WHAT’S THE NEWBIRD LIKE TO DRIVE?

The conversion from 1989 Bluebird to Newbird is surprisingly effective. It was managed by George Kinghorn, founder of Kinghorn Electric Vehicles, which specialises in EV conversions of classic cars, in Durham. The project took eight hectic weeks.

Part of the Leaf-sourced battery pack sits under the bonnet, along with the motor and inverter, the rest in the boot. To counter the rear pack’s 200kg weight, adjustable springs have been fitted at the back, while Bilstein dampers are fitted all round.

The original Bluebird was a middleof-the-road family car tasked with establishing Nissan as a credible UK manufacturer. However, settling into the Newbird’s soft, Rachelle-covered seats, turning the key, rotating the selector knob to Drive (Kinghorn plans to fit a Bluebird auto shifter) and heading silently from Durham to Sunderland reminds me that it was also comfortable and undemanding.

Kinghorn has calibrated the motor to avoid overwhelming the lazy 1980s brakes and the even lazier handling.

With Now That’s What I Call Music 15 in the cassette player, I’m really enjoying myself. In fact, electricity and a one-speed automatic gearbox suit the original Bluebird’s character. There’s notable understeer, of course, and it patters a bit on its sporty dampers, but go with the flow and the Newbird simply works.

Too quiet for you? Kinghorn is developing an optional exhaust sound with Milltek Sport.