This Gorgeous 1965 Ford Mustang Hides A Tesla Heart. The Handling Is Wild

Up to 600 horsepower and instant torque make this classic Mustang a showstopper.

1965 Ford Mustang EV conversion by Revolt Systems

Photo by: Revolt Systems

Iulian Dnistran

By: Iulian Dnistran

Mar 9, at 5:41am ET

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A 1965 Ford Mustang was converted to an EV using Tesla parts.
California’s Revolt Systems uses the battery-powered pony car as a test mule for its other projects.
The vintage Mustang is good for 600 hp with a full battery, and it handles like there’s no tomorrow.

Converting a popular classic car into an EV isn’t for everybody. Some say that ditching the gas (or diesel) engine for an electric motor misses the point, and ultimately ruins the car’s character. However, there’s no denying that the instant torque and immense power that an electric drive unit can deliver can radically transform a vintage car for the better.

Take the first-generation Ford Mustang. Its cool looks attracted plenty of admirers, but its most basic engine and gearbox combo didn’t really make a splash–and neither did its handling.

That didn’t stop California-based Revolt Systems from transforming a 1965 Mustang into something exponentially better than the original. And it’s all thanks to an electric motor and battery. Specifically, a refurbished and heavily modified Tesla Model S Large Drive Unit mounted under the hood, and a Tesla-sourced high-voltage battery pack.

It’s a peculiar place for the electric motor, but as Eddy Borysewicz, Revolt’s founder, explains in the EVTuners video embedded above, the decision came out of necessity. That’s because the Mustang had been upgraded with a Roadster Shop chassis, which was designed to fit an LS engine up front, and not for buzzing electrons. So the California garage’s upgraded motor had to be bolted onto the LS motor mounts.

Meanwhile, the high-voltage battery pack sits under the floor and in the trunk, making for a perfect 50:50 weight distribution between the front and rear axles. But it didn’t come easy, as the floor pan and transmission tunnel had to be modified–again, because they were designed for a completely different setup.

On its own, Revolt Systems’ souped-up Tesla drive unit makes up to 600 hp and 442 pound-feet of torque, which is more than enough for the light body of the classic Mustang. But this car was meant to go on the race track, so a Torque Trends 1.9:1 reduction box was added to the driveline, doubling the torque delivered to the wheels.

A set of QA1 coilovers enables the 61-year-old American pony car to corner like it was never meant to, while an uprated Baer braking system with 12-inch rotors, four-piston calipers, and regenerative braking provides plenty of stopping power.

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The result is a corner carver that delivers impressive performance in a lovable vintage body. However, for all the high points, this two-tone Mustang has a big drawback, and it’s all down to the Tesla battery. With a full charge, it can deliver the full 600 hp that the motor can put down, but at half charge, it suffers from severe voltage sag under heavy acceleration, as much as 100 volts, according to Borysewicz. This affects performance, and it’s the reason why Revolt is currently developing its own battery setup that can sustain high voltages for longer, while fitting in a smaller footprint.

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The Tesla-powered 1965 Mustang debuted at SEMA way back in 2021, but its makers have been constantly improving it and using it as a test mule for the company’s other builds. At one point, it even had a clutchless 6XD sequential transmission, but it proved too much for the Tesla-sourced half-shafts, which ultimately decided to leave the conversation. So there’s now a hole in the center tunnel, where the shifter used to sit.

EV conversions are becoming increasingly popular, thanks to companies like Revolt Systems, but the availability of cheap components from previous-generation Tesla and Nissan EVs has also prompted many enthusiasts to build their own conversions.