It isn't just big manufacturers like Nissan and Mitsubishi that enter the famous Pikes Peak hill climb in Colorado--plenty of individuals and independent teams take part each year too.

This year, Electric Vehicle West, or EV West, is entering a converted electric car into the event, based on a popular performance car, the BMW M3.

The team's 1995 BMW M3 would have made around 240 horsepower from its BMW Motorsport-tuned inline six cylinder, but EV West's conversion currently makes around 400 hp from its NetGain DC electric motor--almost as much as the current 2012 BMW M3 makes from its 4.0-liter V-8.

That number is set to rise further as EV West continues testing the car, and custom parts are being added all the time, ready to take the challenge to the fossil-fuelled vehicles doing the run--as well as the other electric entries.

EV West's electric BMW M3

EV West's electric BMW M3

No driver has been announced yet, though that's expected to happen soon, according to the team's Facebook page. Details are scattered around the team's page, but final power is set to rise over 500 hp, and they're even planning a mid-engined version that will make over 1,000 hp. Weight is currently sitting around 3,400 lbs.

More details on the car should appear in the next few months before the race to the clouds officially opens on July 8.

Other electric vehicles competing in the event include both stock and race versions of the 2012 Mitsubishi i, piloted by Beccy Gordon and Hiroshi Matuoka respectively, and the Team APEV Monster Sports electric car of Pikes Peak legend Nobuhiro "Monster" Tajima.

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