What is really involved in converting an IC car to EV? | Fifth Gear

Jimmy heads to Zero EV who are carrying out conversions on a Mazda MX-5. What is really involved in converting an IC car to an EV? Zero are also offering affordable conversion kits. Could this be the future for keeping your favourite motor on the road? Watch our brand new series, in full, via Discovery+ www.discoveryplus.co.uk/show/...
This video is Sponsored by Hypervolt. Britain’s preeminent EV charging brand, powering the sustainable revolutions of tens of thousands of individuals, families and organisations. To charge your EV smarter and faster, head over to their website, where you can find the latest in EV charging tech from only £630. bit.ly/3vHC5hz
#FifthGearRecharged #EVConversion
For access to exclusive Fifth Gear content and all FULL episodes, join our channel / @fifthgearuk
Check out our website for the latest car videos and news from around the web: fifthgear.tv/

[@fifthgearuk]

To charge your EV smarter and faster, head over to our sponsor Hypervolt, where you can find the latest in EV charging tech from only £630. bit.ly/3vHC5hz

[@oldyeller9849]

Love the idea of EV conversion kits and look forward to a growing aftermarket offering reasonably priced kits for a wide range of vehicles. Personally the high performance aspect that has become a focus is off-target and only adds to expense. Other than the obvious advantage of not requiring fossil fuels the most important aspects are range and reliability. Kinda wish this vid had addressed that better.

[@CatRacer1a2a]

I'm curious where that "non-fossil fuel" energy comes from? Ohh, and the materials to build those batteries.

[@Caza390]

Damn that’s crazy. Makes you glad we don’t have to worry about toxic chemicals with our maintenance costs, the oil for the engines and thank god for our eco friendly non fossil fuelled petrol and diesels which hardly produce any CO2 emissions :) Let’s rid these toxic EVs!

[@dreadinajeep]

and no crazy laptop screen or a bunch of other tech ya dont want or need

[@georgeowen2083]

Let’s do some math real quick. My work is 40 miles away and all the normal errands one has to do and with gas at 5.50ish a gallon and a car that averages 25mpg I have to fill up twice a week at 100 bucks a pop. That’s 800 dollars a month it would only take 20 months to pay for its self. That’s not including the 100 dollar oil changes every 5k miles. Granted it would be awesome to get the price down but this is an awesome idea and I hope they do. Plus there is a lot of interesting battery technology that is being developed.

[@daleford9157]

This is definitely the future. With brand new EVs being shoved full of unnecessary crap to keep their costs high and unattainable for the majority of Americans, I really hope kits like this become more common

[@samusaran7317]

You can't have your cake and eat it too. By something that suits your needs, not your greedy ego.

[@lovelybitofbugle219]

Yeah that would be cool. Like the kits you can buy for mountain bikes.

[@RealBLAlley]

@@samusaran7317 Your comment has nothing to do with his.

[@chargeheadsuk]

Great to see some EV Conversion content!!! 💪⚡🤟 THIS is the future for car enthusiasts with increasing fuel prices, more congestion charges round the corner, respiratory diseases and climate change, which IS a thing! Come join the revolution!!! 😜⚡🌿

[@DEFECTEDSTREETRACER]

Absolutley and also that instant torque from 0 RPM 👍

[@Alexander-rq9he]

With the fires in California these past few days I see the consequences ARE real. Now I’m really considering converting my IC car to an EV!! We have the ingenuity to create clean energy..

[@emmabeer5690]

Feel free to do an episode like this in Australia... They will only convert classic cars and starting at $40,000. I want to convert our family 8seater van as it cost $200-$230 a week to refill with diesel. Yet we feed 500kw+ back to the grid with our solar weekly...

[@charlibravo371]

How far do you drive if you refill for $300 a week?.

[@CyPorter]

My dream car: A small, regular cab pickup converted to EV.

