RE: British firm offers EV conversions to Rolls owners

RE: British firm offers EV conversions to Rolls owners

Author
Discussion

teacake

150 posts

190 months

Friday 11th October 2019
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AMGSee55 said:
The reference to city centre driving is redundant as far as London is concerned. Rolls, Jags etc of that era are all in the ‘historic’ taxation class and hence dodge the ULEZ charges anyway.
If anyone was considering the conversion in order to dodge the ULEZ charge (if it did apply to the car in question), they might want to check their sums first. Assuming they drove into the ULEZ zone five days a week, 52 weeks a year, it'd take 107 years to recoup the £350k investment...

MrGeoff

645 posts

171 months

Friday 11th October 2019
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If, one day, they completely ban the use of ICE on the road then I see the point, but at the moment I don't. As has been said these cars do minimal mileage so this will increase their carbon footprint substantially. I'd just take the XK as it is, looks lovely.

Plate spinner

17,649 posts

199 months

Friday 11th October 2019
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deadtom said:
Plate spinner said:
Also there’s a lot less of then around than back in the day. Keeping a horse now is the preserve of the rich.
Codswallop.

You’ve not met many horse owners I take it?
To be fair, no.
I’m a townie in Greater London.
I know 3 or 4 families with horses, all well off and not scraping the back of the sofa for 2 or 3 family holidays a year.

350Matt

3,733 posts

278 months

Friday 11th October 2019
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isn't the very centre of London a ULEV zone so the original classic with its original engine wouldn't be allowed to drive there?


varsas

4,004 posts

201 months

Friday 11th October 2019
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350Matt said:
isn't the very centre of London a ULEV zone so the original classic with its original engine wouldn't be allowed to drive there?
As already mentioned, cars with 'Historic' tax class (35+ years old) are ULEZ exempt, for now at least.

I have a Triumph Stag and it's not the drivetrain or reliability worries or cost of fuel that stops me driving it more. It's the comfort, safety, knowledge that I'll be exposing it to rain etc which will lead to rust, people banging it in the car park, etc. Why would I drive it to work? I won't enjoy it. If you had £350k to spend on a classic you could make it pretty reliable & comfortable and still have more than enough money to pay for petrol. It's not like an EV classic will be 100% reliable; they'll still have the same steering, brakes and electrics...



Edited by varsas on Friday 11th October 13:24

G0ldfysh

3,304 posts

256 months

Friday 11th October 2019
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gweaver said:
Why did they park it in an oil seed rape field?
Extra battery weight overcame the tyres and suspension; it has spun and crashed backwards into the field.

Watchman

6,391 posts

244 months

Friday 11th October 2019
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On YouTube, check out the Icon converted Rolls. I like the subtle styling changes but not that they've put an LS into it.

https://youtu.be/legY7iNdDWU

However, I'd love an electric Rolls. I think electric will suit that type of car extremely well and I hope to see more classics like this one for sale in the future but at more real-world prices.

Ooh, what about a Grosser Merc?

anonymous-user

53 months

Friday 11th October 2019
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samoht said:
Electric power seems entirely in keeping with the Rolls ethos - it's not about the sound of the engine or top-end power; the loudest noise should come from the clock, and torque should arrive smoothly from just off idle to ensure performance is always 'sufficient'. As long as some working examples with the original engines are kept, others going electric seems entirely reasonable to me.

The Jag, on the other hand, is a sports car where the experience of the engine is a key element. An electric XK120 makes no sense to me.
I agree. For big old RRs, S-classes and various other stately barges, elec power fits with character of car. Idea however of that Jag or an old 911 or any sports car where you need to make the engine sing for its supper and work the box - for such cars, gliding along silently seems a little odd and rather sad.

Sound is an 'emotive automotive' component for certain types of vehicle.

Perhaps future generations, accustomed to silence and preferring screens anyway, will not mind so much.

daqinggegg

1,393 posts

128 months

Friday 11th October 2019
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I know next to nothing about engineering (probably shows), so maybe, talking horse manure. However, if you can afford to live in a major city, and classics will be taxed very punitively or banned, you will have one choice, to actually store outside that area at associated costs, how often will use it be used?
Put aside the environmental concerns of building a compliant car, some can afford to do so, original e-mini conversions are costing upwards of GBP 80,000
Modern EV’s are at an early stage, but advances have been very quick. Let’s say you have a classic E-type Jaguar, looks like an E-type, smells like an E-types, and can probably be made to handle like one.
An E-type.
Two things missing
Sound, well manufactures can already pipe sound into the car, why not outside, I’m sure that is possible.
The analogue feel of car, maybe we will have classics with a manual gear box in a EV, again, sure this can be achieved.
Early days, and all that, but if companies can punt out original mini’s for 80,000, why not an E-type?
Do l like it, no, but time moves on, this is in it’s infancy, but will gain momentum very fast. The outcome, like most things it will be good.

