Renault Anymore: 1960 Henney Kilowatt
In an effort to avoid being too predictable, I sometimes feel the urge to post random cars that aren’t affordably priced Porsche 914s, Datsun 240Zs, or some kind of boxy Volvo. Obviously, a good deal on a some well known classic is always a good thing, but what about the odd balls?…what about the Renault family sedans that were converted to electric power from 1959-1960? Find this 1960 Henney Kilowatt offered for $10,000 in Nesconset, NY via hemmings.
The Henney was manufactured by the Eureka Williams Co in Bloomington, IL…or more accurately, RE-manufactured. It started life as a Renault Dauphine and some nut shoved a 72 volt electric motor where the engine should have been…and some batteries.
For $10k you are getting a cool looking car, in great shape, that might be missing its batteries, but the original dozen six-volt series lead-acid bricks would have been long gone by now. It seems like a logical time to swap in a modern battery pack that weighs less and gives you are longer drive time.
Oddly enough, this thing isn’t as impractical as you might expect, the 72 volt motor gets you a top speed of 60 mph and will give a total range of 60 miles on a single charge…and that is with 1950s technology. Imagine giving this thing the full Tesla treatment — it could be awesome.
See another cheap electric toy from a bygone era? tips@dailyturismo.com
This is awesome. Modern batteries, onboard charger, and a motor controller that can do re-gen would make it just about perfect. Then upgrade to a three-phase AC brushless motor sometime in the future for tire-shredding fun.
I keep thinking there's going to be a big market for fun, quirky, classics like this – cars with real character – converted to electric using modern bits. Prices should drop dramatically on dense battery packs and controllers, if/when the Model 3 takes off.
There are myriad conversion companies doing business today, turning aircooled Volkswagens into "zero emissions" smugmobiles, but the price seems to prohibitive. Give it a few more years…
eagerly awaiting bobinott here …
Well, since someone asked….. Frankly, I'd rather have the original Dauphine.
That being said, this seems to show that EV progress has not been as impressive as we might have thought. A 60 mile range would make this as practical for daily commuting as some of the current generation (get it "current", see what I did there, huh, huh?!?), and I don't know many people who commute at anything close to 60 mph most days.
If CFlo waits a little while, there will be piles of crunched Teslas being sold by the estates of the late Autopilot-enthusiast owners. Then all he needs is to locate the closest Geo Metro graveyard and he will have a match truly made in heaven.
Oh, and thanks for asking, Anonymous. I love your work!
This is about 15 minutes from me, or 2 hrs if driving the Dauphine. I would be happy to look it over for you and take some pics. In fact I'd get a real charge out of it. (ode to Bobinott – PS: how could ANYTHING including a Geo Metro be heavenly?)
I have a soft spot for old French rigs. Peugeots, Renaults, Citroen, etc. While they were often as robust a souffle, they have gobs of charm.