The
path from a conceptual drawing on a scrap of paper to a real-world
production car is a long and understandably expensive journey. But one
of today’s most buzzworthy upstart automakers has finally achieved that
feat, and it’s looking to expand.
This week, Detroit Electric announced it has delivered its first production-specification SP:01 sports car
to China’s Jowett Motors. The Chinese company will handle Detroit
Electric’s vehicle importation and distribution within the large Asian
country, and this initial white SP:01 will serve as Jowett’s first
customer demonstration vehicle.
The
Detroit Electric SP:01 was first debuted to the Chinese market at last
year’s Auto Shanghai 2015 event, after which the firm admits it has seen
a flood of interest.
In
development since 2008, the Detroit Electric SP:01 stakes its claim as
the fastest and lightest two-seat pure-electric sports car, capable of
notching 155 mph top speeds and shots from zero to 60 mph in 3.7
seconds. The SP:01 draws part of its underlying architecture from fellow
British car company Lotus and its Elise sports car
(both factories are less than 150 miles apart), leveraging 285
horsepower from an electric motor mounted at its rear wheels. The firm
is currently headed by former Lotus CEO Albert Lam.
What
makes the SP:01 slightly different in design however is its choice of
transmissions: a two-speed automatic or six-speed manual (a single-speed
automatic is standard). The SP:01 also aims to innovate by integrating
its lithium-ion battery pack into its chassis as a stressed member, in
the process cutting weight and increasing rigidity. The car’s battery
pack can also be used as a mobile power unit, capable of supplying a
home with energy in the event of a power outage.
The
official hand-off of this first vehicle took place at the company’s
Leamington Spa factory in the United Kingdom, at which vehicle
production operations initiated in October 2015. Detroit Electric has
been mum of late on its future plans and subsequent new models, however
the group previously hinted to other “high performance” models sold from
2016 onward. Time will tell whether US-market availability is offered.
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