I love the English countryside. Whenever I visit the UK, I always makes sure I go for a lovely Sunday drive in the countryside. On a lovely day, the drive reminds me of trips to Nyanga and Vumba, small towns not so far from my home town, Mutare. It is always a splendid experience taking in the lovely countryside scenery as we drive on those narrow roads and appreciate the clean crisp air.

One thing that can make this experience even better is to add the beauty of a silent electric automobile. For such an experience, perhaps the perfect automobile would be an all-electric Mercedes Pagoda! Described as a “sports car with genes from the luxury segment” and “a vehicle body that has a timeless elegance without losing its sporty note,” the Pagoda has a loyal fanbase all over the world. Those lovely Sunday drives could perhaps be topped up by a lovely afternoon tea in the English countryside.

London-based Ionic Cars focuses on upgrading glamours vehicles from the past with electric powertrains, and also gives the classics a compassionate makeover. Ionic Cars has already converted this dream classic Mercedes Pagoda into a magnificent all-electric automobile.

The original Pagoda was Paul Bracq’s styling masterpiece. The Mercedes-Benz (W113 SL) was built to exceptional standards, and Ionic Cars’ refresh looks to maintain that. Ionic Cars maintains the Pagoda’s structural integrity, and the conversion is 100% reversible, maintaining its value & options into the future. The vehicle’s upgrade is CAD-designed & optimized. A brand new 57 Kwh battery pack with advanced battery management and temperature control forms the heart of this new masterpiece.

Other features include:

• Brand new OEM-grade 3 phase AC motor
• Brand new custom single speed 1.80:1 gearbox
• Regenerative braking
• Custom designed dials, showing vital information whilst maintaining ‘original’ appearance.

Ionic Cars says, “The beautifully & sympathetically restored Mercedes-Benz electric SL Pagoda is one of the most iconic electric classic cars available today, delivering an unparalleled ownership proposition of high-tech performance, beauty, glamour, ease of use & zero emissions.”

The W113 was always glamorous and expensive. The Ionic Cars version is not cheap either, priced at £250,000. “Charlton Heston and John Lennon were among star owners. John Travolta, David Coulthard, Jason Orange, Kate Moss, and Harry Styles have been recent owners.”

Ionic Cars wants to provide an unparalleled way to ‘up-cycle’ superior automotive icons, perhaps at a time when driving electric has never been more pertinent. The world is moving swiftly towards electromobility. Looking at the new vehicle segment, the EV market in the UK, for example, has had an outstanding year so far in 2020.

Ionic Cars wants timeless classics to be also part of this transition. Converting classic cars to electric helps to further reduce their carbon footprint, as several tons of CO2 are saved for each vehicle just from cutting out the whole process of forging a new body for a vehicle. By converting these legendary cars of yesteryear that still have a perfect body, Ionic Cars is preserving them for a new generation to drive and enjoy without the gas-guzzling guilt.

Electric car conversions have been happening all around the world for a long time now. What makes Ionic Cars stand out further is its complete service offering — the customer doesn’t bring a classic car in to be converted, but instead Ionic Cars takes a bespoke order where it sources the car, making sure it is suitable for a complete restoration. This allows the company to fully customize the vehicle (along with offering a warranty), engineering it from the ground up from the body work to interior, and of course the all-important new powertrains.

Each and every detail is unique to that customer, all the while ensuring the car is fully recalibrated to offer a smooth drive that compares to that of the original motor. Ionic Cars are also able to recreate the sound, which is something many car enthusiasts crave, for a complete sacrifice-free transformation. At the moment, a retro Porsche 964 Targa is currently also undergoing a “green” upgrade.

Source : Clean Technica