The number of enthusiasts who believe that survival of (modern) classic cars relies in electrification is on the rise, much to some old-school enthusiasts’ amazement. And while converting a non-performance retro machine to battery power may be easier to understand, the ongoing builds we have here are anything but your prime candidates for a Tesla or EV swap: R32 Nissan Skyline GT-R, Mk IV Toyota Supra and first-gen Acura NSX.
While stepping into a showroom and getting your hands on a brand new EV will hardly make you an early adopter in 2023, things aren’t the same when it comes to electryfying older cars.
And yes, we went deep down the JDM rabbit hole when choosing the three projects in the intro, which, by the way, we listed in the reverse order of their completion.
EV-converted R32 Skyline GT-R, an independent project
Back in March, Nissan took us by surprise when it announced its plans to convert a GT-R of the R32 iteration to electric power. One month later, the carmaker showcased the example cast in that role, but no tech details were released.
However, as stated in the title, this battery-powered R32 GT-R is not the one being handled by the carmaker, despite the two sharing the Gunmetal Grey finish.
Instead, we’re looking at a 1992 R32 Skyline GT-R (aka raiju1337 on Instagram) that used to be a race car and is found in Germany. The motorsport action meant the RB26 inline-six, which offficialy made 286 hp and could be tuned to around 2,000 hp, had been blown, while there were clear signs of body damage.
Now, enthusiast Marco Lima, who is handling the conversion, turned the engine block into a coffee table, so the holes this had are no longer a concern. The surviving parts were sold to help fund the project.
With his dad being an engineer and involved in the project, the magic is set to take place in Marco’s garage. He’s already bought an electric motor, but it has nothing to do with Tesla.
The man didn’t want to install a Tesla rear subframe, and his plan means the conversion can be reversed without too much effort. So now that purists have less reasons to frown, we should tell you the Evolve Electrics Hyper 9 motor he plans to install using as many Nissan components as possible (RWD) only makes 100 kW (134 hp) and 173 lb-ft of torque. So the result will be noticeably slower than the factory R32 GT-R and, of course, any Tesla out there.
The man also bought a fixed-ratio transmission made by Torque Trends—together with the motor, this is about the size of the factory Nissan six-speed manual and the duo will be mounted in the same place, with power being sent to the rear wheels via a custom driveshaft he also purchased. The vehicle features Tesla battery cells sitting in the engine bay.
“[It’s all just for the experience… I promise some day it will be a bigger [unit] or maybe two motors!” Marco says.
He got the former race car in 2021 2015, but with a T4 VW Transporter van currently keeping him busy, his R32 GT-R EV still needs plenty of work before it can drive on electron juice and we’re looking forward to see the aficionado’s journey.
Tesla-swapped AWD Mk IV Toyota Supra
Even with this AWD Mk IV Supra featuring a Tesla swap, there are a lot of similarities between the Toyota and the Godzilla above. For one, Hawai-based builder Ryan (aka @stukinthe90s) has been working on the car for a few years now and yes, there’s an engine block coffee table in his garage (it’s an NSX V6, though).
Nevertheless, the Supra (here’s factory-condition example going all out on the German Autobahn) is much closer to completion, and it looks like it could set wheel on Hawaian asphalt later this year.
The 1990s Toyota features a fully-kitted rear subframe from a Tesla Model S P100D. This involves the rear motor, suspension, axles and brakes. Under the hood, we have a 90 kWH battery pack from a Ludicrous Model S, along with another Tesla subframe featuring a front drive unit. So this AWD Tesla-swapped Supra should be good for around 650 hp.
The vehicle is in the process of getting a widebody kit, while the entire car has been redone, so it should feel as good as new. Oh, and in case you’re wondering how one may get away with doing this to what is arguably the most loved JDM legend in America, Ryan has what we may call a pretty effective solution.
The man owns a second Mk IV Supra (it’s a ’92) dressed in the same shade of green that will cover the battery-powered project, albeit powered by a good old 2JZ dialed to a reasonable 900 hp and featuring a six-speed manual. His daily driver? A Tesla Model S Plaid, obviously.
Tesla-swapped Acura NSX is already on the street
We first covered this 1994 Acura NSX with a Tesla swap—a first—back in August last year. Since then, the project has kept evolving and, most notably, it’s the only one of the three cars covered here that already gets driven.
The excuse American builder Jeff had for throwing out the factory N/A V6? He never did that, as the unit was already gone when the man got a hold of this 1994 NSX (have you seen this seemingly abandoned Honda NSX in Tokyo?). Instead, the odometer showed 229,000 miles, with the power coming from a Honda K-swap, which the previous builder got to keep, since nobody wanted the mix.
This is also the only mid-engined car here. And, behind the seats of the NSX, we have the large drive unit out of a Model S, which should deliver up to 536 hp once all the details are covered, thus nearly doubling the original output.
The six-speed manual was replaced by the single-ratio transmission of the Model S. And since Jeff didn’t want to make any uneccesary cutting on the JDM icon, he mounted the motor and diff backwards, with the latter now sitting behind the former. Even the factory Acura subframe is in place, even though this had to be modified.
After many months of working on the battery (sitting in the rear trunk), invertes, controller, charging, cooling and wiring, there are still plenty of deets to cover before the NSX-EV, as Jeff calls it based on the NSX-R, can unleash its full electron fury.
Meanwhile, the builder has prepared the connection to the road, as the NSX now rides on TE37SL wheels wrapped in fresh rubber.
Tesla swaps still dominate the performance EV conversion market
While Tesla resorted to (admitedly effective) moves like dropping prices to stay competitive now that traditional automakers have finally caught up, the Palo Alto company still dominates the “secondary market”.
That’s because its used batteries and motors are not just easier to come by compared to other solutions, but also provide the most powerful mainstream solution. And, given the extensive efforts Tesla makes to keep people from using its cars and their components like LEGO, that’s a bit ironic.
And yes, sometimes the Tesla hardware ends up in old-school muscle like this 1972 Plymouth Satellite “Electrollite”, which can show a Hellcat who’s boss on any given day.
