How to Convert a Gasoline Car to EV -TR6 Electric Retrofit with NVIDIA Jetson

[@theranch4426]

Thank you so much for posting this video. I’m beginning to spec out an ev conversion for my 71 MGB and your work is very inspiring. It’s great how you were able to get the original analog gauges working. I hope to see more about that in the future. The facial recognition feature is a wonderful idea for an open top roadster.

[@neokheradmand]

Good luck with your project. If you get stuck let me know and I may have similar part diagrams or instructions.

[@neilstern1694]

You fixed the oil leaking problem, nice.

[@89five3five]

Wait… did he say facial recognition??? What?!?? Game changer!!!

[@cpF01]

What a beautiful car. Congratulations 👏 👏 Well done. An electric classic.

[@thesecretsanctuaryfarm]

Now I want to convert my Tr7. Thanks.

[@neokheradmand]

If you need help, let me know.

[@hypurrthecat1451]

This is the nicest TR6 I've ever seen! The fact that it is electric is even better! I loved the facial recognition before you could drive it! VERY IMPRESSIVE! One more task for the Jetson would be to add sound based upon RPM for those who want a nostalgic sound (or something else...) It is more difficult than just associating with RPM as volume must also increase - and of course an easy way of turning it off when you want silence...

[@neokheradmand]

Thank you for the comment. I will plan on including the gasoline engine roar. Should be simple.

[@andyMSH700]

Really amazing...i love the fact when the bonnet is closed and of course the petrol cap closed :) it looks no different to a normal petrol TR6. You must have amazing tinacity....you are a man who does not accept NO for an answer. I hope you get many years of enjoyment with it..... Beautiful.

[@brianb9410]

FANTASTIC! Thank you for sharing your project.

[@chargeheadsuk]

Fantastic build, the condition of that Triumph is amazing, clearly alot of time and care has gone into it. I'm planning on doing a conversion on a TVR, a slightly less known British classic. I've started an EV conversion, battery swap and EV mod platform I've got so into it. Keep up the good work.

[@jfarlandutube]

Excellent build, love your high end work on the electronic components.

[@Gheewhiz2]

Nice Video my friend! The car is gorgeous and I know you put a lot of work in! Man your Awesome with your innovations and and no admissions projects Bro! Keep up the good work and take care.

[@scottbaker9066]

I made my own AC35 to TR7 transmission adapter & used Fiat e500 batteries.

[@neokheradmand]

That is Awesome. Good for you.

[@exJacktar]

Beautiful job. Unfortunately, in my case, my daily commute wouldn't be practical distance wise as we're living in rural NS. My son and I have a pair of TR3B that require restoration. An EV would be cool, though.

[@neokheradmand]

You should start the process and design everything that is needed to make the conversion. By the time you are done in 2-3 years Battery technology will be improving and you can get the distance you need from the car.

[@evtrekker1317]

All that and facial recognition. Nice.

[@RHHSFootball]

First kudos for such a beautiful restoration! I owned multiple TR6's back in the day and it looks like you really found good people to do the restoration. A few questions/comments 1) I noticed all the uncovered high voltage electrical connections on the controller. As someone who has accidentally dropped a tool or two across terminals the uncovered connectors would really worry me! Any metallic item dropping across those terminals becomes an instant heating element. If those are high voltage connections they could really do a number on someone with any moisture around if they contact them. Some cheap rubber boots would be a great safety addition. 2) Since you are now able to probably supply significantly more torque than the original motor it is going to highlight a few of the inherent weaknesses in the TR6 design. The transmission needle bearings/counter cluster are a significant weak point. High RPM/high torque in 1st/second gear will stress them. If you didn't change them out from the original transmission I would highly recommend. When they fail they destroy the counter cluster bearing surface as well as the counter cluster shaft. You said in the video that you had the tach synthetically operating as if you were driving a gas motor but noticed it was not operating in the video. It will be great to have it as a shift point reference to protect the gearbox from over revving. 3) differential mounts are also a weak point and need upgrading, particularly under higher torque loads. They almost always fail at some point. 4) Love the touch of reworking the old gas filler cap to your charging port. 5) Also love that you kept as much of the original gauges as possible. Saw another conversion that had all digital gauges replacing the old gauges. Really ruined the look. 6) Besides being a convertible the beautifully tuned exhaust note on the TR6 was definitely a part of the magic. I look forward to hearing your faux audio exhaust note! 7) If you don't mind sharing what was the end to end project cost? If possible split between restoration and EV conversion. Really enjoyed the video and love the final product. Thanks for sharing with all of us!

