It was one of the earliest names in electric car manufacturing and now it has been reborn – the Detroit Electric vehicle is receiving a new lease of life courtesy of a Dutch company.
Some 70 years after the Detroit Electric Car Company stopped producing the vehicle at its factory, it has been resuscitated in what is seen as a savvy move to capitalise on the name on the international market.
The original Detroit Electric line was built from 1907 to 1939 gaining popularity because the engine didn’t need to be cranked. Instead it used an electric starter. Now the name has been adopted by Detroit Electric Holdings Ltd with leader Albert Lam stating that the original company was ahead of its time and has become synonymous with the pioneers in Detroit.
The company has formed a partnership with Malaysia’s Proton Holdings and the car will be built in Malaysia using Proton’s vehicle platforms. The company hopes to release a pair of battery powered saloon cars in Europe and Asia next spring with a US launch to follow six-nine months later.
According to Lam, Detroit Electric’s new short-range model will get 110 miles per charge and will cost $25,000 with the longer range model aiming to achieve 200 miles per charge at a cost of $33,000. Should the company be sufficiently successful in the United States then South East Michigan has been earmarked as a potential site for further manufacturing facilities.