[@shaakirismail1970]

it seems the world obsessed with performance and classic cars. those terms automatically means more expensive. I just want to stick in a battery pack on back of my hilux, electric motor in front. 100 km a day range at max 100km/hr... this is all one needs. charge it while you sitting at home/work job site

[@UmmYeahOk]

We did this with a 55 GMC pickup. The affordability is doing the work yourself. My husband restored the truck completely himself. He bought a hyper9 motor, a transmission adapter, and some leaf batteries. It is road legal, but doesn’t get driven presently due to shifting trouble. I think he wants to get a different tranny rather than attempt to keep the original 67yo one. Once that is done we can drive it regularly, and finally test out the range. He is hoping for about 50miles, but mostly because these are old Nissan Leaf batteries, and the long range technology simply wasn’t there. On the plus side, he doesn’t have to worry about cooling the batteries. Unfortunately, since then, due to the interest, the value on salvaged battery packs have climbed to the point where it’s better to simply buy a running driving EV, and part that out. After all, many EVs from the mid 2010s are about US$16k. You get your battery pack, drive motors, electronic comments, etc, all at once.

[@stanleykinzinger]

Like an S10?

[@foshizle121]

I would love an old Volvo Amazon converted to EV

[@mikadavies660]

Nice Video... Totally agree. Currently a step too far at the moment. But might get cheaper in the future. Hopefully, a good bit cheaper.

[@lelisamohamed4355]

If we live too see that is world will end sooner than u see it happen

[@2.3_44XD--]

It can take thousands of years, we are irrelevant and the climate variations or Nukes too

[@dannya6825]

I would like to convert my Peugeot 206 to an EV. Once the price comes down by at least £15k its not affordable.

[@alandowney4458]

Good to see Chris in a video again plus one ☝️ f the Goblin crew. I would love to figure out a ev kit for my 712k Pinzgauer. Thanks for video collaboration you guys are awesome

[@maxiferrari08]

An electric Pinzgauer would be perfect. Slow speed so almost no wind resistance and regenerative braking so you could possibly drive the whole day with one charge

[@jachinloi5066]

Hi, I have a1973 Triumhp Stag, would this conversion kit fit that car? Thanks

[@frankcoffey]

This is going to get crazy. Future SEMA shows are going to be packed with EV conversion stuff both hardware and software and it's going to blow your mind. OEM EVs may be difficult to upgrade to new battery technology but if it's a conversion car none of them can prevent you from using the latest technology or software.

[@saitamaxi8098]

Transition-one has a cheaper kit, but from what I hear, they only remove the motor, not the gearbox or replace anything else. Its a workaround for govt safety tests.

[@brodieobrien-pickering2202]

I wanted to convert a 1992 chevy 2wd chevy s10. Wonder how much it would cost to get at least 400km range?

[@BryanSeigneur0]

How did you make a conversion video without the voltage architecture or pack capacity or motor output or *anything*.

[@PR-ok7cj]

No worries...the host of the show knows about as much as a 2 year-old when it comes to doing any type of actual mechanical work.

[@RealBLAlley]

Other companies are also creating bolt-in kits, and as they expand the consumer cost will come down. It's a perfect way to preserve older cars while improving on the limitations of internal combustion with better performance and reliability and less maintenance. My dream vehicles would be EV conversions of a Mazda Miata NC with retractable hard top and a Mazda B2600i 4x4.

[@fintan2830]

Will it pass MOT? What about insurance? Is it crash tested?

[@dancollier9837]

Yes it be easier! Car that age could go on classic insurance! Do you have to crash test an engine swap car?!

[@clivestainlesssteelwomble7665]

@@dancollier9837 No to crash tests... if its done by the owner ... not in the UK or EU but kit cars have to meet single vehicle approval construction and use standards and as the exterior and interior isnt changed thats basically going to be breaks and demisting the screens... So Just a MoT check ... what the insurance companies think they can screw you for ....is a other problem but as the power and wt require no other mods thats like saying you've replaced a dead ICE like for like. It will drive like an electric motor though 😁 more torque from go, smoother more controlable, quiet and then it should be pretty much maintainance free .... No oil, filters, belts, complex adjustments or masses of sensors or exaust s.. no fuel tanks to rust or leak ..fuel pipes to replace, no clutch or complex energy sapping wear prone gearboxes. But costs still have to come down ...hopefully as the supply of crate systems and breakers come through and the aftermarket manufacturers switch to the new tech ...because they will have to drop their old products fast if they are to stay in the auto parts business.. electric motors use a very small number of parts compared to ICE.