[@neokheradmand]

Thank you for very valuable information on the transmission issues you have listed. I am sure everyone going down this path will use your advice. I will complete the computer (Jetson) related enhancements soon. This will include the Tachometer/RPM. For creating the original exhaust sound I am using 1000W amp with a 12" subwoofer in the trunk. So far it sounds good but I have to integrate it with the RPM data coming from the electric motor and adjust the exhaust sound frequency with that data. A couple of weeks after I created the video I did make an acrylic cover for the controller which had high voltage wires exposed. I am trying to free up some time to complete the next phase and publish a sequel video clip from enhancements. Approximate cost of the project minus my time, design experiments and learning curve was; $4.2K for the electric motor and speed controller ~$1.5K for wires, connectors, aluminum boxes, other high voltage parts, transmission adapter $7.5K for 5 x Tesla model S batteries ~$8K parts for TR6 interior, exterior, clutch, brakes and 12V electrical parts ~12K for body and paint restoration TR6 I had bought was in horrible condition and everything had to be restored.

[@RHHSFootball]

@@neokheradmand look forward to the final product!

[@ytmohits]

That is a great watch. A gorgeous vintage car with a whole new internals. That is the output of an engineer with love for mechanics and AI knowledge up his sleeves bringing sweet transitions to a car. Great to see our jetson NX doing some heavy lifting as well. I was gonna ask for same which George quoted in below comment for adding some gasoline kind roars to accelerator to give it some flare as well.

[@CraigManning]

Very inspiring! Thanks for sharing your awesome build!

[@christophershaw3207]

Arman, I’d like to chat with you about more of the specs on your build. I want to go this route instead of rebuilding my drivetrain. Have you created a build list by chance? Lots of things (market) have changed by now I’m sure but I don’t want to recreate the wheel seeing as your project turned out so great.

[@neokheradmand]

Read the comments and if you still have questions let me know. Not much has changed since I completed my car. So most things i have done are still what you have to use.

[@murrayuptick9610]

I’m trying to get the adapter and connector made. Do you have the magic number measurement (engine bell housing to back of flywheel)? I’ve sold the engine but need to check the measurement. Thanks

[@teslabot6517]

Wow, impressive! Thankyou

[@JakeDuBois-iw8tm]

I am doing almost the same build, do you have a radiator for the tesla batteries and if so where did you put it? below the front batteries?

[@neokheradmand]

I don't have a radiator. San Jose does not get very hot or cold for me to install a radiator.

[@harrydavis8890]

So clever! Ignore the negative comments.

[@carloschang6279]

Such a clean job. Well done!

[@stevegibbons7452]

Well done, you’ve done a wonderful job 👍

[@eugenemoore1202]

Just to be clear about the HP on the gas engine the PI model has a brake horse power of 150, whereas for the US model, it is 104 bhp.

[@Arthur-rc2zz]

Great job Arman jan! It looks fantastic and the conversion is very clean and professional. I'm looking to do a '77 Fiat 124 Spider EV conversion, but I never knew about or considered using a developer kit. I'm going to look into using this for my conversion as well for the Lidar and facial recognition features. Thanks for the inspiration!

[@neokheradmand]

Thank you for the comment. Go for it! You will totally enjoy the whole process and the eventual result.

