British company produces a Tesla Model S estate car conversion

Elon Musk might be forgiven for thinking he must have got much of the design of his Tesla Model S wrong: all anyone ever wants to do with the revolutionary car is entirely redesign it.

The latest innovator to take up the challenge of redesigning the Model S is Qwest Norfolk, which appears to be a new British venture launched specifically for the purpose of turning the Model S saloon into an estate car.

Last week, Niels van Roij, a London-based Dutch car designer unveiled his latest vision of a Tesla Model S shooting brake, and yesterday it was reported that a stretch limousine version from a company called Big Limos had been put up for sale on eBay in the U.S.

The limousine is an unfinished project and the shooting brake won’t be available to buy until March 2018, but the Qwest Norfolk creation is close to being finished.

Qwest claims the idea for its project came about in a pub, where a businessman complained to an engineer friend that his Model S didn’t have room for his dogs in the back. Qwest explains, “The wish was that the Tesla had an Estate, a proper large estate, a shooting brake, that long lost vehicle format reserved for the annals of history, reminiscing over Volvos and Peugeots of the past long before SUVs and MPVs ruled the planet.”

The conversion uses specially-designed carbon-fiber panels added to the Tesla’s aluminium body so the conversion doesn’t add too much extra weight to the car. Jim Router, Qwest’s engineering director, confirmed they made Tesla aware of the project from the outset, and said “They’re very content, as long as we don’t mess with any of the electrics.”

The team describes their creation as “the world’s only and fastest electrically powered SportsWagon.” It is unclear how many more, if any, will be built. JB

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