V8-Powered Tesla Model S Has Maiden Engine Start, Combustion Escapes Cylinders

Surprising a lot of people and probably angering a large part of Tesla's faithful, Rich decided to put a General Motors V8 engine under the hood of a Tesla Model S. The obvious answer to the most obvious question regarding his undertaking ("why?") is because nobody has done it before and because it's going to be lots of fun when it's done.

People will argue it's a little backwards to turn an electric vehicle into a classic ICE car, especially when most (if not all) conversions involving the two types of propulsion tend to go the other way around, but Rich hasn't built a name for himself on YouTube by playing by the rules. You can do what everybody else does and hope your work stands out, or you can carve a different path for yourself and enjoy the life of a trailblazer.

So far, the team had managed to put the 6.2-liter V8 into the Model S' frunk and carve the space required by the transmission, including the driveshaft going back to the rear wheels. A lot of aluminum welding was required to make sure the vehicle's tub remained solid enough, especially since the plan is to race the car when it's done.

With the engine secure, it was time to give it its inaugural run in the new house but considering the Model LS still lacks several key components - fuel tank, fuel pump, oil filter - making it happen required a lot of thinking outside the box. However, there's nothing you can't do when you have a five-gallon bucket hanging around.

With said plastic container turned into a make-shift fuel tank and the help of some friends who brought a home-made fuel pump out of parts from a Miata and a Corvette, all they needed was a battery to connect the lunch box (more like "launch box" in this situation) fitted with three toggle switches for fuel, ignition, and crank.

The setup wasn't necessarily a pretty sight, but the result was as the LS fired up to life without any opposition. However, while everyone was busy mocking Elon Musk's dramatics during the first SpaceX launch, the engine started to spray some fuel onto the chassis, which eventually caught fire. Nothing life- or project-threatening. It's not like the lack of an exhaust system wouldn't have killed them first from carbon monoxide intoxication if they had kept the V8 running.

Perhaps the biggest piece of news shown in this video is the fact the custom driveshaft has arrived, and with the custom axles also expected to show up shortly, the ICE-T (as the project is also referred to) is coming along nicely. Even though it's stupid - or maybe precisely for that reason - we're really excited to see this thing on the road and at the drag strip. Competing against another Tesla would be the ideal scenario.