[@markustornberg9330]

Really nice build, well done! I´m curious about steering servo, do you need that or can the car be handled without it? And regarding air conditioning, is that possible to add to a electric converted car? Might be expensive? I haven´t seen any electric converted car with air condition yet, so that´s why I´m wondering.

[@neokheradmand]

It does not need a servo. I changed the rack and Pinion steering to a new one and it handles just fine. If I wanted to make it autonomous, then I would need a servo. I bought a small air conditioner 5000 btu that I wanted to connect to the battery. I tested it and it all worked electrically but then I decided not to install it in the car. It would have been ugly in the engine compartment and not much help in CA. The weather here does not get too hot. It is not too expensive. $200 for the air conditioner, about $80 Dollars for 12V to 110V and connect the voltage regulator to the 12V battery.

[@blackterminal]

Thank you for showing your conversion. Can I ask what your vacuum sensor settings are? What is your max vacuum and what is the lower setting that triggers it to come back on? Mine is currently going up to 18.5 inchs of vacuum and then off then on again at 15.5 inches.

[@neokheradmand]

I did not have to set anything on the vacuum pump. I installed it as it was shipped, and it worked as designed by the manufacturer no settings that I know of.

[@Dino.808]

Now I understand why Nvidia has overtaken Intel 😄. That Nvidia Jetson sounds like a game-changer.

[@adamretel]

I'm considering doing the same with my 1970 Spitfire Mk3. I am curious to learn more about the LiDAR-based obstacle detection and (adaptive?) cruise control. I'm sure many would find a video focused on those features interesting!

[@neokheradmand]

I have not used the LiDAR for adaptive cruise control. I have only installed it as warning and alarm when you get too close to an object.

[@stinkintoad]

I had a 76 that was Pimento colored just like yours! Wish I never sold it. Especially nowadays - prices for these are going ballistic.

[@michaelaugust7233]

Please, can you share the actual cost of the electrical conversion, not including the body, paint, interior, and related car restoration costs? Thank you for your creative efforts.

[@RonLH]

What do you do for cabin heat, if you were running in cool/cold weather? Would you/have you included a small generator of some kind to recharge 12V batteries? If you had the choice would you make the rear battery bigger by making it go the entire width of the car? Same for forward batteries. If they filled the width of the car would you gain more range or would the weight gain negate that?

[@neokheradmand]

I have attached a high voltage to 12V battery charger to charge the 12V batteries at all times. You cannot increase number of batteries with the current battery technology. The weight will be too much for the car and there is also no space for it. In fact if I was doing it again I would put 3 Tesla batteries in the engine compartment and two Tesla batteries in the back. In a few years battery technology will advance and you can replace the batteries with the latest to get much more range. I have removed the original heater core from the heater and replaced it with 3 electric defogger elements. This of course is not a simple implementation and requires knowledge of high current electrical wiring, high powered relays and heavy gauge wires in order to connect the elements to the 12V battery. When the heater is on max, it draws about 60amps of power from the 12V battery which means you can have the heater on for about 45 minutes. You can also take a Nissan Leaf heater core or a smart car heater core and use it in your car. The easiest path however is to just use a small temporary propane heater and can place in the leg room of the passenger seat and heat the car with that.

[@briannutchey444]

@@neokheradmand ¿.

[@ryanevans9612]

I have a TR6 and would love to do this as well.

[@terryatpi]

Can you over rev a transmission in first gear. I’d think not. How high does the mother rev.

[@terryatpi]

Lol…motor

[@neokheradmand]

@@terryatpi Yes the electric motor can rev up very quickly with a lot of torque and can cause problems for 1 st gear. I start the car in 1st gear then switch to 2nd gear and so on.

[@mstreich]

Wonderful build. I'm curious if you could realistically drive with just two gears, or would the torque on the clutch/transmission be too great? I know this is why Tesla went to no gears.

