In the new era of electric cars, classic cars are having a hard time staying on the road. But thanks to a UK startup, these vintage cars will now get a 21st-century makeover and start a new life (read: engine)
According to the UK government’s new plan for a greener future, about 46% of cars need to be electric by 2030 to meet the climate goals. To adhere to this goal, many owners of classic vehicles were given up to £2,000 to scrap the old metallic parts. But now, London Electric Cars is converting these old vintage cars to zero-emission vehicles by switching the petrol engines with batteries in Rover Minis, Land Rovers, and Morris Minors.
Matthew Quitter is the mastermind behind this idea. He started in 2017 by converting his own 1953 Morris Minor into an EV using nine Li-ion cells. “I saw that companies in California were converting cars and at the time there was no one in the UK doing this”, he told EuroNews. The engines are converted with the help of upcycled Nissan Leaf and Tesla batteries. Quitter now has a team of about 10 people who work on the conversions towards a greener environment.
Converting a classic car into an environmentally friendly vehicle is no easy task as it can take up to six months to complete. Aside from a long waiting time, the process is not a cheap one either and usually starts at about £25,000 and goes only up from there. But the good news is since electric cars are excluded from congestion fees or road tax, the owners only need to pay for the electricity so they can easily drive around the city of London by paying just £1 per week.
If you have a vintage car lying around in your garage, now’s the time to make it eco-friendly and start using it again!