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Detroit Electric SP:01
The Detroit Electric SP:01 electric sports car , seemingly a reincarnation of the Tesla Roadster that’s no longer in production, received its global public reveal at the Shanghai Motor Show.
Based on a Lotus Elise, like the Tesla, Detroit Electric – a company that is unknown in recent times – claims that the limited-edition SP:01 is now the world’s fastest pure-electric production sports car, with a top speed of 155 mph and a 0-62 mph time of 3.7 seconds.
The rear-wheel-drive SP:01 features a compact, mid-mounted 201 bhp electric motor (delivering 166 lb ft of torque), a lightweight, purpose-designed battery pack and carbon-fibre bodywork. The SP:01 has four gear ratios.
The vehicle is based on an aluminium platform, and is being launched following a “five-year development and road-test programme”.
The battery gives the SP:01 a range of almost 190 miles between recharges, when tested to the New European Driving Cycle (NEDC) standard. A home charging unit will enable drivers to charge the car in just over 4 hours. Detroit Electric says that the battery technology also has been deployed successfully in other applications such as helicopters and submarines.
The SP:01 sports car is the first production vehicle to be marketed under the Detroit Electric brand since 1939. The brand began life in 1906 and established itself as the market leader and most prolific manufacturer of electric cars. Detroit Electric went on to make some 13,000 vehicles by 1939 and holds the electric vehicle production world record for the twentieth century.
