monitor the system, with the fuel level gauge tracking battery capacity, the oil temperature gauge tracking e-motor temperature, and the oil pressure gauge showing the amount of battery regeneration.
The kit adds about 220 pounds (100 kilograms) to a car that originally weighs around 2,865 lbs (1,300 kg), which isn't ideal for driving dynamics, but on the upside, the roughly 40 kWh worth of battery in the frunk leads to a shift in the front-to-rear weight balance from 40:60 to 49:51. So nearly perfect in this regard.
The driving range is estimated to hover between 180-200 miles (290-322 km) and charging can be done at a maximum rate of 50 kW, which tops up the battery in one hour. Plugged into a 6.6-kW home charger, a full recharge should take about eight hours.
Electrogenic is working with several shops around the world to handle the conversions and says that the switch to all-electric will cost around $120,000 excluding the donor 911, so it's not exactly cheap.
Alternatively, if you want a much more affordable European converted classic, you can check out the Renault 4 from R-Fit.
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Source: Electrogenic via Autoblog