A Silverstone-based company, called Lunaz, is working on a series of beautiful, expensive, restored classic cars with electric powertrains.
A Jaguar and two Rollers
A company with a staff pedigree that includes the Renault F1 team, Rolls-Royce and Le Mans racing, Lunaz is currently working on three classic cars, restoring their chassis and bodies, and converting them to electric power. Those three cars are especially drool-some - a 1961 eight-seat Rolls-Royce Phantom V, 1953 Jaguar XK120 and 1956 Rolls-Royce Cloud.
Lunaz isn't offering too much technical detail as yet on the electric powertrains that it's installing into the trio, but it has said that the XK120 will get an 80kWh battery pack, and the Phantom V will get a 120kWh battery.
375hp powertrain
The Jaguar will get twin electric motors pumping out an incredible (for a car designed in the 1940s) 375hp and 700Nm of torque. All the cars will get fast charging capability, regenerative braking systems and the sensitive integration of modern conveniences like traction control and cruise control, and Lunaz says that they will be the first of their kinds in the world converted to electric power. We don't know yet if Lunaz will follow the lead of both Jaguar and Aston Martin, which have converted cars such as the E-Type and DB 6 to electric power, but installed a battery-and-motor module into the space left by the existing engine and gearbox, so that the cars can be re-converted if desired.
Lunaz, which started work last year, has hired engineers from the likes of Aston Martin, Ferrari, Ford, Formula 1, Jaguar, Volkswagen, McLaren and Rolls-Royce to work on its electric classics. Each car is stripped-down and carefully inspected. The body and chassis are 3D-scanned, and each corner of the car carefully weighed so that the electric motors and battery packs can be placed precisely to ensure good weight distribution. The Lunaz design team make subtle adaptations to integrate modern conveniences such as satellite telecommunications, WiFi, audiovisual entertainment and navigation aids.
Battery chargers and DC converters are "sensitively integrated into the existing design of the car," using the existing the fuel filler cap for charging and adapting dials to an appropriate read-out for the electrical powertrain. New air conditioning and electronic heating systems are installed and the accelerator is converted to a throttle-by-wire system. Following the uprating of braking, suspension, steering and electronics systems every circuit is tested before first start-up procedures begin.
£350,000 before taxes
The XK120 is already finished and undergoing testing, and the two Rolls-Royce cars will shortly follow suit. Prices, and you'll have to take a deep breath here, will start at around STG£350,000 before local taxes and VAT. The order books will open next month.
Founder, David Lorenz, has held a lifelong love of classics and, as a committed driver, he sought to create a car that combines the beauty of a classic with the dynamics and usability of a modern car. "I wanted a car like a 1953 Jaguar to be my daily driver, Lunaz takes a history we all love and gives it a bright future. We are innovating to create cars that are usable, dynamic and stand as the ultimate drivers' classics. For Luna, my daughter, not to have access to a car like the Mercedes-Benz 190SL when she is of driving age would be a tragedy. Without building Lunaz, this is the reality she faces.
"I want to respond to the demands of those drawn to the beauty and romance of classic cars but reject them because the current proposition doesn't align with their sensibilities and lifestyle requirements. Lunaz provides these people the perfect solution; a beautiful but usable, sustainable and reliable electric classic."
Lunaz's Managing Director and Technical Lead, Jon Hilton's career started by engineering the powertrains for a successful helicopter world speed record at Rolls-Royce PLC. He then moved to the development of engines for motorsport. One of the most highly regarded technical minds in his field, Hilton built his reputation as Technical Director for Renault F1 where he developed the engine for Fernando Alonso's successive World Championships. "The Lunaz solution takes cars that are under threat and gives them new purpose. These cars will be true to the original in their aesthetic, peerless in their performance and effortless in their day-to-day use. To breathe new life into these classics represents vital engineering in the purest sense" said Hilton.