[@neokheradmand]

I do not know how long can the TR6 transmission handle starting with 3rd or 4th gear or how long will it last if you just use 3rd and 4th gear only. I know if you start with 1st gear and then go to 3rd or 4th gear it will work. Tesla Roadster has two gears and other Tesla's have one gear but they do not have a transmission like the TR6 that was designed specifically for a gasoline engine and then used for a high torque/speed electric motor. My suggestion is either use a standard TR6 transmission or just connect the motor directly to differential and use a speed controller that can handle high current and can produce the needed torque.

[@JeffMcNeal]

No oil leaks. That's incentive enough, alone. I think I would have probably wanted to go straight from the motor to the differential and eliminate the transmission. Just one less component with lots of moving parts that can, and frequently does, go wrong. I've had several Spitfire Mk3's and the transmission and u-joints were always the weakest links. Anyway, two years after posting this vid, I hope you're still having fun with it. Was it just me, or was the tach non-functional during your drive?

[@Ani-be7et]

I agree with you on finally NO oil leaks. The reason I left the transmission in place is because it was a good transmission and I thought when it goes bad I will remove it and go directly to the differential. Having the transmission gives you that extra feeling of driving an old TR6. Two years after building it, it performs exactly as the first day. No issues whatsoever. I drive it to work and on Saturdays take it to Los Gatos to get coffee. I am absolutely having fun with it. Tach did not work because it is usually connected to the engine and I don't have one. I was supposed to connect the tach to a motor that was connected to the onboard computer but have not had time to do that. I will hopefully do that soon and will publish a new update.

[@JeffMcNeal]

@@Ani-be7et Thank you for the reply! I really wasn't expecting that. I understand your reasoning and am very pleased to hear that your TR6E continues to give you lots of pleasure. I recently converted to a Model 3 Tesla, so I have developed a real appreciation for instant torque and being able to charge from my own solar arrays. I've owned and driven some wonderful sports cars. The aforementioned Spitfires, one of which I did a nut and bolt restoration of that turned out beautifully, a '59 MGA, '69 Porsche 911T Targa, a 2002 Corvette and a couple of dozen others, but I must say, the thought of never having to go through the hassles of getting another smog check, or oil changes, steering rack issues, transmission leaks and failures, water pump and radiator leaks, and being able to park in my own driveway with no fear of leaking fluids of any kind, is VERY appealing to me in my old age.

[@Ani-be7et]

@@JeffMcNeal Wow you have had some amazing cars. Although gasoline engines have elegance that is worth keeping, as you have experienced with Tesla, electric cars have their own special taste and fun. Since you are familiar with restoration of old cars, if you have time to fool around with cars, take an old car that has relatively good body and frame and turn it into electric. You will enjoy the whole process and will love the end result.

[@JeffMcNeal]

@@Ani-be7et I'm afraid my days of engine hoists, wrenching, welding, bead blasting, etc. are behind me. Although I do look at that 2005 Dodge Grand Caravan sitting next to my Model 3 in the garage and the thought has crossed my mind how nice it would be to convert that one, on occasion... On second thought, I think I'll just save my dough and try to take more vacations. ;-) Or maybe wait for the future Tesla van that Elon has hinted at...

[@neokheradmand]

@@JeffMcNeal makes sense. enjoy your model 3

[@Geronimo1246]

Would covering the batteries and charger in the trunk with felt in order to hide the components and make the trunk more usable be a problem for the components in terms of overheating?

[@neokheradmand]

The charger needs air circulation for cooling its components. Batteries also need to be cooled down. Unless you have active / liquid cooling for the batteries you cannot cover the batteries. Air circulation is needed for maintaining operational temperatures.

[@neokheradmand]

I don't think so. It should be OK.

