Ice T - V8 powered Tesla.

[davidmash]

This is the only tesla I would ever sit in or drive. I love the color and it sounds amazing.



https://ccdiscussion.com/t/2021-rich-rebuilds-tesla-model-s-ice-t/64845

The story starts with a flooded 2015 Model S which he brought and intended to restore. After completely stripping it down and thoroughly cleaning every component, Rich had a sudden attack of altruism and sent several front-end parts to a friend who was also restoring one. Moreover, finding a new battery for the car was as difficult as bringing peace to the Middle East, so he got the outrageous idea of fitting a V8 into it.

Since he owns a Corvette Z06 and identifies as an “LS snob”, Rich ended up sourcing a 6.2-liter LS3, a six-speed TR 6060 manual, a rear end, and several other parts from a fifth-generation Camaro SS.

Fitting an LS into another ICE-powered vehicle is not that hard, if you know what you’re doing, of course. Converting one of these vehicles to electric power isn’t hard either but, putting a V8 into a Tesla and making it all functional was considered impossible by many, which is why nobody had ever done it before.

To make this incredible swap possible, the next six months were spent modifying the aluminum chassis which was sourced from another wrecked Model S. The bulk of the work went into strengthening and modifying the chassis. A transmission tunnel had to be fabricated from scratch, while the front and rear sections were heavily modified to make room for the Chevy engine and rear end.

https://www.autoevolution.com/news/the-story-of-ice-t-the-worlds-first-tesla-with-a-chevy-v8-under-the-hood-174774.html

[INSIDIOUS]

Only appropriate paint for that is 'Chameleon Paint '

[morrisone]

Impressive work, but I can think of better looking cars to retrofit with an LS3!

[davidmash]

Originally Posted by morrisone

Impressive work, but I can think of better looking cars to retrofit with an LS3!

Yeah...I think they cars are ugly AF. But the color is a definite improvement.

[cmac2012]

It's pretty wild some of the projects that motorheads get into, putting in a couple of years of their life and major $$.

Did you ever read about the guy who put a supposed 1000 hp Honda K-series motor mounted transversely in the back of a Ferrari 308?

[davidmash]

Knew a guy at work who bought a '55ish Belair 2 door postless. He and his wife had their first date in it. It was the pale yellow with white accents. The car was pristine. The only exterior mod was mag wheels.

He always talked about it but I had never seen it. I gave him grief that unless I can see it, its only in his imagination. So he brought it to work one day and showed it to me.

WOW!!! The car was gorgeous. I told him that is was a stunning original car. Short of the wheels, it looked like it just came off the assembly line. He said not quite...and winked. He opened the door and flipped a switch under the dash. The car went from a whisper quiet to spitting and snarling. It was rocking back and forth a bit. I am guessing my grin was from ear to ear matching his. He popped the hood. I do not remember what he told me was in there but it sure as hell was not stock. It filled the bay and it was a work of art. It it was not painted it was either chromed or polished. He absolutely loved that car.

He would always come in shopping with his wife and she would drop him off with me. We would talk about all sorts of stuff while she shopped. I remember I had not seen him for a bit and then I saw his wife come in alone. I knew immediately what happened. That was a sad day.

[tbomachines]

I love a good engine swap, I imagine that Tesla work was pretty tough. Stuff like motor mounts, transmission tunnel, etc are entirely different.


I have some wacky "if/when rich" ideas including a V10 in an early 90s 8 series bmw, and retrofitting an old 1930s classy car (caddy or something) with an electric powertrain. In the meantime, tuning and modding will have to suffice, also fun but not as crazy.

[cmac2012]

I never thought I'd be loopy for dropping a Honda engine into something but this guy with the Ferrari 308 really got me thinking. The Honda K series motor is supposed to be some kind of monster workhorse. I've read that jumping it up to 6, 7 hundred hp can be done with great reliability, this guy with the Ferrari is talking about 1000 hp, and it weighs a couple hundred pounds less than the original engine. Many articles about it to be found on the web.