HE'S ELECTRIC

DOMINIC BLISS meets the classic car enthusiast who's opted for a battery-powered refit and discovers why removing petrol engines might be the best way to keep vintage models on the move

- 

SITTING in the passenger seat, waiting to be driven away, one can’t help feeling there’s something very odd about this Porsche 912. This classic sports car is nearly 60 years old, yet it’s in pristine condition, with a dark, shiny red paint job on the outside and fresh upholstery and dashboard on the interior. The vehicle feels just as sleek and as cool as when it was manufactured back in 1968.

Finally, when the owner, Sia Abbaszadeh, puts his foot to the pedal and pulls away, it feels odder still. This car emits no sound and no exhaust fumes. That’s because it has had its petrol engine removed and replaced with an electric motor.

When Sia, a 65-year-old engineering consultant from Brighton, originally purchased the car ~a left-hand-drive model that started its life in California — it was with the express aim of converting it to an electric vehicle.

“I wanted the reliability of a modern car, but all the style of a classic car,” he tells the Daily Express. “I used to be an automotive engineer but nowadays I really don’t want to spend my Sundays fiddling around with the mechanics to keep it on the road. I want to spend my time enjoying driving the car.”

So, Sia approached Kent-based mechanics Retroelectric, specialists in electrifying classic motor cars. Having paid close to £60,000 for the original vehicle, he then invested an extra £120,000 in a new electric motor and batteries, as well as upgraded brakes, suspension and refurbished interiors.

‘The batteries have been placed front and rear so as to maintain the car’s weight distribution, while the gearbox is now single speed. Recharging is done through a plug in what used to be the petrol cap. Maximum driving range is around 150 miles, and the zero-tax status of the classic car remains in place.