Given the car’s iconic classic/futuristic status, it’s no surprise that the DeLorean DMC-12 is a popular car for DIY electric car conversions. That an honest-to-goodness official DeLorean EV is coming from Humble, Texas’ reborn DeLorean Motor Company itself, though? That we did not see coming. It makes sense, though. If you’re gonna build a time machine electric car, why not do it with some style?

Announced Friday night at the DMC Texas Open House, DMC said it plans to work with electric car startup Epic EV to get an all-electric DMC-12 into production by 2013. Epic is the company started by Aptera co-founder Chris Anthony that is working on the Torq and Amp vehicles (and some rather clever videos). Early reports say the Electric DeLorean will have a maximum speed of 125 miles per hour and offer 260 horsepower for something like ,000-100,000. The gullwing doors should remain, but we’re not sure where the motor will go (the original DeLorean used a rear-mounted engine), let alone the battery pack. This isn’t the first time a DeLorean with an alternative powertrain has been talked about. Before his death in 2005, John DeLorean hinted that a hydraulic hybrid drivetrain might find a home in a relaunched DMC-12. That never happened, of course.

Specific technical details on the upcoming DeLorean Electric are sparse, but we’re pretty sure it will be able to recharge its 1.21 gigawatt-hour battery instantly when connected to the right power source. You know, until the inevitable Mr. Fusion model gets the green light.

Get out your lightning rods and Sony Walkmans, this is going to be fun to watch.

Great Scot! DMC announces all-electric DeLorean for 2013 originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 17 Oct 2011 11:32:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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You may think of Morgan as a stodgy old automaker. And in many ways its is, still making as it does some of its cars on a wooden frame and recently going back to its roots with a delicious trike that looks like it came straight out a WW2 air field. But Morgan is also the company that makes the AeroMax and EvaGT. And now it’s taking one step further into the future (or present) of the automotive industry with a new electric prototype.

Developed in conjunction with a number of partners, the Morgan Aero Supersport +E is the first of two new engineering prototypes the company is building, and will be unveiled in a couple weeks in Rockingham, England, at the Low Carbon Vehicle expo.

The prototype ditches the 4.8-liter BMW V8 in favor of a 94-horsepower electric drive system, uniquely operating through a manual transmission. The motor and battery are provided by Zytek – which already supplies a number of automakers as well as racing applications like Formula One’s KERS and the first hybrid at Le Mans – mounted onto an aluminum subframe. There’s plenty more technical details to delve into in the press release after the jump, so check it out.

Continue reading Morgan and friends converting Aero Supersport into all-electric prototype

Morgan and friends converting Aero Supersport into all-electric prototype originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 17 Aug 2011 14:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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What’s the point of going on safari if your truck’s rumble and exhaust sully the experience? That’s what Axeon and Land Rover have reasoned, teaming up with the solution you see here.

Developed in collaboration with JLR South Africa, this Defender 110 – a long-wheelbase model with an extended pickup bed (fitted with extra seating) instead of an extra set of doors – has had its diesel engine replaced with a lithium-ion battery pack mated to an unspecified motor capable of propelling the Defender over approximately three times the usual “game drive” (read: hunting expedition) on a single charge. All this without emitting a single local gram of carbon and maintaining silent operation that will bring its occupants closer to the game without spooking them off.

The vehicle will be unveiled this month at the INDABA tourism expo in Durban. Follow the jump for the details in the press release.

Continue reading Axeon unveils an all-electric Land Rover Defender for safaris

Axeon unveils an all-electric Land Rover Defender for safaris originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 11 May 2011 10:06:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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