I live close by to Mulholland Drive, specifically some of the best twistiest sections that have been revered by car enthusiasts for decades, so often in the afternoon or evening I’ll head up into the canyons for a brain-clearing rip (or leisurely drive, depending on what I’m in). But often on these drives I run into a huge problem: Los Angeles traffic. Whether it be because of people commuting up and over the mountain, picking up their kids from one of the fancy schools along the crest, or just tourists going for a scenic drive, sometimes a jaunt along Mulholland ends up being a couple hours of maddening single-lane stop-and-go movement.
It’s even worse if you’re in a sports car, something classic, or both. On this uncharacteristically sunny winter afternoon, as I’m behind the wheel of a 964-generation Porsche 911 with a huge wing on the back, heading down Benedict Canyon where I haven’t gone faster than 5 mph in about half an hour, you’d expect that I’m pretty miserable. It’s probably hot inside, my left leg is sore, my ears are ringing, my butt hurts, the car is unhappy. Right?
Daniel Golson / Jalopnik
Not today. No, this time I’m calm, comfortable and not even sweaty, and the car is just as composed. That’s not just because this 964 has been fitted with a new air conditioning system, but because it has been given a fully electric conversion by UK-based outfit Everrati. There’s no old engine to overheat, no manual clutch to worry about, no gas and oil to burn. There’s no constant vibrations, no loud noises. The car ahead of me moves forward a few meters, and I silently creep ahead with nary a jerky movement. I’ve been sitting in a traffic jam in a thirty-year-old sports car, and I haven’t once needed to complain to my passenger, Everrati founder and CEO Justin Lunny.
Blasphemy, you’re saying. I can’t possibly be genuinely enjoying a Porsche that’s had its mechanical heart ripped out and replaced by a soulless electric motor, you’re commenting. OK, maybe it’s kinda nice around town, but surely before I got stuck in traffic this thing wasn’t enjoyable at all on James Dean’s old stomping grounds, you’re thinking. Wrong, wrong, wrong again, baby. Everrati’s electric 911 is a joy to drive when the going gets fast and twisty, both in the same ways as a normal 964 and in totally new ones, while being as easy around town as a modern EV. This is the classic car future I’ve been waiting for.
Full disclosure: Everrati CEO Justin Lunny met up with me in West Hollywood and handed me the keys for a couple hours of driving around the city.
