1959 Car built in Fourchambault, France

1973 Converted to electric by a local guy called Stan using a 185-lb forklift motor, 496 lbs of golf-car batteries (8x62lbs, 48v system), and a lot of U.S. Navy-surplus relays

1976 It is put away in a shed

2019 Came my way as Stan moved out of his long-time home

2019 Got it running with four 12v batteries (340 lbs vs 500 lbs)

2019 Stan and his daughter came by to see the old Vespa... 46 years since the conversion. (See pic below.)

2020 Covid came and I had time to put in an updated e-drive. 185 lb motor out, 65 lb motor in. Navy relays out (one stays!), Curtis sep-ex controller in. BUT... battery weight goes back up to 510 lbs.

2022 Got over my cheapness and bought Mustang Mach-E lithium batteries on the secondary market. Range up from about 20 miles to about 50, battery weight goes down from 510 lbs to 160 lbs.

2023 Transmission breaks. Not surprising; lotsa torque in e-motors and the original motor only had 20 ft-lbs.

2024 Make a new drivetrain with BMW diff, Cushman three-speed trans, and the same 65-lb shunt-wound e-motor and Mach-E battery pack. Meh.

2025 Find a replacement transmission, add that with a NetGain three-phase e-motor and lithium battery modules from a Hyundai Ioniq 5.

At the time this pic is taken, it has been 46 years since the conversion.