College Students to Transform 1939 Pontiac into EV

Some college students with initiative from Roanoke College in Salem, Virginia, are making their own EV. Well, not ‘making’ per-se, but they’re doing something even cooler: they’re converting a 1939 Pontiac Silver Streak to run on electric power. The old banger was acquired for $1,500 (€1,180) and the students are already halfway through the project.They want to get it on the road with an electric powertrain by 2014.

The matter of EVs is a delicate one. Manufacturers are struggling to make us buy brand new purpose-designed EVs. However, is that really what we need when we have literally millions upon millions of perfectly adequate cars which could be converted to run on electricity - but then again, this trend isn’t encouraged as it would entice new (small, family-owned) businesses to open up and offer their services, and people would discover that their 10 year-old car is more than adequate, especially with an electric drivetrain swap, and they wouldn't have to buy a new car every 3-5 years.

These students prove that it can be done, and, we would genuinely recommend a project like this over buying a purpose-built electric car any day, and we hope to see more and more of these cars being built. Who wouldn’t want the nice lines of a 1930s car, with a modern and clean electric motor just whirring away?