Tesla-Powered Land Rover Fixes Reliability Concerns and Future Proofs Vintage SUVs
E.C.D. Automotive Design’s Tesla-powered Land Rover models are the perfect solution to an ages-old problem.
There aren’t many folks on this earth that don’t love a good vintage off-road-focused SUV these days. This red-hot segment has sent prices soaring to incredible new levels, effectively rendering most of these vehicles out of the range of the average person. However, there is a problem with a lot of old SUVs that these folks don’t talk about much – the fact that they’re quite unreliable, or at the very least, expensive and complicated to maintain. And that’s precisely where a company called E.C.D. Automotive Design and its Tesla-powered Land Rover models come into play.
E.C.D. continues to expand its restomod Land Rover lineup, which now includes five different models – the Custom D90, D110, D130, RRC, and IIA. As one might imagine, each of these vehicles is based on a different type and generation of iconic Land Rover models, which feature timeless styling and supreme off-road capability. However, as any Land Rover owner will tell you, these generally aren’t the most reliable vehicles on the planet, and require constant care to keep running.
That’s the beauty of an all-electric swap, of course, even though E.C.D. will happily throw in a modern gas engine for potential buyers. To us at least, the more intriguing option is the Tesla-powered Land Rover option, which is powered by a 100 kwH battery and a 450 horsepower electric motor that enables this classic SUV to go 0-60 in 5.5 seconds and travel up to 220 miles on a single charge – not bad for a giant, heavy, boxy vehicle like a vintage Land Rover.
For those that love the idea of owning a classic Land Rover but don’t have a personal mechanic on speed dial (or the skills to maintain it themselves), E.C.D.’s electrified version is truly intriguing. With little to no maintenance or gas required, these timeless models make for the perfect around-town cruiser or daily driver, something that exudes more style and turns more heads than just about anything else on the road today.
Photos: E.C.D. Automotive Design