it's electric!

Electrogenic unveiled a kit to turn the 1st gen miata into an electric car.

https://electriccarsreport.com/2024/12/electrogenic-unveils-plug-and-play-ev-conversion-kit-for-mazda-mx-5/

Sounds interesting, and generally well executed. The real question is, how much?

Boogie Woogie...

Sorry...

Not really.

Toyman! said:

Boogie Woogie...

Sorry...

Not really.

I do this all the time too.....ahahaha.

First we had to deal with miscreants pulling rotary engines out of RX-7's and replacing them with boingers, thereby robbing them of their soul.

And now this?

Oh, the humanity!

After reading the link I'm ... not as opposed to the idea as I thought I would be? :confused:

Wish they would have shown the battery installed.

And "thanks/not thanks" for the thread title.  I have a new ear worm going on now. 

Specs look good and the weight increase isn't bad at all, that's like having a big dude in the passenger seat. And with that you get V8 levels of torque, instantly available.

I wonder if they retain the OEM differential, because if it has "V8 torques", that'll be the first to fail. I wonder how weight distribution would work out with a Tesla assembly in the rear (including motor), with the batteries up front.

In reply to kb58 :

That's where good software comes in to mete out the torque.

Overall looks like a good, thought out conversion, not the "quick & dirty" ones that are relatively mass produced.

In reply to kb58 :

They say the weight distribution is unchanged...I can't find if they're reusing the stock diff or not, but it would be easier to use a Tesla motor in place of a diff or transaxle than in place of the stock engine, and trying to run that kind of torque through the stock diff would probably grenade it within the first 10 launches so I expect they would've learned not to try that...

Driven5 said:

The real question is, how much?

A different article I read said if they based it on their other kits, the estimate was about $20k.  Kinda a big ticket, but it seems to be almost plug and play with little to no fabrication.  

-Rob

That's pretty neat. You could sell the engine and transmission and a few other things for some $$ to offset the cost.

"The batteries feed a compact, power dense motor, which sends 160bhp (120kW) into a single speed, fixed ratio gearbox, delivering 2,500Nm of torque to the rear wheels."

150 miles or so of that would fit the bill for a lot of Sunday drivers, I bet.

And:

"The converted MX-5 delivers 150+ miles of range in real world driving and can CCS rapid charge in just one hour."

This is more like it; finally an EV that isn't a bloated hog.

I still wouldn't buy it; cuz I'm cheap and I'd rather have a 1900lb Miata.  

1988RedT2 said:

First we had to deal with miscreants pulling rotary engines out of RX-7's and replacing them with boingers, thereby robbing them of their soul.

And now this?

Oh, the humanity!

 

Imagine this kit for all the dead RX8s out there?

Consider me interested... if the kit fits in a Miata then it has the potential to fit into a lot of other small sports cars. 

If all aspects of the car are maintained (functional HVAC, for example), then it could be the sort of daily/short trip runabout I've wanted out of an EV. 

There are a few more pictures of it in topgear, including some underhood shots. Unfortunately no shots of the car on a lift.

Did I miss the weight? Looks interesting. EV conversions seem like they would make great autocross cars.

Adds 220lbs.  According to Motortrend, 158hp/229tq... major torque improvement but not at all what I would call "V8 levels"...

And probably ~$20k (their Mini conversion is supposed to be $19k)?

I like it. I'm convinced it's still possible to have lightweight electric cars. This seems to confirm it. Imagine what Mazda could do to an NE designed from the ground up to be electric. It doesn't have to have 600 mile range and 600hp.

I think the biggest barrier to fun smaller vehicles in the future is the public's complete lack of interest, not electrification.

Rodan said:

Adds 220lbs.  According to Motortrend, 158hp/229tq... major torque improvement but not at all what I would call "V8 levels"...

better than V8

....in 1981. 

Looking at Electrogenic's site I think substantially more than 20k. Their drop-in Mini package is £21k (pounds). Maybe that's with VAT, so could be $21k, but that's with 1/2 the battery of the Mini package.

I still want one.