Detroit Electric looking for 150 U.S. dealers
The revived Detroit Electric brand is getting its ducks in a row to perform that rare act of building and selling highway speed electric vehicles in the U.S. According to AllCarsElectric (which sources the subscription-only Ward's Auto), Detroit Electric has already gotten "several" dealer requests and the company will start taking official applications this summer. In early July, Detroit Electric will select the first of about 150 dealers across the U.S. to sell the e63 (above) and e46 electric sedans. Interested? Well, you better be a firm believer in Detroit Electric vehicles, because they're not going to allow dual dealerships.
Detroit Electric, for those who don't remember, was revived by Zap! and Youngman Automotive Group in early 2008, and then became somewhat independent in the fall of that year. A Dutch company stepped in with $300 million and a partnership with Malaysian company Proton followed. The first models for sale should be coming in about 18 months (they were supposed to come at the end of 2009) and Detroit Electric wants to sell 30,000 plus in the first year. For more information on the cars and the company, see these posts.
[Source: Wards Auto via AllCarsElectric]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Mel 11:35AM (4/13/2009)
did they check with BMW for the naming rights of the cars? they could be in for a surprise. Other than that, I hope they succeed.
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DP 1:17PM (4/13/2009)
Hello? Saturn Dealers?
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imoore 3:34PM (4/13/2009)
If they are that serious about bringing Proton vehicles to the US, I suggest that they throw in an electric version of the Arena/Jumbuck utility. It's the only interesting model in the entire lineup.
I can remember when Malcolm Bricklin tried to bring Proton here in 1988, and the deal colapsed. Electric or no, I'm curious as to what makes Detroit Electric think they can be successful with Proton.
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Chris M 3:30AM (4/15/2009)
The one thing Proton has going for it is that it owns Lotus, and of course Lotus helped Tesla Motors in the development and production of its Roadster. I suspect that most of the development work was done by the Lotus division, but the production will probably be done at the Proton plants in Malaysia, as their labor costs are a lot lower than in Great Britain.