The revived electric car company announced the production start of the SP:01 two-seater at Leamington Spa, UK.

Detroit Electric has been building up their global network in order for everything to be ready for the official launch of the SP:01, a two-seater purely electric sports car based on the Lotus Elise chassis.

The electric sports car will officially go on sale in Asia and Europe over the coming weeks with the first customer car rolling out of the production line.

“We are thrilled to see our first production car roll off the line at our UK manufacturing site,” said Albert Lam, Detroit Electric boss. “Seeing our vision realized is hugely satisfying and we can now focus on fulfilling a growing bank of orders.”

Detroit Electric integrated the battery pack inside the aluminum chassis as a stressed member, further increasing the stiffness of the build while the bodywork is made out of carbon fiber for the usual reasons. The company says that the battery itself is the most energy-dense battery pack in the world, offering over 140Wh/kg, maximizing the range of the SP:01 while keeping weight down to a minimum.

This battery sends its juice to a 285hp electric motor paired with a single-speed automatic gearbox as standard. Detroit Electric also offers the option of a twin-speed automatic or -and that’s the interesting part- a six-speed manual gearbox, which makes the SP:01 the only manual electric vehicle you can buy.

Detroit Electric proudly says that the SP:01 is the “world’s lightest and fastest two-seat pure-electric sports car” and it’s true, given that there are no rivaling models currently on sale. When paired with the manual transmission, the Detroit Electric SP:01 can do the 0-60mph procedure in 3.7 seconds (0-100km/h in 3.9 seconds) while top speed is rated at 155mph (249km/h).

Another feature of the SP:01 is the built-in bi-directional charge and discharge capability when combined with Detroit Electric’s patented home charger named 360-Powerback, allowing the vehicle to become a power source for both the grid and the home if necessary.

The cabin features an advanced infotainment system running on Android called SAMI. That stands for Smartphone Application Managed Infotainment and allows a host of apps and Internet functionality. It also shows the driver the nearest charging points.

Detroit Electric has already established distributors throughout Europe and Asia, including Iceland, Norway, Azerbaijan, South Korea, China, Hong Kong and South Africa with additional countries due to join their network. Prices will be announced soon.

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