Mark: Including
the restoration of the car itself,
it took about two years.
It's a long, beautiful process.
I've had this car
up to 117 miles an hour.
As soon as you press the accelerator,
you have full torque.
I think everybody
should have an electric vehicle.
Kailua in Hawaii
is home to an incredible modified Porsche.
Mark: Classic,
sleek,
electric.
My name is Mark Bush.
I have a Porsche 914.
It's a 1973
E model.
That's right.
Mark took one of the Porsche's least popular models
did away with the engine and fuel tank
then fitted a HPEVS motor
and a 126 Volt battery.
Mark: This car, it's new life as an electric vehicle
is about five years old now.
This is a daily driver, so,
it's not completely spic and span
like a show car.
While that might be the case
this is still a mighty impressive conversion.
Mark: I was working full time as a nurse when
I started this car,
including the restoration of the
car itself.
It took about two years.
I'd take vacations and
just work on the car.
Okay,
how to build an electric car,
you find a car that's suitable,
you pull out the internal combustion engine
radiator, the cooling system,
the exhaust system,
then get my rest.
For the next shift.
I had to design battery boxes
I ordered a motor,
it's a long beautiful process.
We opted to put the charging port
over here
on this side.
And for a while
I was opening the hood to charge it,
so I put in a cap
so I can keep the hood closed and still charge it.
These are the battery packs
and this car
originally came with a mid engine,
big old Volkswagen motor back here,
I decided I want to have the weight ratios
the exact same
and I wanted a five speed transmission.
I wanted to use the original Porsche transmission.
I like to shift
and it gives you a little bit more maneuverability
and choices for power.
This is an incredible conversion
with the performance to match.
Mark: Here in Hawaii
I looked down at the speedometer
I was going 80 miles an hour
one time.
I slowed down because
you're not supposed to do that here.
As soon as you press the accelerator,
you have full torque,
the torque is instant.
That gives you a faster acceleration rate
Zero to 60 in probably
approximately
6
6, 6 1/2 minutes,
somewhere around there.
Mark: Yeah seconds.
Mark: Thank you.
Mark: That's funny.
I hope I hope that gets edited out.
I've had this car
up to 117 miles an hour.
That was in California.
And for Mark, this two year labor of love
has certainly paid off.
Mark: I'm a pilot.
Driving this car is a lot like flying an airplane.
Well, other than the fact that it doesn't take off
and go into the air.
But when you go down a hill, it feels like you're
gliding.
I know,
every sound,
every...
little nuance of it,
because
I had it completely apart
and put it all back together again.
This car been just
an amazing friend, almost.
I think everybody should have an electric vehicle.
And I think they should drop in price
because
people
should be able to afford these things.
They're really fun to drive.
And you can have any kind of car you want.
Any car you've ever dreamed of
for just the cost of
putting some time and effort and elbow grease
into making an electric vehicle for yourself.