bedeo’s retrofit kit turns classic cars like defender into electric vehicles with in-wheel motors

BEDEO launches Reborn Electric: Icons with car kit

Mobility company BEDEO launches Reborn Electric: Icons, a program composed of a retrofit kit that can convert classic cars like the Land Rover Defender into all-electric vehicles with motors inside the wheels. In fact, an old Land Rover Defender was BEDEO’s first testing platform, fitting the classic car with a whisper-silent battery-powered powertrain, 75-kWh battery, and a standard 22 kW on-board charger that achieves 100 percent charge in five hours.

images courtesy of BEDEO

Electric Land rover defender vehicle

The first Land Rover Defender to use BEDEO’s retrofit kit can run up to 247 km (153 miles) and can be fitted with an optional 50 kW fast charging capability, which can fully recharge the Defender in 90 minutes. Osman Boyner, founder and CEO of BEDEO, says that none of those who have ventured into making classic cars run on electric power through EV conversion and utilizing in-wheel motors tap into weight reduction and engineering refineries.

‘Through our Reborn Electric: Icons program, we are committed to maintaining the original car’s kerb weight, charm, and driving dynamics while ensuring easy maintenance and delivering the benefits of electrification,’ he says. For the Defender, and other models to come, this can entail zero tailpipe emissions, zero noise, and the preservation of ‘the nostalgic, classic driving experience we all cherish, now brought into the 21st Century without sacrificing its essence or adding unnecessary, bulky weight,’ adds Osman Boyner.

Preserving classic cars’ look with modern feel

BEDEO’s Osman Boyner says that its in-house technology allow the drivers to tailor their overhauled, electrified cars to their exacting specifications, all the while preserving the vehicle’s history along the process of converting cars to electric power. ‘We’re enabling the clean and efficient transportation of the future, with technology that has only been preserved for large OEMs and brand-new vehicles, until today,’ shares Osman Boyner. BEDEO is looking into extending the range of classic cars to convert into electric vehicles with in-wheel motors for its Reborn Electric: Icons program. As of publishing the story, there are no lineups yet, but ‘iconic’ vehicles are being considered.