- Electric vehicle conversions typically cost tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars.
- This is because most conversion specialists focus on the luxury market.
- But it doesn’t have to be that way, and this Mercury Comet DIY EV conversion proves it.
Converting an old car into an electric car has many benefits. When all is said and done, you can enjoy the same thrills as a classic car but without the toxic fumes, oil leaks, and questionable reliability. (However, this may not be suitable for everyone, since the gasoline engine is the heart of the car, and many people like that.)
The problem with EV conversionHowever, it is a habit Very expensive. Most conversion specialists focus on really expensive cars, and after they work their magic, the final bill can sometimes reach hundreds of thousands of dollars.
But it doesn’t have to be this way. We are now at a point in time where there are a lot of used but solid EVs that can provide all the parts needed for a proper EV conversion. And that’s exactly what This is my old jalopy an act. Best of all: it’s all documented on his YouTube channel.
The story begins with a dead 1962 Mercury Comet station wagon sitting and collecting dust. Ideal candidate for EV conversion. Then came the devastating year of 2014 Nissan leaf Which still contains an efficient high voltage system, including battery, inverter and electric motor.
When the project began, the goal was simple: do the conversion for less than $6,000, excluding the car itself. I’m happy to report that the goal was achieved, albeit thanks to a lot of effort that was free.
The donor EV costs $3,000, and the Resolve EV control unit, which enables connection to high-voltage Nissan original parts, including the battery management system (BMS), costs another $900. Various other parts, such as metal pipes, leaf springs and other bits and pieces, brought the final amount closer to $6,000.
The Leaf’s electric motor, which originally powered the front wheels, is mounted on the Comet’s rear axle. A fair amount of fabrication work was needed to make the De Dion axle work with a set of upgraded leaf springs, and the original CV shafts had to be shortened to fit the old station wagon. But it works and looks stock.
The original 48-unit 24-kilowatt-hour battery was disassembled and the units installed in a new bracket located under the hood, where the original gas engine lived. However, some units had to be replaced because they were damaged during disassembly.
A fair amount of troubleshooting also had to be done, as the wheels wouldn’t spin when everything was connected the first time. The ends of the high-voltage cables were flipped at one point, likely causing the on-board charger to fail. A new (used) charger was installed, but that has not happened yet. So a new pre-charge resistor was installed, which solved the problem, but the wheels turned in the wrong direction. It turned out that the owner had installed some high voltage wires incorrectly, and after correcting that, it finally worked.
the J1772 AC charging port It’s positioned where the fuel filler used to be, making it a nice throwback to when the Mercury station wagon was sipping dinosaur juice. A custom console is mounted in the glove box, and everything looks very clean.
As for usable driving range, the owner estimated that he could squeeze up to 78 miles on a full charge, assuming the data read by the custom controller is accurate. That’s just six miles shy of what The original 2014 Nissan Leaf was rated asAnd I call that winning.
