The eRoadster Electric HiBoy Roadster is All Style

In brief: A cool 3/4 scale kit car of the classic 1932 Ford HiBoy Roadster, made all electric.

Vehicle in the news

Make/Model: eRoadster
Manufacturer: NORAM Concepts

The word

What you're looking at here is the eRoadster, a model car in 3/4 scale based on the original 1932 Ford HiBoy Roadster. The maker, NORAM Concepts in Redondo Beach, California, builds these car bodies as a kit.

Now, that kit can have electric components thrown in too, and the award-winning concept is available as a custom electric to anyone who'll buy.

The car is, technically, an "urban electric," but not quite an NEV since it is capable of 50mph. NORAM says it's a step up from an NEV, which is (to my knowledge) not yet a class of vehicle.

The 3/4 scale HiBoy can be configured in either DC or AC and electrical design was assisted by the infamous Rich Doran of DoranEV.

The performance on this car is pretty good, considering some of the components and the relative low cost (about $35,000, kit and all):

• Top speed of 50mph (gear ratio can be modified)
• 25-50 mile range (depending on gears)
• AC induction, brushless or DC 8" traction
• 9 sealed 8V deep-cycle batteries (AC) or 12 8V deep-cycle batteries (DC)

The eRoadster uses mostly off-the-shelf auto parts for standard components such as braking, steering, wheels and tires.

A neighborhood electric version is also available if you aren't interested in fighting for licensing in your area. It is basically the DC version with a speed limiter.

The only gear shift is a rocker switch on the dashboard for putting the motor into reverse. The basic setup has no transmission (direct driven), but it is possible to put gears in and increase the performance.

The entire car is only 120 inches long, about 59" wide and barely 36" high.

NORAM is now working on a track model called the HONSTER, which is a racing track Roadster using a Honda Gold Wing engine.

And so ...

The whole thing is very cool and is available right now. The cars are built-to-order or can be shipped as a kit to be put together by the owner. A variety of colors are available as well.

Photo credits: eRoadster / Noram Concepts