[@TheStobb50]

It’s the way to go and it’s going to get cheaper as availability of electric secondhand parts become more common you’ll be able to buy electric motor cheaper than if you buy a secondhand petrol engine now

[@DEFECTEDSTREETRACER]

Exactly economies of scale will turn in electrics favour with time

[@garrettlowell7637]

“…how is the price kept so low?” 3:13 😂😂 right-only £26k. And bring your own car.

[@ESHIELDS]

BRING BACK TIFF

[@alkaliwreck2474]

"But look at it, it's a big, metal, box!" ICE: Am I a joke to you?

[@RCDinsmore]

Key questions were not answered. a) What is the range? and b) is the acceleration the same, better or worse?

[@samusaran7317]

🤡

[@ourv9603]

I have been looking into this & the kits are either : A-WAY too expensive OR B-requiring of a lot of fabricating for brackets & whatnot. I'm thinking the easier & cheaper way may be to buy a wrecked EV with intact drivetrain , scrap the crumbled body & attach the body of your choice. CANOO is pushing this idea. After you own a CANOO for several several years & either tire of it or have a new requirement, scrap the body & mount a new style body. You could switch it out to a sedan or a pickup or whatever. !

[@davidstuart4915]

I think the Gold Standard conversion spec test, for the average guy used to cheap Classics is something like: £20k all in cost - £3k donor, eg Mk2 TT AWD with basics reconditioned (bushes, pads an discs) £16k conversion, Including laybour 250 ml real range with min 50kw charging 0-60 c 5 secs VNE geared down to 85 to help acceleration similar weight, with perhaps small adjustment toward 50/50 where possible It would appear already possible if the strip down and bearing replacement of robust EV traction unit was paired down to essential only and instrument replacement minimised (eg just use a cheap tablet or primary speedo with support data on cheap smart phone) A £19k TT awd with 0-60 in 5 secs and 250 ml range has gotta be attractive :)

[@celeron55]

250 mile, even city range, is very difficult to do using today's batteries, even the most expensive ones. If you settle for a third of that range what you're saying is already possible. Half of that range and it's possible but more costly. Factory-made EVs have the huge advantage of being able to spare much more room and weight to the battery pack.

[@Danny1o1272]

I'm looking to do this to my mx-5. Could someone point me in the right direction?

[@harryagrotis326]

As long as it's economically viable it will eventually make sense. At the end of the day that's the ultimate recycling of existing vehicles isn't it???

[@patricklamanna3924]

im actually starting to plan a conversion on a E46 bmw i will be fine with the hardware side of things but i am trying to work out how to emulate not having the dme, most other modules like bcm,driveline module access module can bus etc etc require the dme to function .i still want to have abs,immobiliser etcetc. how do i get around this?

[@martinmackenzie897]

£16k to convert an mx5 to electric. For the same money the same mx5 can be taken to rocketeer and have a jaguar v6 installed instead.

[@gangleweed]

Total crap idea, petrol guzzlers are on the way out or didn't you know?......nothing like cruising along in silence while listening to your favorite piece of music etc.

[@sc1837]

That battery goes way over the front axel, which I am pretty sure the engine does not do... I think batter tech needs to come a long way before this makes any sence

[@vidznstuff1]

Battery tech is here now

[@samusaran7317]

@@vidznstuff1 Yeah but aftermarket builds are not even close yet. Battery pack shouldn't be under the hood. Traction of thing must be horrible like fwd chevy bolts.

[@schmangusschmangus8628]

​@@samusaran7317if you're talking about Traction in the snow, everybody who owns Bolts says in different KZbin comments that they go good in the snow

[@schmangusschmangus8628]

​@@vidznstuff1it's sort of is for the home charger owner, but if Toyota can pull off the solid state batteries they want to have available within the next two to three years, it will be awesome the possibilities

[@EVtripper]

Bring this to Northern California

[@ImmersiveGamer83]

Still a bit too pricey for every day person but all in you might be worth waiting for cybertruck with is expected to start at 40K for lowest spec version

[@samusaran7317]

40k? You're dreaming. Smoking from that biden crack pipe are we?

[@gexpe2003]

Amazing

[@bicyclist2]

Some old classics should remain internal combustion because of the engine sound, and the engaging driving experience. But I'm glad to see this (not that old), Miata converted. This has yet to really catch on here in the US, but I'm sure it will eventually. Thank you.

