Forbes
Meet The 14-Year-Old Building An Electric Porsche
The first thing you should know about Frances Pearl Farnam, 14, is that she is not trying to make the rest of us look lame.
But the Sierra Madre, California 9th grader saved $2,000 picking grapefruit and vegetables from her garden and selling them at the local farmer’s market to buy a 1976 Porsche 914 – when she was 11.
She is now converting the Porsche into an electric vehicle, assisted by her father as well as supporters in the industry and fans of her social media sites who urge her on.
Farnam, and her Porsche, drew continual attention at this year’s SEMA amongst the monster trucks, exotics, restorations and grown men three times her size who have been coming to the show for decades in some cases.
“All the older people are nice to me, it’s fine,” she said. “This is the most chill show. I’ve been to other shows where they're like, ‘Why are you making it electric?’ But at this show everyone's like, ‘Whoa, this is really cool. I love what you're doing.’
She doesn’t have a driver’s license, of course.
And her grades?
“All A’s,” she says.
It’s been one green light after another for Farnam, sometimes by sheer coincidence.
Mike Spagnola, President and CEO of SEMA, also lives in Sierra Madre and just happened to be out for his Saturday walk when he saw Farnam’s car at a local park during an Earth Day event.
“I think it was fate,” says Farnam. “He took a different route that day than he usually does.”
“I didn't tell her who I was,” said Spagnola. “I went over and identified myself simply as a ‘car guy.’” Spagnola asked lots of questions, and each answer got him more enthused.
“I discovered that she’d had this dream for a couple years,” he said. “I was intrigued by the story. She gave me her website and YouTube addresses and I started looking at her videos right there in the park, and this girl was amazing. I met her parents who were there with her and I just said I was a local resident and a car guy.”
Later that week, he sent Farnam’s father, Daniel, an email from his office.
“I just wrote ‘Your daughter is amazing and I'd like to help her.’’ he said. “So we brought her to the garage. We scanned the car for her in 3D, teaching her to do it along the way, so that we could show her how to put the motor in the car. “
Spagnola connected Farnam with SEMA’s vehicle technology director, and she was invited to attend the SEMA summer banquet.
“She came walking out with the selfie stick and camera and was doing a live broadcast, which knocked me out,” said Spagnola. “So I arranged to bring the car and Frances and Daniel here to the 2022 SEMA show in Vegas, the hotel, everything. She’s our future.”
Farnam’s first task was undoing the modifications the previous owners had attempted.
“This car, when I first got it, the previous owners had tried to make it electric,” she said. “Tried. They used these incredibly heavy marine grade lead acid batteries. And it was just really not good. Like half the stuff was falling out of it. And the way you plugged it in was like a kitchen timer handmade box thing. It was the weirdest thing. Someone had professionally done that really bad job. The technology wasn't there yet. I was able to resell those batteries.”
Another big challenge for Farnam was learning to weld. When she was 11.
“The first time I saw the sparks, I was scared,” she said. “Because if you look at it without the mask, it’s terrifying. It can also hurt you. I heard stories. Like one time one of the dudes didn't wear a mask and he said that he had a sunburn on his eyes. He said it felt like sandpaper on his eyes. I don't like using angle grinders at all because that has just really too many sparks for me. But as long as you have the mask and you can’t see the sparks, I’m good, no problem.”
There was also massive amounts of dirt and debris in certain key areas, and evidence of a rodent problem.
“When we first got the car, it was covered in rat poop all over, in the glove box, everywhere. So I had to clean that. It had just been sitting there for so long and didn't run at all. But otherwise it was in really good condition, especially for a car that’s over 40 years old.”
And what were some of the most challenging aspects of stripping it down and building it back up?
“The hardest thing is probably fitting in the pieces,” she said. “Sometimes they just don’t fit. So it’s like a puzzle. There's one piece that goes this way, and another piece that goes that way.”
She also learned how to use a stud welder. “I did that with my grandpa and that was really fun. I made an episode on that. He was learning with me. He was in town and we were like ‘We should make a video together.’”
