Monday, November 6, 2017

My Tour of the Tesla Gigafactory - September 22, 2017

At long last, I can reveal my super-secret, super-geeky event - a tour of the Tesla Gigafactory! Due to confidentiality, details are light but what is there is interesting, and you get to see several early Tesla Model 3 cars.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=thqi09aJZHg

Tuesday, May 2, 2017

The 914E is For Sale

Short Story: My restored and electric converted Porsche 914E is for sale.  According to my records, I've got about $40,000 into it, not including my own labor.  I'm willing to make a very good deal to give it a new home.  Please contact me at mwbrown42@gmail.com to discuss.  The full restoration and conversion process is covered in excruciating detail here in this blog.

Long Story: I've been living in Thailand now for almost 4 years.  I've had a few plans come and go in that time and now I realize that I'm likely here for good, and not returning home.  The Thai government's policy on importing cars is frankly ridiculous, so bringing it over here is not in the realm of possibility.  My costs for storage and insurance keep adding up, so I've come to the realization that it's time to sell.

To get the car on the road, you'll need 1) a set of batteries since I pulled the originals and sold them to a golf cart shop and 2) a shock absorber due to a de-trailering incident.  This gets you a daily driver capable of about 50 miles of range and a top speed of 70 miles per hour, but not at the same time!

The car is located in Paso Robles, California, halfway between L.A. and San Francisco, near the coast.  It can easily be picked up by a car transport company or you can come and get it yourself and trailer it home.

A short history of the car for those who don't want to read from the origin story of the blog: It's a 1973 Porsche 914, with the factory 1.7 liter engine.  I bought it on eBay with the description of "It looks good from 10 feet."  I drove it home and could see the rust and other issues from about 9 feet.  I stripped the car down to the frame and gave it to a restoration shop.  They gave it back in fully restored pristine condition.  I then converted it to full electric using the ElectroAuto Porsche 914 kit, along with several customizations of my own.  I happily drove the car and took it to several car shows, winning First In Class at Warbirds, Wings and Wheels.  When I took early retirement and moved to Thailand, I put the car in storage in an airplane hangar, under the watchful eye of the owner of the hangar.  I've visited the car since leaving and she's still in perfect condition under a car cover.

So that's it.

If you or anyone you know might be interested, please contact me at mwbrown42@gmail.com.