Restoring a Ferrari with an electric engine is either either

Owning a classic car is a sensory experience.

Purists say it’s the feel of the leather, the smell of the fuel, the growl of the engine that brings a classic car to life.

But on an industrial estate in Newtown, mid-Wales, that growl is silenced.

Three Ferrari Testa Rossas, a Maserati Ghibli and a Land Rover are all getting their old engines ripped out and electric motors put in.

At this workshop, or “toyshop” as the owner, Richard Morgan, calls it, they’re bringing vintage vehicles into the 21st century.

“We’re future-proofing classic cars to be able to be used regularly.”

There’s a clear production line, with cars getting their engines gutted by the door and then moving into a fabrication area.

Here, bespoke motors are built.

Apart from the engine, nothing in the original car is changed.

Instead, a team of fabricators play Tetris with batteries, motors and wires, building bespoke engines for every vehicle.

They weld boxes and supports to fit the new electric engine around the car, then bolt them into place.

But it’s not just the classic car that is upcycled.

Around 40% of the batteries put into the classics are recycled from other, usually crashed, electric cars.

They’ve used so many, they say they’ve exhausted the UK supply of second-hand EV batteries.

But for Richard, the founder of Electric Classic Cars, it’s not actually about saving the planet.