New electrical vehicles are costly, however have you learnt what isn’t? This 1997 Chevy S-10 Electric that’s on the market on Facebook Marketplace. That’s proper, of us. This ultra-rare GM EV1-based electrical pickup is simply sitting on Zuck’s web site, ready to be purchased by you for simply $15,000.
I do know 15 grand feels like a variety of money for a mostly-broken 27-year-old compact truck, however belief me: that is the precise car you want in your life. First of all, it’s most likely the rarest car you possibly can really afford to get your palms on. According to the publish, simply 492 S-10 Electrics had been ever constructed, and most of them had been crushed when their leases had been up (much like the EV1), however 60 had been offered outright to industrial fleets, they usually survived. This little truck – quantity 145 – is a kind of 60. Thank God.
Unfortunately, this S-10 Electric has seen higher days. Its lead-acid battery pack could be very a lot useless at this level, and it has been faraway from the truck. I did just a little little bit of Googling in your behalf, and apparently, you possibly can swap BMW i3 battery modules into these items. That’s so sick. There’s additionally some type of lithium battery replace equipment accessible from Trajectory Electric Customs. That’ll run you about $12,000 (or $0 as a result of the worth appears to be tousled on its web site.) Say you had been to get that equipment, add $15,000 for the truck and some grand for different little issues, and also you’re $30,000 for a 27-year-old Chevy S-10. That’s not the best worth, however it’s cool as hell, and who can put a worth on cool? Regardless, it’s nonetheless lots cheaper than different electrical pickup vehicles on the market proper now. That’s for rattling positive.
Anyway, we should always most likely discuss concerning the bones of the S-10 Electric just a little bit, shouldn’t we?
It was solely produced for 2 years at GM’s plant in Shreveport, Louisiana, and because it was associated to the EV1, it was front-wheel drive quite than rear. It additionally had a bit much less energy than the EV1 – simply 114 horsepower (in contrast the 137 of the EV1) to account for additional weight. Because of this, it was very a lot not quick. Zero to 50 took about 10 seconds and full cost and almost 14 at 50 % cost, in response to this historical stats sheet I discovered on-line. It additionally topped out at simply 71 mph, which took over a mile of acceleration to realize. So, it’s not quick, however what rush are you in?
In a forward-thinking piece of engineering, the batteries had been saved within the flooring of the S-10 electrical – within the rails of the truck’s ladder chassis. There had been two battery packs you could possibly select from: an ordinary 15 kWh lead-acid battery array that may get you about 60 miles of vary. That’s what our truck initially had, so not a lot is misplaced by it being useless. High-rollers might step as much as a 29 kWh nickel-metal-hydride battery pack that may give house owners about 130 miles of vary. That’s nonetheless not good, however it’s undoubtedly way more livable than the opposite pack. Regardless of the battery pack, the S-10 Electric was charged by the Magne Charge paddle you’d get on the EV1.
So, my buddy with about $30,000 simply sitting round, please go to Peru, Indiana, purchase this actually neat little piece of automotive historical past and return it to its former glory. Oh, and when you do, please let me drive it. Thanks!
Source: jalopnik.com