The "Classic Muscle Cars Without The Muscle" Story

It was an ordinary day.  Thinking back to when muscle cars ruled the road.   I loved my 1958 Chevy Impala convertible which had a 409 cubic inch engine with two four-barrel carburetors and a four-speed transmission on the floor.  

1958 Chevrolet Impala

Had my uncle Bud paint it white from front to back.  Looked great when I put the top down and you could see the red interior.  Only problem I had was paying for the gas, since I only had a part-time job at the local Acme Supermarket and I was trying to pay for my education at Millersville State Teacher's College.  I eventually sold it and purchased a smaller, four cylinder Pontiac Tempest when I decided to get married.  

My Pontiac Tempest ready for my wedding.

Well, I recently read a story about the old time muscle cars getting plugged in!  Hard to believe, but the sound of the pistons pumping while gas is coursing through the carburetor has been replaced with the quiet hum of the electric engine.  Say it ain't so!  But...it is so!  The American muscle car of the past is now greener and believe it or not, at times much faster!  Race cars are being converted to electric.  They are still as fast with some accelerating to 0-60 mph in three seconds and topping out at about 155 mph.  I can't image heading to the local drag strip and watching an electric car speed down the drag strip and reaching 150 mph without making any noise.  I read a story about a fellow who lives in Denver and bought a car for $6,500 and embarked on a year-and-a-half long project to convert the car into a 636-horsepower electric vehicle, using battery packs.  A few months ago a Michigan based company conducted a web-based survey of about 25,000 self-identified automobile enthusiasts in the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom.  About 1% had either partially or fully converted their classic to run on some sort of electrified drivetrain.  So why did they do that?  They did it for faster acceleration and improved performance, for a fun and challenging project and because of environmental and emissions concerns.  But, to me it isn't a race car anymore!  Well, quite a few old-timers were interviewed and about 25% gave their approval of classic vehicles being partially or fully converted to electric!  They claim that electric vehicles deliver some pretty astonishing performance just by the nature of the mechanics of how they work.  So, it's not surprising that a small percentage of people are now converting their classic cars to electric for improved performance.  I still believe that there is something satisfying about having a vintage car that has a carburetor or two.  I want to preserve the sound and rumble of my car when it had a gasoline engine in it.  That rumble just can't be duplicated with an electric car!  And, don't you think that before long electric cars will be deemed unsafe after someone gets electrocuted when they touch something they're not supposed to while driving their new electric car?  Remember you read it here when it happens!!  It was another extraordinary day in the life of an ordinary guy.