Classic vehicles could make a comeback as EVs with 'all the bells and whistles'

If you love the look of older model cars but still want all the bells and whistles of a modern electric vehicle (EV), you might just be able to get your wish.

This month, three electric vehicles were revealed at the SEMA show in Las Vega — the Hyundai Grandeur, Hyundai Pony and Ford F-100.

Automotive journalist Kay Layne said the throwback models have caught the attention of automotive enthusiasts.

"They are taking a giant leap backwards on these three automobiles," Layne told CBC Windsor. 

"When you look at the [Hyundai Grandeur], you would think it's something that you saw in your parents' photo albums — it's square, it's boxy, it looks like it came straight out of an old cop movie."

"The only difference is it's got LED lights … Once you look in, you see screens, you're seeing GPS, everything you would see in a new car today. But on the outside, it looks authentic," Layne said.

According to Layne, the joyful thing with these great motors is that "you can drop them into your grandpa's car that he left behind, you can take out, swap out the gasoline engine, swap in a green motor."

Layne believes a lot of classic car owners will switch over to electric, adding that people are tired of going out in the shopping mall and looking for a car because it looks exactly like everything else.

"The joyful thing is, it doesn't run like a 1974 vehicle. You still have Jeeps. You don't have to crank up the windows like they did in the good old days. You have all the bells and whistles of today, but when you walk out, you're like, 'Yeah, that's my pimp mobile over there.'"

Richard Truett, the engineering and technology reporter for Automotive News in Detroit, said he's seeing more and more people open to the idea of converting a classic car to an electric powertrain.

But he said for most people, — even automobile enthusiasts — it's a job that's beyond their skill set.

This is where the automaker comes in.

"We're starting to see companies now spring up and design a safe package, I guess you would call it, for the batteries and for the electric motor and the other components," Truett told CBC Windsor. 

"Companies like General Motors and Ford are already thinking about designing complete packages that you can buy from the dealership that would allow you, or a company that you hire, to do it."