TREMAiNE

3,904 posts

148 months

Friday 11th October 2019
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daqinggegg said:
Sound, well manufactures can already pipe sound into the car, why not outside, I’m sure that is possible.
The analogue feel of car, maybe we will have classics with a manual gear box in a EV, again, sure this can be achieved.
Quite an interesting thought. You could have software that mimics that of an ICE car, you could have a clutch and gear stick which doesn't actually do anything directly but works with the software to give the feel of a manual car (the car could simulate revs/hitting a red line and you need to change the gear and use the clutch etc to simulate a new gear being selected) - the software could give you the torque curve of an ICE etc... Obviously everything from sound, to power delivery and function would all be artificial but in the distant future could be a way for auto makers to sell 'classic feeling cars' to those that can't afford real ICE's.

CDP

7,454 posts

253 months

Friday 11th October 2019
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ducnick said:
Whilst the XK leaves me cold, I do rather like the Rolls idea. If I were a business fat cat in the market for a £350k limo to ferry me between business meetings and my private jet, I would go with one of these rather than a new Rolls/Bentley/Merc etc
This.

The Rolls-Royce is perfect for a chauffer driving an insanely rich person with good taste around somewhere like London. Yes, it's a statement but so much cooler than a supercar or new Phantom.

I can't help thinking one or two luxury hotels wanting them too.

danspead

8 posts

210 months

Saturday 12th October 2019
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5490 said:
This is the most ridiculous thing I've ever seen.

How much co2 was released by manufacturing these electric packs? Tonnes of it.

A classic car is the last thing that needs to be changed - people do so few miles in them and they're typically owned by people who own more than one, so they're not being used that often.

The ironic thing is, the most environmentally friendly thing to do is leave the petrol engine in.

what bks about using it in London and more use out of it.

Complete waste of time, energy and money.
Totally agree. This is sacrilegious to these rare old beasts. Anyone on this forum who thinks this is a good idea needs to search within themselves. Are they really piston/petrol heads ? I'm all for technology, but this is about mechanics trying to be businessmen again. Time will tell. I certainly wouldn't put any money into this venture.

Escort Si-130

3,269 posts

179 months

Saturday 12th October 2019
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Treason, total sacrilege. Anyone who does this to a classic car needs to be castrated. This is so wrong on so many levels.
If people get angry on here when people change bodywork bits on older cars or with wild paint jobs, this on the other hand is messing completely with the cars heart & soul, its like taking your heart out and putting a taser in your chest; madness!

Klippie

3,096 posts

144 months

Sunday 13th October 2019
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For Christ sake...all this green EV pish is getting on my tits, why don’t they just all fk off and leave us alone to enjoy our cars, go and annoy the hell out the airlines or shipping companies they don’t seem to mind them spewing out all that ste.

CDP

7,454 posts

253 months

Sunday 13th October 2019
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danspead said:
5490 said:
This is the most ridiculous thing I've ever seen.

How much co2 was released by manufacturing these electric packs? Tonnes of it.

A classic car is the last thing that needs to be changed - people do so few miles in them and they're typically owned by people who own more than one, so they're not being used that often.

The ironic thing is, the most environmentally friendly thing to do is leave the petrol engine in.

what bks about using it in London and more use out of it.

Complete waste of time, energy and money.
Totally agree. This is sacrilegious to these rare old beasts. Anyone on this forum who thinks this is a good idea needs to search within themselves. Are they really piston/petrol heads ? I'm all for technology, but this is about mechanics trying to be businessmen again. Time will tell. I certainly wouldn't put any money into this venture.
Normally these conversions are completely reversible. It's better for the car to be used than stuffed in a museum. As others have mentioned the electric XK is not really as in keeping as the Rolls Royce.

I can't help thinking at the cheaper end the Citroen DS and CX are crying out for electric conversion.