Electric Testarossa
The Ferrari Testarossa went into production in 1984 after wowing the crowds at the Paris Auto Show. This two-door coupe had a mid-mounted 4.9 litre, flat-12 engine producing 380 horsepower and accelerating from 0-60 mph in 5 seconds. The Testarossa went on to become an iconic Supercar, being owned by the ‘who’s who’ of that time, from Elton John to Michael Jordan, as well as making numerous appearances in pop culture, such as its renowned role in the TV series Miami Vice.
Fast forward like a VHS tape into 2024, and this iconic 80s supercar has been converted to electric by Richard Morgan (AKA Moggy) and his team at Electric Classic Cars. ECC integrated a full Tesla drivetrain, and the car was reborn as a Teslarossa with improved performance provided by a subtle 600bhp.
At Peterson Instrument Co. the interior is where it’s at and and we were tasked with integrating our EV-capable CAN bus technology into the Teslarossa’s iconic bright orange instruments. ECC were keen to make sure the aesthetic was as original as possible, with the rear-lit analogue gauges to be reprinted, displaying OEM details as well as new EV information.
The Project
This was an upcycling project and working with old plastic components from late 1980s/early 1990s instruments can be challenging. A steady-hand was needed to take apart the housings, light-guides, pointers and lenses as they can be quite brittle and prone to breaking.
Using our modular dashboard controller, we were able to power and calibrate the original gauge set, pairing it with the The EV Control’s T-2C’s VCU and Dilithium Battery Management System’s CAN bus protocols.
If you own a classic Ferrari, you will know that the striking orange dials fade over time and some thirty-five plus years later they can look quite washed out. Peterson Instrument Co. screen printed the perfect replacement orange, using the latest UV stable inks, for a striking ‘as new’ look to the cluster. For the orange back-lit dial faces, we upgraded the incandescent lights to LED lights because they draw very little power and are also more efficient, bright and long-lasting. Using 3000K bulbs, they have a nice warm glow, which is perfect for the Testarossa’s warm tones.
At Peterson Instrument Co., our view is that gauges should pay homage to the original designers of those times, despite upgrades that could be made. When it came to re-printing the Testarossa gauge faces, only slight changes were made in the visual design. EV parameters included ‘Motor Current’, ‘State of Charge’, ‘Motor Temperature’ and ‘Battery Temperature’ and we introduced new graphic icons to go along with these, such as a charging icon, to replace the universal fuel pump symbol. The all-important drive direction indicator was incorporated into a centre gauge, in the style of the original analogue oil pressure gauge.
Due to the new electric drivetrain, the ‘Teslarossa’ now has an ‘ECO’ and ‘Full Power’ mode, which you can switch between at the flick of a button. After liaising with our Italian friends on the correct use of language, we printed ‘Full Power’ mode as ‘Velocita’ to keep the Italian references seen throughout this Supercar. Many of you know also know of it as ‘Speed Mode’, which only illuminates when all the motor power is available. Whether Moggy has seen much of ‘ECO’ mode during his test drives is for only him to know!
