The real future of hot rodding - a '68 Mustang gone electric

[Mike DC]

    


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q7vTCK9ywBA (the Mustang is mainly in the 2nd half of it)

50yo steel body street car.

1000 hp.  1800 lb-ft.

0-60:  1.79 sec
1/4-mile:  9.89 @ 140 mph

The car is this good while it carries a heavy battery load for their top speed goals.  The numbers would be even stupider with a short range setup.  

We'd better start getting used to the idea that our gasoline drivetrains are "part of the old-car charm" and not a hi-po choice anymore. 
   

[ws23rt]

I have always been impressed with the potential of electric cars.
Dumping fuel/energy to the tires is the name of the drag racing game.

I see electric as being just another new class.   Different strokes for different folks.

[A12 Superbee]

However, there is a growing belief, which is based in truth I might add, that the carbon footprint of electric cars is larger than that of petroleum powered cars. If this knowledge starts to gather traction and the electric car manufacturers can't get the carbon footprint down, then electric cars might not take over as quick as people think.

I read an interesting article the other day here in Australia how electric cars were already hurting our roads. Here, and I'm sure elsewhere, a % of the price of gasoline is taken by the government to put back into the cost of maintaining and making new roads. As electric cars are not paying this excise, the roads will invariably suffer as there's no money! Of course the government then decided that it may implement a tax on electricity sourced from power outlets on the highways but what about the cars recharged at home? That's a lot of money that the government is not going to get.

They or whatever replaces them, hydrogen, steam or Kryptonite powered cars will win in the end but it's not as close as people fear. I'm thinking 100 years or so.

[Mike DC]

  
Agreed, electric cars are only as carbon-free as the power plants supplying the town's electricity.  Lots of coal is still burned for power.  


A miles-driven tax will likely replace the gasoline taxes.  
I don't know what method they will use to track our mileage.  Probably whatever way invades our privacy the worst.  

[Baldwinvette77]

 

[Kern Dog]

No.
Nothing replaces the sound and feel of a rumbling V8 burning gasoline.

[alfaitalia]

I don't like it either.....even if the defence above about them being more polluting that gas cars because of the coal powered power stations is complete BS and its not even close in pollution created per vehicle. In the UK its better still with about half our electricity coming from renewable sources. But yes an engine is a living breathing thing (in my head at least!) and the sound is half of it to me...and not just V8s. I've got to get used to it as it will be illegal to sell a petrol (gas!) or diesel powered road car in the UK after 2040....that only 22 years. Cars already on the road wont be affected but the numbers will quickly decline I would guess (electric cars are already a large and growing market here)......just the diehards like us sticking to dino fuels. To lots of folks a car is just a tool to do a job (get from A to B!) like was washing machine or a phone....so they wont care what its powered by. Pity....end of an era.

[HPP]

Electric cars to carry a certain safety issue with them as their silent running does not alert pedestrians to their presence. As their numbers go up, expect car/pedestrian incidents to go up as well. Of course the remedy to that is to give them simulated engine sounds, a hum, or worse yet, some sort of beeper.

[Aero426]

Sorry, I will never accept this. 

[Chad L. Magee]

I have always been impressed with the potential of electric cars.
Dumping fuel/energy to the tires is the name of the drag racing game.

I see electric as being just another new class.   Different strokes for different folks.

Don't you mean "Different volts for different folks.".

I agree.  Electric cars can do some impressive feats when set up correctly....

[alfaitalia]

Electric cars to carry a certain safety issue with them as their silent running does not alert pedestrians to their presence. As their numbers go up, expect car/pedestrian incidents to go up as well. Of course the remedy to that is to give them simulated engine sounds, a hum, or worse yet, some sort of beeper.

.....alternatively the idiot pedestrians could look before they step out into the road!! LOL. TBH at cruising speed they are not a lot quieter than a modern fully silenced gas engine. A lot of the noise you here when a car passes is tyres and the sound of the car passing through the air. Modern sub 2.0 litre engines can hardly be heard.

[alfaitalia]

Sorry, I will never accept this. 

