LICHFIELD, ENGLAND - It’s not only new cars that are rapidly moving over to electric propulsion, there’s also a growing movement towards remanufactured classic cars with battery power.
We’ve already seen Prince Harry’s electric Jaguar E-Type wedding car and now another British classic is getting the EV treatment and this comes in the form of a car inspired by the 1960s MGB Roadster.
The RBW EV Roadster, revealed this week in prototype form, pairs a brand-new heritage body shell from British Motor Heritage with a patented drivetrain system that has been three years in development.
The car’s six Hyperdrive Lithium-ion batteries allow for a claimed range of 260km, increasing to 320km if the customer opts for eight batteries. As for performance, RBW claims that the 70kW electric motor allows a 0-96km/h sprint time of 9.6 seconds.
“Our patented system (Patent p: 1906698.4) places the electric motor at the rear of the car and Hyperdrive Innovation’s lithium-ion battery technology under the bonnet, which gives perfectly balanced weight distribution,” RBW managing director Peter Swain enthused.
“Not only does this give the driver much better handling of the car, retaining that sports car feel, but it also affords maximum battery volume to be housed.”
Swain added that the company’s system and architecture can be installed into other body shells as well, such as Austin Healey models, Jaguar’s E-Type, the original Mini and many more. Each car can be built to the clients’ personal specification and requirements.
The RBW roadster also features bespoke front and rear suspension, all independent utilising coil-over damper technology around the vehicle, and OEM developed brakes discs and callipers. It also has the latest generation of hub design and wheel bearing technology installed to ensure maintenance free usage.
RBW says that all parts and components installed in the cars are brand new and the cabin, which was designed by Prototrim, houses some modern gadgets too, such as a Wi-Fi enabled Pioneer touchscreen infotainment system with navigation.
And if you prefer the tin-top version of the MGB, you’ll want to wait until 2021 when the company plans to launch a fixed-head GT version.
RBW plans to start production in early 2021, with prices starting at £90 000 in the UK, excluding taxes, which equates to about R1.93 million at today’s exchange rate.