1988 BMW 318

$2,000

Seller located in Christchurch City, Canterbury ·808 views · 23 others watchlisted

1988 BMW 318

Converted to electric

Closes: Sun 28th Dec, 7:33pm

13 days, 16 hours, 33 minutes

138,000km

Sedan

Electric

Number plate: CAG229

Year: 1988

Exterior colour: Grey

Doors: 4 door

Import history: Imported

Registration expires: This month

WoF expires: Expired

Ratings

Energy economy

Overall safety

Based on 2025 UCSR rating for 82-91 models

Carbon emissions

0 grams/km

Driver Safety

Background check

The data was provided for CAG229 by MotorWeb on 16 November 2025, 9:02 PM.

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Damaged import check

NZ New

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Money owing

Passed

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Re-registered check

This vehicle has been de-registered in the past and then registered again. The registration may have expired because the licence was not kept current or it may have been in an accident and written off by an insurance company.

Description

Very original classic car, in very good condition. I bought her in 2013 after she'd been converted to electric by the previous owner. Car is fully certified as electric. Thus all legal and able to be insured.

I had several years of silky smooth n silent driving. I've since had a marriage separation and moved house..... This is now a past chapter in my life. This is an ideal project for someone else.

PLEASE NOTE: Car is currently not working.

The last two photos show her stored in my garage. Dry, but a bit dusty. I took it off the road to fix it's two main issues, but life got busy and I actually never got around to it !!

Motor was brushed and low power.
Battery was small and it never had much range.

Specs: She had two "ADC L91" series wound, brushed, DC motors. They were cleverly mounted in the transmision tunnel, driving nose to tail onto the standard BMW driveshaft. These motors were wired in series for maximum starting torque (in series they both received the full 500A from the controller). Each capable of ~50HP peak at 500A. However because there was no gearbox, acceleration wasn't very impressive.

The controller was a 500A Open Revolt controller.

The car had a 144v 18KWhr battery pack. It was made up of 135 3.2v CALB SE40Ahr batteries. The pack was 2/3rds under the bonnet and 1/3rd in the boot for a good front to back weight balance. She weighed 1,240kg

PLEASE NOTE: This auction does not include the battery. It was too heavy. I'm keeping the battery for a stationary home solar battery pack. Motors are included, but I'd recommend a modern EV motor for better performance.

This car is mint and has far more personality than an off the shelf e-car. Customise her to be your special car. You could fit a Leaf motor or go high spec and fit a Tesla motor ?? Fit a new battery from a modern EV. So many options.... soon you'll be cruising in a stylish, unique, custom EV without pollution, noise or fuel bills :)

I have house renovations coming up, sadly I need the space so she needs a new home.