MIT student ingenuity plus high-tech batteries yields advanced all-electric Porsche

[Wiyosaya]

An update to this post:

With a click and a hum, the sleek Porsche 914 pulled away from the curb while onlookers watched anxiously and the passenger gazed down at a laptop plugged into the dashboard.

Why the drama? Once powered by a conventional gasoline engine, the 1976 Porsche now operates on 18 high-tech batteries--the result of work by dedicated MIT students and their mentors.

Full story.

[Rybold]

Put me on the waiting list. I love Porsches. I wish I could buy a new Carrera or Cayman (hard-top boxster) with a hybrid drive, like the Prius. I don't need to do 0-60s. Once up to speed, I can have fun going around corners though. Plus, just for everyday driving, Porsches handle great.

[daniel]

There are conversion shops here and there that will convert basically any car to electric. Costs range from perhaps $20,000 or $30,000 to over $100,000 depending on how much battery capacity you want (beyond a 30 or 40 mile range you need lithium batteries, which cost more per mile of range than lead batteries) and how powerful a motor you want. And a used Porsche as the donor car costs more than a used VW bug. So your end costs range from not much over $20,000 for a junker converted to do low speeds over short distances, to maybe $150,000 or more for a new Porsche that performs like a gas Porsche and has 100 miles or so of range.

They apparently considered it news that the MIT student(s) did this. But there's nothing new in it. If you've got the money you can buy one.