Tony Hawk Converted a 1964 Corvette to EV Power—and Petrolheads Are FuriousMotorBiscuitRahaan MazumderThu, September 10, 2026 at 2:00 PM UTCAdd us on GoogleSkateboarding icon Tony Hawk is used to catching massive air, but lately, he's been catching massive heat from the classic car community.Hawk recently revealed on social media that he yanked the legendary 327 V8 engine out of his childhood dream car—a gorgeous, jet-black 1964 Corvette Stingray convertible—and swapped it for an electric motor. Unsurprisingly, automotive purists are losing their absolute minds over the EV conversion, claiming the Birdman "desecrated" a piece of American muscle car history."I'm Not a Gear Head"In a recently uploaded YouTube Short titled "Dear Detroit: we good?", Hawk proudly showed off the finished build and defended his controversial decision to ditch the internal combustion engine.AdvertisementAdvertisement"When I was a kid, I saw one of these cars driving down the street, a 1964 Corvette Stingray, and I thought it was the Batmobile," Hawk explains in the video.After finally buying the car about 20 years ago, Hawk admitted he struggled with its classic car quirks and maintenance. "It was always kind of hard to get started cuz I'm not a gearhead and I don't wrench for fun," he admitted.Seeking reliability, Hawk handed the Stingray over to the EV conversion specialists at EV West. "They did some modifications, and they made it much more reliable and much faster," Hawk said, adding the ultimate punchline: "And I'll show you why cuz now it's electric. Sorry, Detroit".While he maintained the gorgeous red original interior, the instrument panel was modified with digital displays where the fuel gauge now monitors the battery level. As Hawk notes, "The only other physical modification besides the gas tank was adding seat belts because in 1964 safety was not the priority. But I brought it up to speed in 2026".The Backlash and Purist RageThe internet, however, was not as thrilled with his modernization. As seen in the viral Instagram post by @corvetteclub_, gearheads flooded social media with pure, unfiltered outrage.AdvertisementAdvertisementAccording to external coverage by The Autopian, car lovers left over a thousand comments accusing Hawk of ruining a classic. Highlights from the digital mob included dramatic complaints like "Don't desecrate history," "I pray a V8 finds its way back into this car," and "I'm gonna go vomit now." One highly liked comment bluntly stated, "Yeah, sorry man, this is a bit of an L. Love you Tony, you can do no wrong but this…this is wrong."The Reversible Truth (And Jay Leno's Take)But before V8 purists form a full riot, there is a massive catch to Hawk's build that should calm everyone down: the entire modification is 100% reversible.EV West CEO Michael Bream has made it clear that their shop respects the original chassis above all else. They did not hack up or cut the Corvette's pristine frame to fit the 300-horsepower, rear-mounted Tesla small drive motor. The original fuel tank, rear differential, and iconic 327 V8 engine were carefully extracted and saved.Hawk is fully aware of the hate—and he thinks it's hilarious. When he previously brought the car to Jay Leno's Garage to show off the initial build, Hawk joked that they should pop the hood (which now only houses batteries) "just to piss off all the purists".AdvertisementAdvertisementEven Leno, a notorious internal combustion loyalist, wasn't terribly impressed by the whisper-quiet electric hum but acknowledged the beauty of a reversible swap. Leno joked that since the chassis is untouched, Hawk's grandchildren could always just reinstall the V8, laughing, "My grandpa, he mistakenly made it electric".So while the V8 rumble may be gone for now, the actual car remains pristine. Tony Hawk got a fast, reliable daily driver that fires up every time, and the purists can rest easy knowing the original heartbeat of the Stingray is sitting safely on a shelf.