The classic Volkswagen Type 2 microbus has always been more loved than it was good to drive. Underpowered, noisy, air cooled, and slow up any real hill, the original was a charming compromise. Kindred Motorworks set out to keep the charm and delete the compromises. In a first drive from TFLEV, the company's electric conversion of a classic 23-window bus makes roughly 300 horsepower from a 74 kWh battery, against the 50 to 60 horsepower these vans left the factory with decades ago. The video reports a starting price of $249,000, with the body fully restored and rebuilt in house from an older donor van before the powertrain ever goes in. The host calls it a long-standing bucket-list drive, and the framing is clear: this is a restomod aimed at people who want the silhouette and the feel of the original without the breakdowns, the smell, or the white-knuckle merges onto a highway.
Electric restomods are a small but growing niche, and they tend to ask buyers to accept a steep premium for nostalgia rather than for value or capability. That is the lens worth keeping here. According to the video, this bus uses a CCS charge port with Level 1, Level 2, and DC fast charging, but DC speed is capped at around 45 kW, and full range is described as roughly 200 miles. Those numbers point to a vehicle built for short drives, shows, and weekend trips, not for grinding out interstate miles between fast chargers. A buyer should treat the price the way they would a coachbuilt collectible: the appeal is the object and the experience, not the spec sheet. It also helps to know the starting point. The video says Kindred typically begins with a less sought-after 15-window donor and converts it to the more desirable 23-window configuration in house, which is part of where the cost goes. Kindred is still early in its EV story, which is its own consideration for anyone spending six figures on a first-generation conversion from a young company.
The TFLEV host frames most of the drive around how the bus behaves now that it is quick. He describes climbing a steep grade outside Boulder at highway speed while a chase vehicle struggles to keep up, something the original could never do, and says passing larger trucks on the climb felt effortless. Kindred's test engineer, identified in the video as Bassel, walks through the changes that come with the power. Larger custom wheels were specced to clear upgraded suspension and brakes while keeping the proportions period-correct, and the host notes the team avoided oversized modern wheels on purpose to preserve the look. Power steering and power brakes were added to handle the extra weight, which the video attributes partly to a 74 kWh pack split between an under-floor belly box and the L-shaped seating area, giving the bus a low center of gravity. The host tests regen on the descent and says the blend between regen and friction braking feels smooth, with one-pedal driving holding speed downhill. Inside, the team kept the dashboard knobs, gear lever, Safari pop-out windows, and the original air vents close to stock while adding HVAC controls and a small round digital gauge that doubles as a speedometer and a state-of-charge readout. Kindred says it started with the Ford Bronco, moved to an electric Bronco, and now has a Porsche 911 conversion in development for next year.
Bottom line: At a quarter million dollars, this is not transportation, it is a toy for people who already know they want one. If you grew up around these vans and have the means, Kindred appears to have solved the parts that made the original frustrating without sanding off its character, which is the hard trick. Everyone else should read the range and charging numbers carefully: 200 miles and a 45 kW cap mean this is a local and weekend machine, not a road tripper. Judged as a collectible rather than a value, it makes more sense than the sticker first suggests, and the quietly clever touch is the period-correct gauge hiding a modern battery readout in plain sight.
Commentary on a third-party video. Figures and claims are as presented in the source and have not been independently verified. Spotted an error? Tell us and we will correct it.