[@PeterPangea]

Great work arman! I have a mazda rx8 and alway loved the idea of EV swapping it once the rotary engine dies for better power and driveability. Very similar feel with both due to the wankel design and its smoothness. What's the rough cost of the build with the components you have picked and what's the range tradeoff you considered? I would love to get 200+ mile range with a roughly 400hp motor when Im in a position to do the swap years down the line but understand that's on the high end of what's possible now

[@neokheradmand]

400hp is a lot. I thought RX8 was about 230hp with its gasoline engine. You can probably get that much power by using Tesla Model 3 motors and Model 3 batteries. If you look for a Tesla Model 3 that gets into an accident which does not damage the motors or the battery, you can buy it cheap and use the electronics and motor for the RX8. It should cost you about 10K-20K depending on the Tesla 3 or other motor + battery you use. Battery technology gets better every 10 years so if you wait you will probably have a lot more power with much less weight and space requirement.

[@MarkVaughanTN]

Great project and beautiful car..! I'm considering a similar build utilizing Nissan Leaf components in an MGB. I'm particularly interested in how you mated the motor to the transmission. Can you show the adapter that you fabricated and detail how you incorporated the clutch? Thanks..!

[@neokheradmand]

Hi Mark, I considered using Nissan Leaf motor for the project but decided it was more complicated. If you are comfortable with the Nissan Leaf motor then you should go ahead with it. Nissan Leaf has a transmission already so you either have to disconnect the transmission and connect the electric motor to the MGB transmission or connect the electric motor with the Nissan Leaf transmission directly to the differential and wheels. Direct connection will be much simpler. If you decide to remove the leaf transmission and just use the electric motor, you can go to CANEV.com and see if they have an adapter for it. In this case MGB clutch assembly remains as is today and the only thing that changes is connecting the flywheel that the clutch plate is on to the electric motor. That adapter is going to be different than what I had designed for the netgain motor but the concept will be the same.

[@andrewcraynor1252]

Hi there, I just watched your video and thought it was excellent. What would be the cost (roughly) for just the mechanical/electrical I.e if the donor vehicle was in excellent condition. Many thanks again and excellent video

[@neokheradmand]

The best thing for cost estimate is to go to EVWest website and collect some information on the latest pricing for parts that fit your particular car. In my case and I purchased the parts in 2016 was $4.5K for the motor and controller, $7.5K for the Tesla Batteries and about an additional $3K of parts like the charger and cables. You can also buy a used Smart Electric, Nissan Leaf or some other electric car that has been in a minor accident for about $3K-$6K total. So it all depends on how much time you want to spend on retrofitting as opposed to buying parts and adapters that have been made for your car.

[@andrewcraynor1252]

@@neokheradmand Thanks again for taking your time to reply. Top man👋👋

[@exJacktar]

@Arman Toorians thanks for the answer on price, I think it was pretty reasonable for what you got.

[@tr6guy]

Congratulations on a great build. I have a 1972 TR6 that is under restoration and I have been considering an electric conversion for the drive train. Would you be willing to share your transmission adapter design with another enthusiast?

[@neokheradmand]

Yes I can do that. Fairly straight forward. If you give me your email address I can send you the drawing.

[@DavidSL64]

@@neokheradmand Same for me. I have 69 TR6 that I want to convert to EV. Just like you 3 years ago. Please send the transmission adaptor design.

[@scottbaker9066]

Could I also request some Triumph transmission adapter information? In cas my home made adapter doesn't work out. Could I just drive in 3rd gear all the time? 70 miles on 7 Tesla batteries?

[@jrwill58]

Camera person doesnt seem to be able to locate the engine.

[@neokheradmand]

Hahaha, He was following my finger and could not see the electric motor from that angle.

[@varoojbakhtanians5968]

Barev Arman miss you all

[@bobfav4570]

What is the range, please.

[@neokheradmand]

70 Miles with a full charge.

[@funfisiquefissikal5290]

Chips are missing in the car industry, now we know where they end up for...

[@neokheradmand]

Yes. They are all here. LOL

[@Crimsontraum7]

I live in Austria. The authorities would never pass such vehicles as being roadworthy. You lucky US converters.

[@neokheradmand]

People in Canada, Germany and many other countries have also done what I have done. How else do you do R&D.

