Have Your Saturn Converted to an All-Electric Car
Starting later this year, Advanced Mechanical Products (AMP), a company based in Cincinnati, Ohio, will take your pre-existing or newly purchased Saturn Sky and convert it to an electric car.
Initially only available for the Sky, AMP will add other Saturn models as company growth allows.
The company is currently taking orders for a limited run of 300 “signature series” Sky conversions. The Sky EV will be able to go from 0-60 mph (0-97 kph) in 5.7 seconds, will have a top speed of 90 mph (145 kph), and can go 150 miles (240 kilometers) before needing a recharge.
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AMP claims that the Sky EV gets 125 miles per gallon equivalent fuel economy based on how much energy it takes to charge the batteries. At current energy prices, this will cost you around 3 cents (US) a mile.
Additionally, because the car is all-electric, it produces zero tailpipe emissions and has many other added side benefits such as no oil changes, no regular tune-ups, no clutch, no transmission fluid and no differential fluid — all of which could add up to significant savings over the life of the vehicle beyond obvious savings on fuel costs.
The rub: AMP electric conversion costs $25,000 on top of the purchase price of your conventional Saturn Sky. Given that the Sky costs about $28,000 for the base model plus a reasonable amount of options, the final price of the conversion will run you about $53,000.
Hooo boy…. At first glance this is definetely not a working man’s electric car. I’ve covered electric car conversion companies before, and the company line is that over the lifespan of the car, the conversion pays for itself.
I’ve always been skeptical of these claims, so I decided to compare the AMP Sky EV to a stock Saturn Sky Red Line on a true cost to own basis. The Sky Red Line is the better performing of the two conventional Sky models (5.5 seconds to 60 mph), and it also happens to have the better fuel mileage (19 city, 28 Hwy).
I wanted to calculate total cost over a period of time to own both vehicles from a “regular Joe’s” perspective. This means that both cars would have a down payment and require a loan for 5 years at 7% interest.
Given that AMP requires a $10,000 deposit and most people put a couple thousand dollars down on the purchase of a new vehicle, I made my calculations assuming a $12,000 down payment on both the conventional Sky and the Sky EV.
I know that $12,000 is stretching it for most people’s budgets, but it’s the only way I could make a fair comparison.
I also assumed 15,000 miles per year driving — 50% highway and 50% city at $4.00 per gallon of gas or 3 cents per mile of electricity. Another assumption: the Sky EV will save you about $150 per year in tune-ups and oil changes over the conventional Sky. My results are summed up in the table below.
| Model | Purchase Price | Yearly Loan Payment | Energy $/Yr. | Total Cost $/Yr. | 5 Yr. Cost to Own | 10 Yr. Cost to Own | 15 Yr. Cost to Own |
| Saturn Sky Red Line | $32,000 | $4,752 | $2,573 | $7,475 | $49,375 | $62,238 | $75,101 |
| AMP Sky EV | $53,000 | $9,742 | $437 | $10,179 | $62,895 | $65,079 | $67,263 |
The total cost per year for the Red Line includes the $150 in tune ups. The cost to own for both cars includes the $12,000 down payment. After 5 years, the loan is paid off so the only costs from that point forward are service and energy.
As you can see, and solely on a monetary cost to the owner basis, the 5 year cost to own clearly shows that the conventional Sky will save you about $13,500. After 10 years they cost about the same and after 15 years the Sky EV has finally pulled ahead.
So, in reality, It’ll take you about 10 years before the EV premium pays for itself. Obviously if you drive more than 15,000 miles per year, that EV premium will be paid off faster. For instance, if you drive 30,000 miles a year (80 miles a day, 50% highway/50% city) it would take half the time for the EV conversion to pay for itself.
Of course, it’s impossible to put a value on the reduced emissions and foreign fuel usage from driving an electric vehicle; that’s entirely personal. But to an increasing amount of folks, it is truly worth the premium — and AMP is surely banking on this segment of society to turn a profit.
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But, what about the cost to replace the batteries in a few years? Sounds like the economics aren’t here yet for this conversion.
Bill,
AMP says that the batteries will be at 80% capacity by 100,000 miles (so 120 miles on one charge) and that individual battery packs can be replaced as needed. So, no concrete numbers, but that seems like a pretty good lifetime to me.
I tried to figure that cost into my calculations by assuming both cars would have the same service costs each year (aside from oil changes) when averaged out over the lifespan of the car.
Hope that helps.
I wish that these cars could be bought as just a chassis. It seems such a waste to throw out the gas engine. If car companies don’t want to sell electric cars, or claim that the technology is not “ready” they should sell parts.
If someone could purchase the frame and body of a car the way they can purchase the frame and body of an airplane electric cars would be much more popular, especially with the DIY mechanic crowd.
Kyle,
I totally agree. In fact, on the AMP website they say they tried to negotiate a deal with Saturn to do just that, but Saturn wouldn’t bite.
It seems that we have lots of conflicts, with the energy crisis, that need to be solved. No way I could afford this car for $50,000. Out here in the West, I might drive 200 miles to another town, so it would be impractical to charge along the way. Maybe the manufacturers could come up with some long term financing at a low interest rate. This price makes me think the conversion is built out of space ship materials.
I like your article, but you didn’t take into account that the batteries need to be changed every 10 years (at best!) and they cost about $12,000!
I think a better option is the TRIAC from GreenVehicles that can travel on the freeway (80mph) and can go 100miles… all for $19.995 - And you can order it TODAY! It uses the latest technology too: Lithium batteries, AC motor, Regenerative breaking etc… You can find out more at http://www.HiddenBuzz.com
George,
We’ve covered the TRIAC here at gas 2:
http://gas2.org/2008/05/27/an-electric-car-you-can-buy-today-the-20k-triac-ev/
As I tried to explain to Bill above, my accounting for the battery replacement was in my assumption that between the conventional car service costs over 10 years (not including oil changes, which I counted as a plus to the EV) and the battery replacement for the EV it was essentially a wash. This is assuming battery prices will fall dramatically over the next 10 years.
Have Your Saturn Converted to an All-Electric Car | Deliggit.com…
\r\nStarting later this year, Advanced Mechanical Products will take your pre-existing or ne…
I think it is fair to say that battery prices will fall over the coming years, as there is technological improvements and increase in demand; both of which have already begun to be evident.
I agree with Xebra. Batteries are going to keep getting better. And if you can get by with a single tuneup a year and do nothing else for 15 years you had the best stroke of luck of anyone I have ever known. Its more likley that you are going to have to have it put in the shop at least once if not twice a year. Labor gets expensive, even on some of the simplist jobs you are going to shell out more than the yearly 150$ on the tuneup cash fund.
I havent ever owned an electric car tho so i can not really say just how stable or malfunctino prone they are, but it might cost even more to put one of those in the shop due to its “uniqueness” So this post has eaten itself and i will now cease my aimless ranting..
peace
-Me