1975 Beetle with a 600+ hp Electric Motor

Knepper Bugs & More specializes in Volkswagen Beetles at their company in Rahden, Germany. They found their next project 5,700 miles away in California. They shipped the tired 1975 Volkswagen Beetle 1303 back to Germany where Knepper converted it to electric.

In the back they swapped a Tesla Model S Performance drive unit capable of 604 hp (450 kW) and 702 Nm (517 lb-ft) of torque with Porsche 930 axles. Power is kept in a 48 kWh battery pack from a Porsche Taycan. The combo gives the car a range of 250 km (155 miles) and 0-60 mph in 2.8 seconds.

Knepper upgraded the car’s handling with KW Variant 3 coilovers for a Porsche 944 Turbo and Kerscher 062 roll bar for the front suspension. In the rear suspension they added Porsche 944 25 mm torsion bars with Bilstein B6 shocks, Porsche 944 18 mm roll bar, and Porsche 944 aluminum semi-trailing arms. Braking is handled by Porsche 944 Turbo S disc brakes on each corner.

On the outside Knepper added wider carbon fiber rear fenders and carbon fiber spoiler. They painted the body in Marathon Blue metallic paint. Inside the fenders are Porsche Cup 2 wheels. The charging port is located under the factory fuel filler flap.

Source: Knepper Bugs & More