A few years back, Micah Bayless (Zero’s Director of Powertrain Applications Engineering) began pushing me to come up with a personal e-conversion project using Zero’s leading electric powertrain technology. Of course, this should be expected from Micah, who has seamlessly incorporated our powertrain into various personal projects, spanning from a 1946 Gibson tractor to a race-ready 1973 Porsche 911 that went on to secure a podium finish in the 2010 Pikes Peak e-class. I haven’t had the opportunity to drive the Porsche, but the crazy-powered tractor is an absolute hoot.

Given Micah’s unrelenting pressure, I let him know I’d always dreamt of owning a classic Mini Cooper, which I had unsatisfactorily fulfilled through owning a couple of the new Minis. By sheer luck and potentially some determination, Micah stumbled upon a 1966 Mini being sold in San Diego by a racer who had blown its engine, making it an ideal candidate for an electric conversion! As fate would have it, Micah was going to be trailering his Porsche to Southern California and could easily trailer the Mini back. I’ll never understand how he made all of this happen, but the next thing I knew, I was all in!

Since the start of this project, I decided my approach would be a bit different. Most of our employees who embark on personal projects with Zero’s powertrain want to stretch the limits of our capabilities and thus end up with “Frankenstein” integrations that are quite different from those on our motorcycles. To immerse my hands and brain in the detailed implementation of our “production” technology, I decided I would take the powertrain found in our SR/F and SR/S models and transplant it to the Mini with the fewest possible modifications.

Continue reading the story and check out all the pictures here.