Today we’d like to introduce you to James Fleischman.
James, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
The story of Flash Drive Motor starts with a car-crazy father sharing his passion for classic cars with his children. Nights were spent in the garage tuning engines, painting cars, and anything else car-related. Weekends were spent taking the cars to car shows, drag racing, and sometimes just tearing up the earth with ATVs. We soon had a love for anything gas-powered (except for weed-eaters, those things never work right).
Then we grew up, went to college, and settled into careers. But, the love for the classics never went away. We moved to our own places, bought our own cars, did collision repair and restorations on the side, and set unrealistic deadlines to have a car done for the Lone Star Roundup every year resulting in more than a few all-nighters.
Then we discovered that we can leave the gas-powered world behind and make classic cars even more enjoyable by converting them to all-electric. You get all of the beautiful styling that makes classic cars so desirable, but with the reliability and simplicity of an electric motor. It does not hurt they are also fast.
So, we decided to give it our all and see if we can save the world one classic car EV conversion at a time.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
It is not the easiest thing to convince many classic car owners that electric is the way to go. With any new technology, there is always some initial resistance.
Overall the response to our electric Subaru Brat has been overwhelmingly positive. We took a car that was unreliable at best and turned it into a car that not only works every time we turn the key but is a blast to drive.
Occasionally, we have been labeled as hippies or as “having no souls” for the audacity to convert classic cars to electric. These comments always strike as humorous given our long history of restorations and weekend racing. We just smile and know that years from now, we will have been in the middle of this trend instead of playing catching up.
In the end, we just love cars and want to keep them on the road and feel this is a great way to accomplish that goal.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know?
We specialize in converting classic cars to electric. The best types for cars are generally pre-90s cars that are lighter in weight or smaller to maximize the amount of range and performance.
We believe what sets us about from others is that we have a lifetime of automotive restorations under our belt as well as a pure love for classic cars. We did not just decide one day that we want to do electric conversions and start from scratch. We are building on years of experience so that we can provide full service. We just consider electric to be our next chapter.
Aside from EV conversions, we also offer conversion kits and provide support the entire way through. We do not just sell a few parts and then run away. We sell a curated collection of parts known to work with each other and offer support to help the DIYer succeed.
We carry NetGain motors (Hyper 9), ElCon chargers and DC-DC converters and are authorized installers for the Orion BMS (battery management system).
Do you have any advice for those just starting out?
The most important piece of advice we can give is just to make sure you are doing it for the right reasons. You have to be passionate about the type of work you do, and in the end, that love will translate into a good product.
The other advice is to study and observe what everyone else is doing. Be curious, attend events related to your field, do not be afraid to ask questions and join any online groups you can find.
You are not working in a vacuum and you can save yourself a lot of trouble by swallowing your pride and asking for advice early.
And on the flip side, share what you learn. Obviously, some of what you develop will be proprietary, but when it is not, helping others in the same field improves the image of the field, and in turn, benefits your business.
Contact Info:
- Email: info@flashdrivemotors.com
- Website: https://flashdrivemotors.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/flashdrivemotorsaustin/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/FlashDriveMotors
