I regularly attend car shows (typically domestic, mostly 1950-70's) with my dad. The last few years there have been a few pseudo rat rods that have used scavenged drivetrains from either Priuses(ii?) or Nissan Leafs. They're typically just looked at as a novelty-- the crowd doesn't take them seriously just by looking at them. They don't make power, and even then, the HP/tq figures wouldn't really be a 1:1 comparison, given that the EV drivetrain has torque from 0rpm. The example I use is an s2000-- it has 240hp, which looks great on paper, but it needs revs to make it-- and torque has the same issue. Demonstrating the power band concept is what will make widespread adoption occur-- otherwise people won't be making an apples to apples comparison. A $4k (plus batteries, adapters, etc.) 300hp/300tq electric motor shouldn't be compared to a $4k Small Block Chevrolet crate engine when the area under the curve for HP/TQ more closely resembles a $8k+ 396 or 454 Big Block (yes, peaks will be higher on the ICE, but safe bet that 1/4 and 0-60 will be close). The value prop is that the EV drivetrain will be higher performance than a traditional ICE.
This ignores that many of the older cars just sound like they're powerful, but in reality would struggle to out-accelerate a modern day v6 commuter car. Plus nostalgia. Boomers who grew up won't suddenly want to put a motor where the engine should go-- no Saturday afternoon oil changes, $300 headers or custom exhausts. Gen X or younger will likely be the target customer here-- I know I have already mentioned the idea of one of these Eluminators to my dad as a swap into his 1965 Chevy C/10 when I first heard about them.
> 300hp/300tq electric motor shouldn't be compared to a $4k Small Block Chevrolet crate engine when the area under the curve
Eh, maybe. Area under the curve doesn't tell the whole story because ICEs have transmissions to keep them in the meat of the powerband past first gear, EVs don't (usually). With the exception of Telsas, EV drivetrains lose a lot of power in the upper rev band, so their highway acceleration is comparatively weak.
But an ICE can be kept in the powerband for as many gears as can be added. Ford's 10R80 keeps the GT between 6200-7500 RPMs between like 20MPH (depending on rear end ratio) and top speed. The average HP under that curve is like 450HP (out of 460hp peak).
Ford is bragging about how the Mach-E GT hits 60 in like 3.5 seconds (faster than any other Mustang, GT500 included), yet glosses over the fact that it traps 100mph in the quarter mile. Which is less than both the 2.3L ecoboost and the previous generation 3.7L V6 managed (around 103mph each) and is a far cry from what the 5.0L can do (115-120), or the GT500 (131).
They end up the reverse situation of the S2k: fast from a stop, slow from a roll. I haven't seen a roll race between a Mach E and a lesser Mustang, but I would bet starting at a 40mph roll, the Mach E would lose, despite being technically superior in power/torque.
Yep, if they're doing an LS swap with a T56, then the modern transmission will be a huge advantage. I was thinking in the sense of something like the more common 4L60E/TH350 (3/4 speed autos) that most people resort to when doing swaps in old cars (at least GM).
This ignores that many of the older cars just sound like they're powerful, but in reality would struggle to out-accelerate a modern day v6 commuter car. Plus nostalgia. Boomers who grew up won't suddenly want to put a motor where the engine should go-- no Saturday afternoon oil changes, $300 headers or custom exhausts. Gen X or younger will likely be the target customer here-- I know I have already mentioned the idea of one of these Eluminators to my dad as a swap into his 1965 Chevy C/10 when I first heard about them.