SEMA 2009: A lightning-quick electric hot rod (photos)

Factory Five is a small, family-owned company from Massachussetts that is growing at the speed of light. In fact, it’s now the world’s leading designer and seller of kit cars. However, building cool replicas of actual models was no longer enough for the two brothers in charge, so they decided to start R&D operations.


The result of their latest work was unveiled at the 2009 SEMA Show in Las Vegas. It’s a fully-operational electric variant of a 1933 hot rod that can deliver lightning-quick accelerations (0-100 km/h in a reported time of under 4 seconds) along with a range of 160 kilometres.

A technology called "UQM" is found inside the engine bay. The electric motor is powered by A123 lithium-ion batteries. According to the spec sheet, combined output totals some 300 horsepower and no less than 660 pounds-feet of torque available from the get-go.

"And since the whole car only weighs 2,200 pounds (or 1,000 kilos), we know for sure that accelerations will be electrifying," claims Kyle Lawson of Factory Five. "We still have to perform actual tests on the track, though."

The basis of the vehicle is identical to the kits sold by the company, but powertrain mounts have been slightly reinforced to account for the new hardware. And of course, said powertrain is 100-percent electric.

The tests Mr. Lawson talked about will be conducted in a few days as part of a TV show. Their sole mission will be to validate their lab results, but it’s clear that these tests are a necessary step before marketing the product.

"The electric motor alone costs about $40,000. To charge the batteries, we need a high-voltage charger that’s also worth thousands of dollars. So, as you can imagine, the car upon completion of the project would be too expensive to sell. However, we hope to be able to develop a mainstream variant which, for the moment, is mainly a technical hurdle," says Lawson.