Classic Volkswagen Beetle converted to EV by CERCA
The Centre of Excellence for Research on Clean Air (CERCA) has retrofitted a classic Volkwagen Bettle into an electric vehicle. This has been the organization's first project focused on electric mobility and is aimed at increasing awareness for faster adoption of electric vehicles.
Arun Duggal, founder of CERCA, an IIT Delhi alum and Life Member of the Heritage Motoring Club of India elaborated on this by saying, "Centre of Excellence for Research on Clean Air has been established at IIT Delhi to promote research and actions to reduce air pollution. The electric Beetle is a symbolic action to demonstrate that we can take actions to eliminate air pollution in Delhi/NCR and in India by the use of technology and innovation. One of the most amicable answers to the problem of air pollution today is the transition to EVs which are considered 100 per cent emission-free as they do not release any toxic gases into the environment which is already in a critical state in several parts of the country."
On the new trend of converting classic cars to EVs, Diljeet Titus, general secretary of the Heritage Motoring Club of India said "Converting a Classic to electric drive is a significant upgrade and a more environmentally friendly choice especially if the classic does not have an engine or has the wrong engine or otherwise can't be used. Also, converting to electric gets better torque and also increases the life of the Classic. Thousands of classics in the west have been converted to electric over the years and there are many collectors across India owning multiple classics who may actually opt to convert at least one of their cars as a part of this pioneering initiative by CERCA, IIT Delhi. I plan to send one of my classics this month for conversion to electric drive to do my bit to reduce pollutants and to enjoy driving more using clean technology. Since only the engine and a few components are removed to convert, one can refit the original petrol engine to easily bring the classic back to original."
Related Stories