[@furryp2402]

It has to leak some oil. You will need to add a quart of oil to the electric motor every thousand miles

[@neokheradmand]

Yes Absolutely. Agree with you. TR6 without oil leaking from its engine is not a TR6.

[@craiggomez5101]

I love EVs. But a TR6?! You murdered the soul of a car that is loved for being primitive. Maybe just mutilate some AMC Pacers instead?

[@sylwesterkwiatkowski4653]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/qmKxd4yXo8mglZY Zbuduj stały prąd elektryczny 14v Z wyłącznikiem start stop Dla pojazdów elektrycznych.

[@Ani-be7et]

Sorry, I do not read Russian.

[@americanpatriot2422]

No way I would mess up my classic english cars. This is Sacrilege........ The car does look nice but OEM is better in my eyes.

[@neokheradmand]

Of course you should not. The car I had did not have an engine and was in Junkyard condition. If I had not saved it, would have been pressed.

[@americanpatriot2422]

@@neokheradmand Great video. I'm glad you were able to save the car. Hopefully one day a powertrain unit can be re installed into the car.

[@neokheradmand]

@@americanpatriot2422 I am so happy with the electric power train that I will never change it back to what it was. I want to enjoy driving the car as opposed to constantly worry about the next thing that will fail when I am on the road. I have many other projects and do not want to spend more time on maintaining a gasoline engine. It has been 1.5 years since I finished the car. The only time I have spent on it has been driving and enjoying it. Not a single minute on anything else.

[@thisisnumber0]

TR6 without the noise. So very wrong, shame on you.

[@neokheradmand]

Who said it does not have noise? It has a better engine sound than the Real thing. 2000W amp + subwoofer connected to tachometer. Think about all the times you get into your TR6 and don't know if it is going to take you where you are going. Also think about all the exhaust fumes that do not come out of this Electric TR6. No radiator, No gasoline, No carburetor, No distributor, No spark plugs, No muffler. Convinced yet?

[@thisisnumber0]

Are you saying you have a synthesizer, sounding like a TR6 exhaust?

[@chargeheadsuk]

You can get a speaker exhaust and make your car sound like anything from a Mini to an Aston Martin. Or the starship enterprise if you want 🤯

[@raderra]

Agreed. I wouldn't pay a dime to replace the exhaust note the tr6 has as it is majestic. The idea of putting an electric motor in a tr6 is pathetic regardless of the beauty of the conversion.

[@neokheradmand]

@@thisisnumber0 yes. One of my friends on this thread gave me the idea and I have it working. To be installed in it soon

[@stephenvince9994]

A Trans Car....How revolting.....

[@neokheradmand]

I enjoy it every day and will continue enjoying it long after the IC engine versions are extinct.

[@kwb6011]

Don’t you just love EV drivers? They think they are saving the planet and their cars are super clean….. Just what exactly will you do with the spent batteries? Land fill them? Also consider…..The pollution caused from producing Filthy non eco Lithium. Not quite so green now are you? Total travesty to destroy a beautiful British classic, shame on you!!!!

[@neokheradmand]

I will be driving my TR6 daily for the next 20 years with the batteries I have put in them. In a few years, battery technology will advance to a point where you will be able to replace the current batteries with much more efficient and smaller batteries. Everything else remains the same. No muffler, radiator, engine parts, oil, oil change, filters, 12V battery, alternator, starter and a whole bunch more components that have to be replaced on yearly basis.

[@212MPH]

How to destroy a classic car.

[@neokheradmand]

The car would have gone to a junkyard if I had not saved it. I guaranty you my TR6 will outlast any other one of its kind with gasoline engine and will be on the road being driven on daily basis for a long time.

[@not-fishing4730]

Why ruin a perfectly good car? If you want an electric car buy a Tesla or Prius.

[@neokheradmand]

That is the whole point. It was not a perfectly good car. It was going to be pressed if I had not saved it.