........depending on how old you are now you might get little choice . I will be about 73 when it becomes law here so hopefully will have a few years driving left!!!.....cant imagine other countries will be far behind. The problems, in a huge country like yours, will take lots longer to overcome than here.....just the huge gaps between places make charging an issue.....but batteries are leaping forward in ability .....the 1000mile charge interval is not far away apparently! Not saying I like it.....but its gonna happen.

[Mike DC]

  
There will be a learning curve with electric safety & practicality.  But that's nothing new.  

Ford Pinto gas tanks were still exploding 100 years after gas cars were invented and 60 years after they were common.    

Modern (gas) economy cars already have engines hardly louder than their tire drag.


Maybe cars will become plug-in-only.  Maybe cars will carry little backup gasoline engines to recharge the batteries on longer trips.  But either way, electric motors will be powering the car's wheels in the future.  It's inevitable.  They simply do the job better.  

[6pkrtse]

No mention that it is probably over a 250K build though.....

[tan top]

No.
Nothing replaces the sound and feel of a rumbling V8 burning gasoline.

agreed   

[Mike DC]

No mention that it is probably over a 250K build though.....

Not too far off.  I think the conversion was like $125k + your car.  


A lot probably depends on how fast you wanna go.  A regular gasoline drivetrain isn't cheap when you want a 572" V8 + trans + Dana 60 + fuel & cooling systems.  The electric Mustang is every bit that fast.  And there are kits to convert an old VW Beetle to a plain vanilla electric cruiser for like $10 grand.    


Check back in 10 years.  Production electric parts will trickle down from junkyards, dealerships, the aftermarket ball will start rolling, etc.  

[INTMD8]

The performance is impressive but I just have no interest in it. Same with Tesla.

There's a lot more to enjoying a vehicle than just the numbers. 

If it ran 7's for 10k I still would have no interest.

[Brass]

I think electric motors lack the palpable thrill and appeal of a gas engine but the technology is cool and it will continue to improve. 

[JB400]

It's going to come to a choice some day soon.  Either enjoy your Charger as garage/ museum art, or convert it and enjoy it.


The choice is yours.

[Aero426]

It's going to come to a choice some day soon.  Either enjoy your Charger as garage/ museum art, or convert it and enjoy it.


The choice is yours.

This is why there are lobbying organizations like SEMA to advocate for the hobby. 

[ws23rt]

I think electric motors lack the palpable thrill and appeal of a gas engine but the technology is cool and it will continue to improve.  

I agree.  One can get fun with acceleration on carnival rides but that is just a small part of the fun to be had with this aging hobby.

Drag racing has evolved to essentially riding on a gas explosion. Imo An electric explosion is just a different source of energy.

[Mike DC]

Some modern sporty cars are already pumping fake engine revving noise into the cabin with the audio system speakers.  Seriously. 

[JR]

It's going to come to a choice some day soon.  Either enjoy your Charger as garage/ museum art, or convert it and enjoy it.


The choice is yours.

Im sorry, but that is a bit hyperbolic. I'll never understand the "they're coming for our V8s!" phobia.

No one took horses away when the car came along. No one is going to take away your classic car if electric cars become common place. Even if the U.S. adopted a mandate similar to France's, no new gasoline cars after 2040 rule, they aren't going to come collect your old ones. Especially not as long as the oil companies are allowed to lobby millions of dollars in Washington every year.

I welcome electric cars. Cleaner air to breath, less dependency on fossil fuels, and more fuel left over for our fun cars. It's a win/win.

I wouldn't mind having an electric car for a daily commute. Or an electric A body project. That zombie mustang drivetrain in a Hemi Dart clone would be cool.

[JB400]

Sorry, but there's no phobia to pin it on.  It's the way the world works. Once a new idea catches on and becomes mainstream, something else is going to get phased out.  The stables got phased out and replaced with garages when the horseless carriage become mainstream.  The Kodak camera got the ax when digital cameras become mainstream.

Just wait until a electric skateboard is perfected.  Then, you can 3d print your car in your choice of configuration and drive it. 

[ws23rt]

How fast will the first (yet to be primitive) "transporters" be? Will they just start out slow like --miles per nano sec.?
I'm thinking along the lines of Parsecs per nano sec.
Being "fastest" is wide open and room to go fast is not a problem.

Hey you-- with the checkered flag--- we have some questions?  

If you can go to the track and win a race and come back home -before you left- I would say that was a good day.