Backstory: From gas-powered to electric auto in 36 hours flat
We ride along as entrepreneur Greg Abbott turns a 1978 Triumph Spitfire into a completely clean, zero-emissions electric vehicle. Part 1 of two.
from the March 19, 2007 edition
Page 4 of 4
But, according to David Kirsch, who studies nascent industries at the University of Maryland business school, it was the cultural appeal of internal combustion that ultimately made the difference.
"Electric vehicles worked really well in cities, but their range was always limited by the batteries," says Mr. Kirsch. "Internal combustion was a gentleman's toy of conquest, embedded in a culture of high speed, escape from the crowded cities, and a turn-of-the-century Anglo-Saxon fear of the great unwashed. At the end of the day, what killed the electric vehicle was that it couldn't do what people with money really wanted it to – which was go out in the country with your girlfriend."
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At 11:30 a.m. the odd and eclectic collection of alternative vehicles begins rolling off the Santa Monica pier, led by a police escort. They proceed along a five-mile parade route through the city to a hangar at the local airport, site of the weekend expo.
"People came out on the streets and cheered," says Gadget upon arrival at the hangar. "But the Triumph kept overheating and smelled terrible. Jeez, I hate gas."
By 1:30 p.m., the Triumph is jacked up at his booth, ready for its makeover. Gadget leaves for his workshop in Culver City, where he expects to find the electric motor that he ordered waiting for him. In fact, it is not there. Without it, his project is dead. Gadget starts calling his supplier. The news is disastrous – the motor will not be coming. Is his project doomed?
• Next: Part 2 – the conversion hits a balky transmission pin.
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