Michael Connelly’s Triumph TR6 Electrification Journey: Balancing Tradition and Innovation

A Triumph TR6 with a Modern Twist

On a sunny, 75-degree December day in Southern California, I had the privilege of sitting down with the renowned writer Michael Connelly. We met at the garage of Current Electric Vehicles to talk about the shop’s latest project—a fully electrified Triumph TR6, completed just a week prior. Connelly, a former Los Angeles Times crime reporter and Pulitzer Prize nominee, is one of the bestselling crime writers of all time, with 39 novels and over 85 million copies sold worldwide. His work has inspired TV adaptations like The Lincoln Lawyer, Bosch, and an upcoming 2025 spin-off featuring his character Renee Hallard, played by Maggie Q.

While some might assume Connelly would lean toward converting a classic Lincoln given The Lincoln Lawyer, he chose a British two-door roadster from the 1970s. Why the Triumph TR6? Connelly explained it was a car he’d admired since high school. Growing up near a dealership in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, he would drive home from his dishwasher job, stop by late at night, unbutton the tops and sit in them, dreaming of owning one someday.

Current Electric Vehicles to the Rescue

This wasn’t Michael Connelly’s first experience with EVs. Over the years, he’s owned 10 electric cars, including a converted 1974 VW Thing purchased several years ago. However, the Thing had persistent issues. The seller, based in San Diego, recommended Brian Dilley and the team at Current Electric Vehicles as a trusted EV conversion shop. Since Current was much closer to Connelly’s home in LA, he brought the car to them for a diagnosis. The problem—a faulty 12-volt battery connection and an improperly configured battery pack—was an easy fix. In just one day, Current resolved the issues, and Connelly drove away as a satisfied customer.

We’ve taken a classic and given it a second life—one that’s cleaner, quieter, and more powerful than ever before.

A month later, Connelly returned to Current with a new project. He had purchased his 1974 Triumph TR6 three years earlier on Hemmings, finding it in Tampa, Florida. After driving the car in its original condition for a while, Connelly admitted, “It would fail a lot and go out of tune A LOT.” Owning his dream car became more of a nightmare. That’s when he turned to Current again, this time for a full restoration and electric conversion—a project that took around nine months to complete.

The TR6’s conversion went smoothly since no paint or bodywork was required. Current ensured the car’s classic exterior remained intact, with updates designed to appear stock. The installation of a Cascadia Motion SS-250 motor doubled the car’s original horsepower from 150 to 300. However, the team detuned it to around 200 horsepower to maintain the feel of the original driving experience while offering improved reliability and a bit more power.

In Keeping with Tradition

“Our client’s vision was clear: they wanted to keep the Triumph TR6 looking as classic as possible while embracing the future of transportation,” explains Brian Dilley. “Their passion for vintage cars, combined with a desire for sustainability, made electrification the perfect solution. Together, we set out to maintain the car’s timeless exterior while giving it a modern electric heart.

It is clear the TR6 could inspire many more stories in the near future.

“At Current, we believe in preserving the essence of every vehicle we work on,” Dilley continues. “For the Triumph TR6, that meant carefully designing every component to seamlessly integrate with the original build while keeping the thrill of driving a stick shift by hooking the electric motor up to the manual transmission.”

The team at Current Electric Vehicles excelled at balancing tradition and innovation with this project. They added custom Speedhut gauges that matched the original design but included EV-specific monitoring. The light blue interior was updated to black, featuring new carpeting, black leather stock Triumph seats, and embroidered “Triumph” mats for both the driver and passenger, as well as a custom mat in the trunk.

They also installed an updated Bosch water pump—which I like to think is a subtle nod to Michael Connelly’s character Harry Bosch, though that may just be my imagination. The true “wow factor” lies under the bonnet, where bespoke touches like Current-branded battery pack covers, motor coolant covers, a 12-volt Current lightning bolt clip, and a custom badge reading, “Completed in 2024 for Michael Connelly, Built by Current Electric Vehicles in Los Angeles, CA,” set this build apart.

The meticulous attention to detail gives this project its final “chef’s kiss,” ensuring that Current LA will remain a leader in EV conversions for years to come.

“We’ve taken a classic and given it a second life—one that’s cleaner, quieter, and more powerful than ever before,” Dilley states.

The Next Chapter

What’s next for Michael Connelly? Having owned his newly electrified TR6 for less than a week at the time of our photoshoot, he plans to use it primarily as a daily driver—running errands or occasionally visiting a film set. As a writer who works from home, the 150–200 miles of range suits his needs perfectly and is unlikely to cause any concerns.

Driving through the winding turns of Box Canyon, with jazz playing on the radio, it is clear the TR6 could inspire many more stories in the near future.

Now that this build is complete, Connelly hinted that his 1965 Porsche 356 might be the next candidate for electrification.