Electric Speedster: Ride the Lightning, In Style!


Teslas are for wimps and people named after glandular animal secretions. This 356 Speedster replica, however, captures all of the style and panache of mid-century sun-kissed California motoring, added only by the sexy, sexy hum of the future. Motoring con elettrico, baby!


Built by Porsche replicar experts Beck, this 356 Speedster’s got an AC motor good for 50 horsepower: about half the power of the original Porsche 1600 engine, actually. Even with the added torque, it’ll still feel slow. You can get up to 75mph in that thing, but that will seriously kill the 80-100 mile range in the 17.2kWh battery pack. Have fun dicing it up the 405 against speed-addled truckers and and bros in jacked-up Sierra Denalis…when they can’t see you or hear you, it really puts into perspective the phrase “life is a gamble.”

There’s not much in the interior otherwise: climate control amounts to putting on a sweater and installing the solo-seat canvas top. There’s no radio, but you know what that means—less battery power sucked out from the motor, and more chances to listen to the, uh, melliflous engine noise. You can’t store your Snickers bar in the front, either—’cuz that’s where the batteries go, bucko! Plus, it might melt, and whatever warranty Beck might con you into tacking on offer won’t cover spraying the remnants of melted chocolate and nougat with a can of Febreze.

Hey, you want a practical car, buy a motorcycle. But if you fancy owning the future from 1955, the buttock-engined slot car of National Socialist origin is a $49,000 dream machine.

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  1. James Avatar
    James

    Why so slow?
    http://www.plasmaboyracing.com/whitezombie.php
    Here's an electric Datsun that does the 1/4 mile in 10.3 @ 123mph and has a claimed 90 city-mile range.
    I'd rather have the Datsun than the Porsche.
    I'm pretty sure that's the first time that anybody has ever uttered those words.

    1. EscortsForever Avatar
      EscortsForever

      not to 1up you, but car and driver had a pretty good article on this car a few years ago(looks like he must have done some mods since then):
      http://www.caranddriver.com/features/07q2/batteri
      I also would take the Datsun

    2. ZomBee Racer Avatar

      I really really like the white Zombie Datsun.
      I myself have a blue Zombie Datsun, although it usually has a dead battery, so that's where the similarities end.

  2. RevPiper Avatar

    When I hear words like "style" and "panache" only one electric vehicle comes to mind.
    <img src="http://www.daevius.com/piper/wp-content/uploads/2011/02/Vanguard-3.jpg&quot; width="500">

    1. jjd241 Avatar

      WOW! And it's a hover car too!

  3. mdharrell Avatar

    I'd still rather have a 1959-60 Henney Kilowatt.
    <img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3125/2429846026_91cd6d2114.jpg?v=0&quot; width="400">

  4. CJinSD Avatar
    CJinSD

    Is there really a market for fifty thousand dollar Porsche shaped golf karts? Why not, there is a market for tranny prostitutes.

  5. RegalRegalia Avatar
    RegalRegalia

    I know its a replica, but damnation, what a disgrace.

  6. Murad0123 Avatar
    Murad0123

    Very nice post;
    useful for customers and agents.