Overview
- Michael Pick, a Tennessee YouTuber and former Lockheed Martin software engineer, bought a used BMW i3 and published a video about the conversion on Oct. 26, 2026 that framed the project as a response to high fuel prices.
- Pick cut off the i3’s carbon-fiber "Life Module," bolted a steel frame to the aluminum "Drive Module," and installed a removable bed made from plywood sealed with epoxy and finished with bedliner so the REX engine can still be serviced.
- The builder kept much of the car’s original electronics and hardware intact because the i3’s systems depend on those components to function and reprogramming the firmware would have been difficult.
- Reporters and engineers flagged structural and safety compromises, saying the removed rear Life Module reduces bending and torsional stiffness and could weaken rear crash protection even though the Drive Module remains in place.
- The video has gone viral and reignited debate about repurposing aging i3s, which are built with a rare carbon-fiber passenger tub and often become low-cost project cars before collectors raise values again.