[@PartikleVT]

Old engines suck and are broken most of the time and replacement parts are not available. The only way to keep most classic cars running is restomodding, so instead of putting in a K20 honda engine you might as well put in an electric motor. THE classic cars that have replacement parts manufactured, should be kept original though.

[@pro-gz6me]

Can this conversion kit fit any car or does it change depending the model?

[@motorvoyage_]

Whats the range of this kit

[@ZesPak]

With that little batteries, I'd expect about 200km. Maybe 250.

[@domtdoodar99]

About 100-120miles

[@dantheman1337]

If the car is no heavier, than way less than 100 miles

[@fredwaldron3325]

What was the total number of errors that game?

[@pokerman111111111111]

Everything is expensive when it first comes out,wait till the price of betteries really drop and motors. in 10 years it will b3 £5k + £5k to fit

[@MePeterNicholls]

I love my Range Rover L322. But want to electrify it AND keep the retain control modules

[@allterrainrandy2587]

I would love to build that! Teslas and Range Rovers are my 2 favorite vehicles!

[@pip5461]

What is the contact info for Chris...?

[@vidznstuff1]

EV Zero

[@paulpettifer9457]

It would be amazing to do a Rolls-Royce phantom 😊😊😊

[@elliotbawden7205]

With the fact that California power companies said “you can either power your house or charge your car, you can’t do both” and the fact that neighborhoods around mine with a lot of EV cars are always losing power to their hood, I’d rather do an electric motor in trunk and my 4cyl gas engine up front

[@mrheyfuckoff1]

Thats forgetting the fact that EV's can be used to feed power back to the grid when not in use with vehicle-to-grid tech. A fleet of electric school buses in Massachusetts were used to feed over 80+ hours of electricity back into the power grid last month.

[@TonYTamayo1071]

Diligently looking into it. Better to Convert your old ICC car to Hydrogen car and save a lot money.

[@spacetomato1020]

Who anyone looking up Zero EV, they merged with Jaunt Motors and are now called Fellten

[@viscountslappy5085]

Make a swap kit for big American 60s classics!!!

[@schmangusschmangus8628]

My fantasy is junk yards that have well preserved cars of that era add on a shop to do these conversions and really preserve tens of thousands of those old classics

[@retrotony4119]

26k! Damn too expensive.

[@rhysswildlifeanimalsandmor9903]

Hi

[@franciscoburgos787]

There is a business opportunity here

[@seadog686]

Why?

[@properjob2311]

Mazda need to develop a MX5 EV

[@chanuka_rulez8343]

From an enthusiasts perspective it's great to have one an electric classic car. But I don't think it fits the classic theme. They should have internal combustion engines that roar every time you floor the pedal & puts a smile on your face. And it gives us an idea of what engines were like back in the day, the developments & technological breakthroughs in a particular time period that has long since passed.

[@runescapefan0001]

This only makes sense if you drive 300km per day

[@phoenixs3]

lol cool. when i came to rescue you when it broke down 🤣

[@ObsidianFPV]

Still too expensive unfortunately.

[@t8polestarcyan22]

Seem this modded MX-5 EV is better than Tesla's first Roadster - modded Lotus Elise.

[@TheOrgonaut]

lots of talking but no REAL INFORMATION whatsthe battery size waht tesla motor charging rate nothing

[@user-kj1od5ed7p]

Why would you want to do that and ruin a perfectly good car

[@dantheman1337]

So financially a bad idea to do this.

[@pereldh5741]

Lots of kilo’s.

[@flipthebird6355]

no thank you

[@FreemonSandlewould]

You should be doing how to video on how to convert EV to ICE Nobody wants these EVs. Resale value is nil because batteries still sock.

[@lukebyrne7440]

16k in just parts to make a silent mx5 that weights 10% more..

[@richardhoulton4016]

What’s it’s range now though? My Sunday morning backroad run is a 300km loop. Would it make it? Especially if you were spanking it?

[@johnhutchison9782]

Not to mention all the fossil fuels used to dig up those precious metals for the battery, and all the fossil fuels to run the power plant to power that car. Seems like a real win for the environment LMAO

[@adamm.chawner6137]

@@richardhoulton4016 300km loop in the morning? You have to be kidding. With village speed limits etc, that's easily 4+ hoursy of driving. Unless you take it onto the motorway in which case this really isn't what a Sunday morning drive is about...

