Chevrolet's ECrate, an Electric Motor You Can Retrofit to Your Existing Vehicle

core77.com

23 points·dredmorbius··4 comments

From what I've heard, the safety shielding of ICE cares are in all the wrong places to install battery packs safely. It will be interesting of this type of conversion can be cost effective when done in a way that protects the battery packs and occupants in the event of a collision or fire.

This is for hobbyists, I don’t expect them to care terribly about the crash safety implications. Keep in mind these kits are going into 40+ year old cars that don’t have airbags, collapsible steering columns, crumple zones, etc.

> Keep in mind these kits are going into 40+ year old cars that don’t have airbags, collapsible steering columns, crumple zones, etc.

Isn't this even more reason to be have safety concerns about the modern replacement kit being introduced here?

I think the point is, that the person buying this kit to turn their 50 year old chevy into an electric vehicle prioritizes the car far and above their own safety already. It will be easy for Chevy to wash their hands of such a death since the car is already unsafe by modern standards.

To be fair I think it's most people's right to engage in unsafe activity if they don't risk harm to non-consenting others. EV conversion of old vehicles is relatively harmless. They are far less dangerous than kit airplanes, experimental aircraft, testing new parachutes or even tinkering with gasoline fueled cars.

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