Classic Mini Ev - the 40K conversion

[@jamesbarrie2965]

You’ve created a well built classic with a modern twist, top job👍

[@classicminiculture9800]

thankyou sir

[@philpoole5670]

Another great video … and yes I agree battery cars are not as green as we are told they are an option for a certain life style we still need that choice …. And love what you’ve done to the clubman fantastic car

[@grahamwoodier5066]

Converting a Mini to electric was never going to be a cheap exercise and there are many even more expensive attempts out there. I will be interested to see what you do to refine the car as time goes on and to hear what owning a classic EV is like over time. Anyway, well done! My classic EV conversion will have to wait until some funds turn up...

[@classicminiculture9800]

thanks Graham, we have a couple of things in mind, so the project is not finished as such, but before you make further changes we will enjoy it over the summer.

[@theenglishtrucker1849]

The biggest question the environment has about electric cars is: What are you going to do with all the dead battery cells?

[@franskamstra2728]

my take on future (next 20 years) cars is full electric drive. as in electic engine like in this awesome mini. connected to a "small" battery system with just enough capasity to drive about 20 to 30 kilometers on it. this will greatly reduce resources needed. and supplement that with a highly optimised generator like the free piston engine. only there to genere just enough to keep te battery above 80% on average. this generator should be able to run on green fuels like hydrogen, bio fuel and if the need arises normal diesel of benzine. i believe this is a setup that will give time to search for the real solution as full battery energy storage is not a viable way.

[@classicminiculture9800]

interesting, now that used Renault Twizy's are showing on the market I wonder if one of those can be pulled apart and used as a platform for the classic mini........

[@franskamstra2728]

@@classicminiculture9800 that would be strong enough. Also maybe a zoe or leaf?

[@thelaserhive3368]

I think my biggest disappointment would be the loss of the luggage compartment- such a shame that that seemed to be needed to get through the regulations you encountered. Any chance you might be able to retrospectively rearrange those battery packs to free that area up again some day?

[@classicminiculture9800]

You could remove a layer of batteries to get some storage back, but you reduce range, a small car like this is always going to be a compromise.

[@thelaserhive3368]

@@classicminiculture9800 Other Mini conversions have managed some batteries under the bonnet and presumably a couple where the fuel tank was would be possible…… or even in the space under the rear seat . Don’t get me wrong, it’s just my opinion ( as a wheelchair user who would need that space!) that alternative packaging could have preserved the utility of having an estate.

[@classicminiculture9800]

The ones with small front batteries are Tesla rehash conversions, unfortunately, they are more expensive, there is a company in the UK that will remove the entire transmission tunnel and place the battery down the middle of the car, major engineering work as you can imagine, so again expensive, like many things, anything is possible, but at a price, for me, this kit seemed the most affordable, but things are moving fast so let's see what develops........

[@LoneStarMini]

Well said and presented…

[@classicminiculture9800]

thankyou sir

[@el_nono2585]

You are right, if you want to be eco friendly take your bike. Under 2km I take my bike or I walk. For the fun my classic mini and for holidays my vw golf

[@classicminiculture9800]

....and that is the way to do it Sir.

[@e46teddy]

For me the inconvenient truth is cost ..i drive a mini se in theory its wonderful to have a back in the day car with greater power and torque.. i have zero hate for anyone who builds evs i enjoy all the builds but look at the cost, for me that's the biggest reason i cant electrify any car i like from way back when ..i did build a e-bike myself because it was affordable compered to buying one not so with a car I'm afraid.

[@classicminiculture9800]

True, but like the E-Bikes the prices will come down over time, the real cost right now is the batteries, not the motor or controllers as such, this kit starts at 25K (still expensive) the rest of the cost is the restoration we did, still feels cheap in comparison to some of the other "remastered" minis though.

[@e46teddy]

@@classicminiculture9800 oh i defo agree with that ..cost of remastered is on another planet ..great work by the way :-)

[@classicminiculture9800]

thanks, appreciated.

[@anthonybrown7959]

Fantastic.

[@classicminiculture9800]

thankyou sir

[@Alexnse10]

So what are your plans ?

[@classicminiculture9800]

To enjoy it and use it as a support vehicle for some local events (cycling, running etc)

[@eduardodedios8213]

That might be the best 40K you ever wasted, 😂😂 Enjoy it 👍🏽👍🏽

[@classicminiculture9800]

Its interesting, a David Brown remastered Mini is 80K+, A Gilfred racing super cooper mini is 100K+, both being luxury updates of a mini, last time I looked both had a backlog of orders.

[@eduardodedios8213]

@@classicminiculture9800 in California, USA, there’s a company that builds minis (super cooper), they can build exactly what you just made for an affordable price of only 90,000 USD what a bargain, right? I want to convert mine too but I want to build it myself but they won’t sell me the kit for a diy 🤔

[@classicminiculture9800]

I think you mean Gilfred Racing?, he uses a Tesla-based system supplied from the UK by Electric Classic Cars, DIY kits are a challenge because no one wants the risk of the batteries, the high voltage is dangerous.

[@Scooot1972]

Volvo never took into consideration the energy getting fuel out of the ground, transportation of the fuel and then the nervy in refining it let alone getting to the pump. Volvo were always going to get the results they wanted. Dont forget they've got irons in the fire

[@classicminiculture9800]

Scott I don't doubt that big business never gives the entire information, but this entire supply chain did include cost per barrel, interestingly another study also should that we only have a 20 year supply of precious metals for batteries remaining at the current consumption rate, so again all solutions seem to be short term, technology needs to move faster if we want to keep our mobility.

[@Scooot1972]

@@classicminiculture9800 please watch this then tell me what you think about fossil fuel. Battery tech is improving and its taken the combustion engine 120+ years to get to where it took evs just over 10. At that rate we don't need to panic just yet about lithium running out plus it can be recycled. kzbin.info/www/bejne/Z6C5o3x-mMmroKM PS I'm no ecco warrior. I like tesla and polstars for their performance.

[@ethelmini]

70k is what, 3 years of driving? That could easily be recovered in increased mechanical life, which also increases the service life of all those components fuel burners need too: glass, suspension, interior trim... It should also be compared to the impact of putting fuel in the pumps, which will always exist with combustion engines. The non consumables in EV batteries can be recycled. That will reduce that 3 years further, but we do have to start down that road first. Quite agree nothing beats not driving to reduce the impact of driving though 🚲

[@classicminiculture9800]

a complex issue for sure, and agree, ride a bike when possible.

[@ethelmini]

@@classicminiculture9800 If we turned half those car journeys into cycle journeys we could, potentially halve the number of cars produced. We could possibly cut the numbers already, since they'll spend the majority of their lives idly parked: a change in ownership & provision models has greater potential than engineering technology.