A Classic Beetle Is Transformed Into An Eco-car

Thanks to a brand new methodology developed at IIT Delhi, homeowners of classic vehicles needn’t preserve their beauties locked up. The 1948 VW Beetle and 1946 Austin can now zoom out on the streets, retrofitted to be electrical and so, eco-friendly.

“I acquired a 1948 Volkswagen Beetle around 14 years ago. The car originally belonged to the German Ambassador to Nepal and I added it to my collection,” says Major Manjith Rajain (retired), talking from Gurugram.

“I don’t call myself a collector. I acquire cars that I can restore and use as I believe these beautiful cars should be kept in running condition and enjoyed, not just locked up for a few private eyes,” says Maj Rajain, who additionally owns a Chevy 1926, a Morris Eight and a Morris Minor Atlantic, amongst different rarities.

Maj Rajain recollects how his first grandchild liked driving with him within the Chevy. “On one hand, I was aware that we were polluting the atmosphere by driving these vintage models. At the same time, I wanted my granddaughter to enjoy this car and inherit a healthy planet.”

As luck would have it, a dialog together with his good friend, Arun Duggal, founding father of Centre of Excellence for Research on Clean Air (CERCA) at IIT-Delhi, led them to an answer.

“Converting a classic car into an electric one would still preserve its beauty and charm, and at the same time address the issue of pollution,” says Duggal.

Earlier in 2019, certainly one of Duggal’s acquaintances had seen the prototype of a ‘converted’ electrical automobile on the Inno-Fest world summit in Singapore introduced by Jawaad Khan, a pupil of Electrical Engineering from Swami Vivekanand Institute of Engineering and Technology (SVIET) in Punjab. Following the summit, Khan was invited to IIT-Delhi the place he met with Duggal and Maj Rajain, and the challenge to make the Beetle eco-friendly took off.

2030 EV aim in sight

Hailing from the Chenab Valley in Jammu, Khan (23) says he used to tinker with machines whilst a younger boy. While a pupil at SVIET, he transformed a Maruti 800 into an electrical automobile for his school challenge. Named SVIET Volta, the automobile shortly garnered loads of consideration and received him a sponsorship to the Inno-Fest.

Working over a interval of six months, Khan changed the Beetle’s inside combustion engine with lithium-ion batteries, taking care to make sure they sourced the right motor, gearbox and batteries to go well with each the automobile and the main’s necessities.

Using the time period ‘retrofitted’ to explain the inner makeover he provides vehicles, Khan believes this methodology may also help India attain its 2030 EV aim. “I knew my design could make electric cars more popular without adding new cars on Indian roads.”

He based Tadpole Projects, a start-up presently working with IIT-Delhi. “There is immense potential in this sector and we have made ‘innovation’ our agenda. It is not just rare models — a lot of people are sentimental about their first cars or family heirlooms. Sadly, most of these cars don’t pass emission control norms. Retrofitting them is an eco-friendly solution.”

“We have converted four cars till now. Two vintage vehicles — the major’s 1948 VW Beetle and 1946 Austin as well as two modern cars — a Swift DZire and a Honda City. Retrofitting a car can cost between three lakh to nine lakh rupees, and based on the model it can achieve a mileage of 80-500 kilometres.”

“When it was finally ready and I drove it for the first time I was pleasantly surprised. It was smooth and soundless. While it has lost its ‘classic’ status, it drives far better than it did with a petrol engine,” says Maj Rajain.

The Department of Posts launched a rubber stamp earlier this 12 months, commemorating the profitable conversion of the Beetle from traditional to eco-friendly.

As for Maj Rajain’s 1948 VW electrical Beetle, he donated it to CERCA and it’s now completely stationed on the IIT campus the place customer can view it.