Ant thoughts in converting a 1989 XJS V12 convertible to electric, I figure i could do it for about 15,000.00

 

It's the wave of the future and there are some outfits doing some outstanding, and reversable, conversions on many classic european cars.
I bet it costs twice what you expect it to, just on general automotive principle. It's also going to be a HEAVY car with batteries on top
of its already fairly astounding weight.

Not that a 911 has much to do with an XJS, but these guys are doing well.

 

Previous exposure to electric conversions tells me an XJS is a BAD choice for this project. Weight, space, expense and no recent comparative info are all to be considered. Better off with a 4.0 swap, or the dreaded SBC.

Dave in AZ

 

Thanks for the input, Food for thought,

 

I know the v8 thing is popular and mature, but there have been some astoundingly efficient, powerful, engines made in the last 30+ years, many of the Asian ones are stone axe reliable and capable of comical power.
As swap-happy a folks are with these cars I'm kinda surprised there isn't much more done to them. Even a 2JZ from the same era walks all over anything but maybe the slickest LS1 choice.

 

Jaguar have already done an Electric Conversion of the etype so I should think it would be possible with an XJS

 

Do believe your a little light on the Budget
Typical Battery pack will be $15K alone

 

Good idea! Would make a great thread
I remember a movie by Jim Jarmus; "Only lovers left alive". an is used by the main characrter. Ok, probably this one is fake, but google tells us that there are also real examples
25000 euro will buy you a conversion: Rettrofuture XJS
And there is apparentley a ducth guy who did lt: Maybe Peter also visits this forum?

 

I was going to say you'd be the first of several who will do it....maybe not the first, but I bet there will be others. I would love to follow such a conversion, as I do like the possibility of keeping these beauties on the road indefinitely. I looked into it myself just a few years ago before wrecked Teslas were available. Now the conversion seems much more practicable with the resulting product being something really useful.

 

I'm waiting on better batteries. Still. I may well die waiting.

Back in the early 90's there was a pretty thriving community of EV conversion guys, and more than a few oddball factory ones done.
Was even worse with lead acid batteries but the lithium jazz that's current ain't quite there yet imo.

 

Gotta wait for aluminum batteries to be mass produced. Lithium is not the way to go.

 

You're crazy! (just kidding)

Although I concur that a quality conversion with decent range will cost a good bit more thank $15k. There's a lot of minutia that goes into making such a conversion and projects like this will "nickel and dime" you FAST. I think 25-35k is a more realistic figure based on other projects I've followed. Still, don't let that dissuade you! I like others would be very interested to follow such a project. Ultimately the price tag all depends on your goals. Not every electric conversion has to be SEMA show grade; a garage DIY conversion that utilizes used components, homemade parts, and good old fashioned ingenuity is just as impressive in many ways.

The voluminous engine bay of the XJ-S provides ample room for batteries. I've seen some conversions where the electric motor is in the trans tunnel, giving you even more room. Weight and handling is obviously a concern but as long as you put the batteries where the engine was and don't exceed the weight of the original powertrain I would think you'd be alright.

P.S. The "HE" badge on that converted PeterTrys XJ-S really takes on a whole new meaning eh?

 

I’m guessing the largest cost of a conversion is the donor vehicle. The conversions I see on YouTube don’t seem to start from scratch, they start with a wrecked Leaf or something. I guess first step to really knowing the cost is to get on copart and see what a wreck will cost you. The other path is to decide which wreck you’ll start with, based on availability of information, and then find what that wreck will cost you. If a Leaf has the best information available, you’re going to want to use a Leaf. If the best info available is on Tesla, you’re going to want to use a Tesla. Starting from scratch with component and controllers and other not-already-done-by-someone-else sounds like a disaster waiting to happen.