And how old is her grandfather?
“I have no idea,” she said.
She’s kept costs down by using sponsorships.
“I'm trying not to put a ton of cash into it, like anybody,” she said. “The paint was a couple hundred dollars, and then there was the welder, and the compressor for the welder. But those were more like investments. For example, I've been able to get small welding jobs, so it’s paying off. One of our neighbors had his catalytic converter stolen, got a replacement and he came to me and said “Hey, can you make a cover to go on it? So I was able to weld that cover.”
“Right now,” said Spagnola, “We're working with her now to try to find some component manufacturers and sponsors that will help her out. We’re hoping to help her build her dream. That’s what SEMA is all about.”
And when will it be ready to roll?
“I don’t have a specific date,” she said. “But but I wanna have it done by the time I turn 16. So I can drive to the beach and stuff.”
INTEGRATED ARTS STUDENT FRANCES FARNAM ATTENDS SEMA FOR CONVERTING PORSCHE 914 INTO ELECTRIC VEHICLE
Frances Farnam (IA, ‘26) recently returned to CSArts-SGV from Las Vegas, where she was invited to attend the 2022 Specialty Equipment Market Association (SEMA) Show. SEMA, the largest automotive association of manufacturers, distributors, retailers, and more, hosts a show to connect its members and give them the opportunity to network, showcase, and buy and sell their specialty parts and accessories. Frances was personally invited to the show by the SEMA President and CEO, Mike Spagnola, himself. The only thing more impressive than this is the reason for her invite.
At only 11-years old, Frances purchased a Porsche 914 with the hopes of restoring and converting the car into an electric vehicle with her father. Since then, she has documented the process of converting the car on her YouTube channel and website. This sustainable project landed her an invitation to the Sierra Madre Earth Day Festival, where the car was put on display.
Spagnola happened to walk past this festival, where he spotted Frances and her vehicle. Frances recounted the encounter as a stroke of luck.
“He introduced himself to me as ‘just a car guy in town’ and we started talking . . . He left for a bit and came back a few hours later, and was like, ‘I’m actually the CEO of SEMA, and I was wondering if you want your car to be there,’” she said.
At SEMA, Frances was able to network with others in the industry, trying to manage both her schoolwork and presenting her car. Thankfully, Frances said she is not the type of person to give up on her goals. When she gets overwhelmed with her multiple responsibilities, she makes a list in her head of her top priorities and pushes through.
Being in high school and converting a car is no easy feat, as Frances tends to put the most work into both financing the project and keeping herself motivated. To combat these issues, Frances turns to her sponsors.
SEMA was the perfect place to network with others in the industry and increase her sponsorships. While there, she met an individual who manages an electric charging company who asked if he could give her electric chargers.
“I met so many cool people there, and also reconnected with people who I’ve known along the way that helped me,” she said.
Frances has a few local sponsors that she works with as well, including 914 Rubber and Sierra Madre Collection. In return for store credits or parts, Frances helps these companies with their film projects, similar to her own YouTube channel.
Frances credits her arts education at CSArts-SGV for helping her create content for her page. Integrated Arts is the only conservatory on campus that offers classes in film production, which she has used for her YouTube videos and Instagram reels.
Frances said for each hour of filming she does at least two more hours of editing. In addition to this, she said her arts education has helped her be more comfortable in the spotlight.
“I realized that when I first started [filming], I would look directly at the camera’s monitor. I wouldn’t look at the camera or engage in it,” Frances said. “As I progressed through middle school and entered high school, I saw myself really looking into the camera and showing my personality a little bit more.”
Through all her work, Frances said she hopes that she will have the car restored and fully electric by Spring of 2024. While she has goals of driving herself to school and surfing, her main goal is much more near to her heart.
“I want to inspire other kids, my age or younger, that they don’t have to be an adult to make change in the world.” She also credits her father as her partner in this project, stating that it has been a father/daughter journey through the entire process.