Shift EV transplants a Tesla heart into a 50-year-old Rolls-Royce

U.S.-based auto workshop Shift EV dedicates itself to electric conversions of classic cars. For today, let us watch them turn this 1970 Rolls-Royce Silver Shadow into a vintage-looking, yet modern and powerful luxury sedan.

The owner wanted the Silver Shadow to receive the 330hp (246kW) engine of the Tesla Model S. However, due to the British classic being a whopping 250mm (9.76 inches) narrower than the Tesla, it could never hope to fit that motor under the hood. In the end, the engineer crew had to mount it under the bottom of the car.

Things took a turn towards the hilarious when the client said he wanted the car fitted with a whole number of modern features, such as ABS, air conditioning, power steering, torque control, digital dash and a multimedia system. He received everything he asked for, but the dash screen and the multimedia screen were mounted inside the trunk to avoid disrupting the iconic Rolls-Royce cabin appearance.

The Silver Shadow, which incidentally once belonged to popular American singer Johnny Cash, now covers up to 200 miles (320 kilometers) on a single charge.