Wheeler Dealers spent $20K on their Maserati from memory, and couldn't even be bothered to sort out the suspension so it ended up dragging its arse on the floor. They could easily have put all the batteries in the front with a bit more thought on the layout.
I did note that they went for a brushless AC motor though, for better performance and less maintenance. Do Tesla drivetrains come up for sale much? I think a D2 would need a Leaf motor on each wheel to still move
It occurs to me that a 2.8q or even 3.7q (sorry Sergei and Neil) would make a great donor for a petrol-electric plug-in hybrid (like a Fisker). If you put the motor where the rear diff is, LiIon batteries where the fuel tank is, and a 1.2 3-cyl engine up front as a generator (along with a few more batteries) you could end up with adequate performance and massive range. Replacing 500Kg of drivetrain gives you quite a lot of potential for things to put in its place
You probably would need bottomless pockets though
