I vividly remember a day in an unnamed American high school when a friend of mine hosted a car-themed “podcast” on the school’s local radio station. Yes, we had that; envy. But during that show, I remember practically stating at knifepoint to my co-host what my dream car was. Under great pressure, I finally said it was a mid-60s E-Type Jag. I also remember joking that pigs would fly before I could drive one. Well, as far as I know, there are no pigs flying outside right now.
But a few days ago, I got behind the wheel of the same Jaguar E-Type Series I that I always said was impossible to drive. In truth, that would have been true if it weren't for an Upstate New York transplant to Austin, Texas named Marc Davis. After decades in software development, Davis decided to give up the struggle for a “normal” job to start designing and building some of the most exciting Electric vehicle– trade restomods on the planet through the company he calls Moment Motors Company.
While that may seem like sacrilege to purists who have never driven a regular straight-six E-Type, let alone one as unique as this one. But I can assure you that you would probably rather own this EV swap than a long-term production example. If you’re still frothing at the mouth because someone EV-Swapped an E-Type, I urge you to put your prejudices aside just this once. It will be the best decision you’ve ever made as a petrolhead. Along the highways and byways of the Texas State Capitol, this electric restomod offered an experience unlike anything I’ve ever driven. So please let me cook and then tell me if EVs are always trash.
At first glance, you’d never know from the outside that this E-Type is anything more than a typical example. A spectacularly preserved one, no doubt. But not something that immediately screams “Holy shit!” It’s just the familiar, lovely styling lines and elegant curves we all know and love, just refined a little. If churning out a classic sports car with massive wheels and a fart-box exhaust is worse than replacing one with an EV, at least that’s a sin Moment Motors has never committed.
It’s only when you grab the tiny door handles and make your way inside that you find any clues as to what’s under the hood. While the gauge cluster may look stock before your eyes focus on the dials, you’ll find that they display charge levels and kilowatts rather than rpm and fuel levels. Designed to look exactly like the stock gauge cluster, it’s the first clue that what we have here is far beyond ordinary. It’s a point that’s further underscored when you step on the brake pedal and start the car in complete silence.
Photo: Benny Kirk/autoevolution
But no, the car isn’t broken, which is surprising for a vintage English sports car. But the Cascadia SS-250 three-phase electric motor that powers this E-Type is so quiet on startup that the average person would assume the car isn’t moving at all. With 300 horsepower and 375 lb-ft of torque on tap, that’s 35 more than you’d find in a stock Series I E-Type from the factory. Better yet, all that power is available the moment you step on the accelerator. No lag, no fuss, just steady acceleration whenever you need it.
With an accompanying Cascadia CM200 inverter, this electric motor changes its rotational speed so effortlessly that you can’t quite tell it’s down there doing all sorts of electromechanical magic that I’m completely unqualified to explain. But what this translates into for such an inherently lightweight car is an absolutely wild-going beast. Zero to 60 is managed in a respectable 5.9 seconds, or about a full second quicker than it would have been with a little gremlin’ 4.2-liter straight-six. With a fully integrated and internally regulated vehicle control unit and battery management system, everything was worked out well before the vehicle was delivered.
In short, you’re as fast as a Tesla, even off the low end. Even so, the transmission is tuned so that it doesn’t immediately roast the tires. It’s eager to put all its power and torque on the road anywhere in the powerband, but not at the expense of some pretty expensive tires. But it’s not as if this old Jag steers with all the ease and grace of a modern EV. It’s still a slightly stubborn, finicky, tricky car to throw into corners. No insanely over-boosted power steering to speak of, just pure brute force heaving the mechanical steering linkages the way all cars used to steer. It’s actually kind of hard to convey exactly how you can feel the grip of the tires coming off the wheel when you don’t have 1,200 psi of pressure doing all the work for you.
Once you get the hang of it, the results are nothing short of profound. Of course, with no clutch or shift lever to speak of, the experience won’t exactly be a one-on-one comparison between the production version and its EV-swapped counterpart. But let’s be real: bridging the realms of classic and modern with this level of attention to detail comes down to the latest in CGI 3D scanning technology and its accompanying CAD software, which maps out where the EV drivetrain components need to be placed before the wrenches come out.
Photo: Benny Kirk/autoevolution
Looking inside this E-Type, you'll notice that the firewall wasn't cut with reciprocating saws and plasma cutters. And neither was the radiator that cools the 62-kilowatts-they now look out of place compared to where they were in the production variants. Even the passenger side screen on the dash looks like it belongs there. Add in the fact that the passenger side gasket gets a little sticky in the freaking Texas heat, and it looks every bit as English as the real thing. Also, why did Jaguar design door handles for elves? My hands aren't that big and it was hard to wrap my fingers around them anyway.
But the fact that the door handles are as they were when this car was new lends a level of authenticity that you need to preserve when you’re walking the line between modern technology and classic road feel and design cues. With a vacuum-assisted electric brake booster applied to the disc brakes and standard suspension at all four corners, this Jag still carves corners like the good old days. Best of all, you still get that quintessential essence of what makes an E-Type, or really any classic British sports car, special.
That includes all the creaks and rattles the new car made, by the way. But what you also get for your money is a fair bit of attention from passersby. For example, when we stopped at a convenience store to pick up some energy drinks, no fewer than two different people approached the car and engaged Marc in conversation about how cool the period-correct Opalescent Silver Gray paint and red leather interior looked. Only to have their jaws practically drop when they were told what powers this thing. Better yet, we were clearly attracting some attention from passersby as we cruised down I-35 toward downtown Austin.
It was there that we noticed a late 2010s Dodge Challenger HEMI, maybe a 392 of some sort, coming after us. The driver was clearly trying to get a better look at what we were driving. Of course, it was a real challenge for us too. But when the road cleared in front of us, I turned to Marc and, without having to say a word, he gave the all-clear to accelerate and leave the Challenger in the dust. With no weight holding it down, it was out of my rearview mirror when I slowed down again to see how this guy would react.
Photo: Benny Kirk/autoevolution
Would he take it on the chin, mouth agape at what had just happened, or would he run straight for my ass, even more curious to see what the hell had just roasted him? Sure enough, all I had to do was roll down the window and hear the obligatory HEMI roar at me to know what choice he had made. We can only imagine how he felt when he saw us pull away with almost no sound. As soon as a clear lane presented itself to the left, the man in the Challenger took off so aggressively that his tires squealed a bit, clearly emasculated by what had just happened, and probably ready to tell his friends about it. But you know what? If that isn’t the best sales pitch, I don’t know what is.
That said, the cost of the conversion process is set to be as high as a true production E-Type. At least $140,000 or so by Marc’s estimate, depending on whether or not you want extras like DC fast charging installed. Is it worth it? Come on, is that even up for debate? This is a sublime vehicle. It’s one of the smartest, most innovative, and most exciting restomods built so far this decade. Moment Motors has truly added another chapter to its timeless history in the annals of a car lauded as one of the best ever. For that, we owe them our thanks.