PROOF OF CONCEPT

We hit the drag strip for testing and tuning on our electrified '57 Chevy.

- STEVEN RUPP

When we did the electric conversion on Project X for the 2021 SEMA Show, we had just five weeks to install Chevrolet Performance's eCrate system into our 1957 Chevy. Five weeks isn't much time, and like most of the cars at SEMA ours was finished days before the event. And, just like many of the other SEMA projects, ours still needed sorting out.

Sorting out an electric vehicle is much the same as an internal-combustion engine (ICE) build, but it's a lot different in terms of electronics. With an EV, far more is controlled by computers, and when dealing with 400 volt three-phase DC power, there are a lot of redundant safety systems. When we finished the install before SEMA, the throttle pedal was very touchy. With an EV, the motor is hitting full torque at 1 rpm. Compare this to an ICE where the torque builds in a curve, and you can see how properly tuning something like the throttle pedal is even more critical.

After its debut at the 2021 SEMA Show, X was shipped to Chevrolet so the engineers there could go over the car and fine-tune the various EV systems. As Chevrolet Project Manager Prashant Ahire told us, "After SEMA, the Chevrolet Performance team started working on tuning and calibration. Turning a street car calibration into a drag race Performance EV requires a significantly large number of parameters-hundreds of thousands-to be verified and adjusted carefully. Calibration engineers from the production street car project at GM were consulted throughout the process to ensure that safety was not compromised." With an EV it's not just about ramping up the process, it's about doing so while maintaining the safety of the system.