Swedish car mechanic and enthusiast Jan Karlander, with the help of his friend, has built a Tesla-powered 1966 Chevrolet Impala. They finished their creation in November 2020. The makers claim it's probably the first electric Chevrolet Impala in the world. The future of sustainable transportation is happening now and two Swedish friends have managed to build a super-powered electric car.
At first sight, the car looks like an ordinary 1966 Chevrolet Impala on the outside and even on the interiors too, but under the car hood, there is a surprise. Instead of a small block of the combustion engine, it is a big battery pack. The box is painted the same color as the combustion engine of the original model. Here’s take a look at the remodeled car.
The Impala’s Classic Exterior
The assembled car has the old classic features of the 1966 Impala. The design of the car remains the same and there are few changes which include modern headlights and steel wheels. The headlights for this model are from Dapper Lighting California which makes classic-looking modern headlights. They have projector lighting technology with high beams, low beams, and halos. The car is also remodeled with four sets of 19 inches steel wheels.
A Super-Powered Battery For A Classic Impala
The bulky battery box houses a total of 18 modules in a configuration of 6 modules wired up in series connected in parallel powered by 47 kilowatts of energy. The battery is capable of 800 kilowatts of power, more than 1000 horsepower. The previous V8 engine of the car was replaced by this battery.
Karlander used Tesla parts to remodel the car. The small rectangular pieces on the top of the box make up the Battery Management System. Underneath it is the battery modules with a total of 18 modules with 6 batteries connected in three strings of parallel connection by the aid of a connection box. Each string produces 800 Amp of electric power which means there’s a total of 2400 Amp of power. According to Tesla the Ludicrous Mode with its extra power boost gives Teslas a supercar quality. This change was able to reduce the Model S's 0-60 mph acceleration from an awesome 3.2 seconds to a jaw-dropping 2.8 seconds. Karlander claims that one can compare the remodeled car with Tesla's Ludicrous which has 1500 Amp. The car yielded a tremendous 550 hp during the test drive.
The car is equipped with a 12-volt battery for headlights wipers. There is a water cooler installed for the driving unit with the hoses traveling all the way from the back of the car to the front. There is also an electric circulation pump under the expansion tank that accompanies the cooling system. There is a balance bar that can set the maximum break in the front and minimum in the back and one cylinder for the front brake and another for the rear brakes.
Even though the Tesla-powered Impala looks normal from the outside, the battery pack gives the car-crazy power and it can go up to a tremendous 550 hp. In an age where top car companies are seeking to evolve into a sustainable energy future, Karlander was successful in building an electric-powered car that exceeded the wildest expectations.