Let's EVify my car

"Matthew Phillips" (flatsidewaysfl)
05/29/2015 at 08:00 • Filed to: Tesla, project, crownvic, ev, broke

My car is huge, as many a Crown vics are, therefore it’s thirsty, but is it really as big as we make it seem ? For a few weeks, I’ve been pondering a potential EV conversion to either mine or a decent example of a crown Vic using the guts of a Tesla Model S. The first thing I worried about was the size and weight of the car, but after a quick wiki search I found that they are within reason of each other, and due to the Electric drivetrain the Tesla is considerably heavier than my CV. The second thing I’m still working out in my head is the new Drivetrain.

The Panther chassis and body will have to undergo a series of cutting to get the EV motors and batteries to fit properly.

I spent about 20 minutes at my local Tesla store studying the Standard Model S drivetrain, so look to the back. That whole rear area is one part. Unfortunately grafting that to the panther platform seems pretty stupid unless I can find some way to soup up a custom IRS and Motor mount similar to the Tesla.

The Battery shouldn’t pose much of a problem in theory, but I wonder if it makes sense to spread those out throughout the underbody of the car, like the Tesla and keep the weight on the bottom.

Another idea I have was to convert the CV to a Plug in hybrid, using a 3 cylinder Ecoboost as a generator, to hopefully keep an uneducated range estimate of around 300 Miles per charge. and this way I might be able to shrink the fuel tank from 18 to 12 gallons of fuel.

My original intent for the car was to drive it through college and then when I get a big boy job, put it to the side, purchase a decent daily and do a coyote swap. This swap makes more sense to me and more fun. A wrecked Model S runs from 8-12 K currently. And I know the Model S isn’t my only option for a donor project like this, but since they’re already the same size it just makes sense.

It can be done, and I’m not saying this is my next big project, but this is something I want to do in my lifetime. and particularly with these two cars.

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DISCUSSION (4)

jkm7680 > Matthew Phillips
05/29/2015 at 08:03

Nah, keep the V8. Just do a CNG conversion or something.

Snuze: Needs another Swede > Matthew Phillips
05/29/2015 at 08:09

The Panther is body on frame - I would think you could just graft it on top of a Model S chassis (assuming the wheel base is similar and what not). You’d have to cut out the bottom of the trunk and make it shallower to accomadate the rear motor and suspension but I think it’s doable. You’d also gain a frunk so you’d probably wind up with more storage.

Matthew Phillips > jkm7680
05/29/2015 at 10:57

What are the benefits of a CNG conversion ?

Captain of the Enterprise > Matthew Phillips
05/29/2015 at 11:04

I think it’s cheaper as a fuel source