[@stianthomassen6693]

@@johnhutchison9782 good fossil fueled cars don’t use any precious metals and that raw oil ain’t pumped up by diesel aggregate or coal driven power plants. Good that the refineries don’t have their own power plant to power up the ovens to boil that raw oil 😉 joking aside, a new report from Germany from the university in München shows that an ev is 89% more friendly over its lifetime. I’m sure we can have a long discussion, but the point is that I was where you are, before I discovered that alot of it was propaganda. Like, why have we not talked about the unethical practice of mining precious metals for the car industry for the past 100 years? Now, now the oil industry cares suddenly.

[@richardhoulton4016]

@@adamm.chawner6137 Sorry…here in Australia it’s definitely not uncommon for car groups to do distances of that magnitude. Sure…it takes an early start and all morning, but so what? Don’t want to be having to stop for an extra hour’s charging in the middle of it though.

[@markwilliams5654]

High voltage death trap not crash tested don't bother

[@jg5001]

Lol, Miatas in general are complete death traps to the drivers! 😆 I still own one.

[@bigtimepimpin666]

That's awesome!! Oh, that's almost 20,000 dlls... nevermind. Global warming keep on warming!

[@MrPlanner12]

I would get an hybrid car not a full electric, just found out like all rechargeable batteries they loose power and take longer to charge, bit like your phone battery, but just check the price for a replacement battery on any electric car, not cheap

[@stianthomassen6693]

First generation 2011 Nissan Leafs still running with 80-90% of their original charge.

[@MrPlanner12]

@@stianthomassen6693 has it done more than a 100k miles? And electric is going up, if your from the uk I'd advise you to watch guy martin the electric car episode

[@stianthomassen6693]

@@MrPlanner12 good question. With it’s wonderful 80 miles of range it was not a road trip car, but the reason I brought it up was that the battery had no additional cooling or smart AI charging or automatic maintenance of the batteries. So the batteries should have been much much worse, but reports shows everything from 50-80% of charge left. Now, 40 miles of range is nothing to cheer hurra for, but given the fact that the battery was suppose to be dead by now this is interesting. Officialy: “First generation Leafs came with either a 24 or 30 kWh battery which can last 100,000 - 150,000 miles at most. The second generation uses either a 40 or 66 kWh battery which can last 200,000 - 300,000 miles. Since batteries also degrade with age, we expect around 10 - 15 years of service out of the Leaf.” With a bigger battery and greater range the new eletric cars get less charging cycles which let the battery live much longer.

[@samusaran7317]

@@MrPlanner12 Electric may go up slightly but its no where near as expensive as maintaining and fueling a diesel/gas car. Hilarious

[@samusaran7317]

@@stianthomassen6693 How dare someone have a shorter commute than yourself. Need some cookies and warm milk bud to help as seethe about? Also my 12 old battery would like to have a word with you too. Lol Myopic ignorance

[@sukhdevr3489]

Classic Fifth Gear> New Fifth Gear.

[@tomhill2497]

What a stupid idea. Ruining rare cars

[@Marc816]

"What is really involved in converting an IC car to EV?" Answer: STUPIDITY!!!!!

[@shawnmatthews5118]

No thanks. It’s a step backwards in my opinion. We have a fuel system that gets you where you are going quickly, with minimum hassle, and they want us to convert to a system that takes hours, HOURS, to refuel? Insanity personified. It’s a ruse to force us into a limited travel space and make us more controllable.

[@kylestevenson4630]

How to ruin a great car.

[@alessandroantognoli6211]

Please!!!!!! No electric.

[@stanleykinzinger]

Shut up

[@evenoddridge4829]

Why?

[@christianseidler2252]

Seems like this Channel is very far away from fifth gear, sad to see another car KZbin Channel going all out on EVs

[@josephjewellers]

this is the stupidest idea.....

[@samusaran7317]

Poor ev build. Battery packs belong under the car... Not under the hood.

[@stephengirling7859]

When you accept that a battery is a storage device and NOT a power source you realise that EV's run on coal.

[@mrheyfuckoff1]

Well that depends on where your electricity is being sourced from. Could be coal. Could be solar. Could be nuclear energy. Could be gas. Could be hydro. Could be wind. Could be a hamster on a wheel. Who knows.