If negotiations go well, we could be seeing electrically-powered variants of the Persona and Savvy in the showrooms by 2010. This was revealed today at a media briefing by Detroit Electric at Proton’s test track in Shah Alam, Selangor, although Albert Lam, Chairman & CEO of the company, said that ‘discussions are still ongoing’ and that nothing has been finalized with Proton. He revealed that besides Proton, Detroit Electric is also talking to two other automakers (one in Germany and one in the USA) to form similar strategic partnerships.
However, Mr Lam (formerly CEO of Lotus Engineering and Executive Director of Lotus Group International until 2006) sounded very upbeat that a deal could be signed with Proton which has been tasked by the Malaysian government to evaluate and validate Detroit Electric’s technology and explore the potential to collaborate in creating a range of pure electric vehicles (EVs).
“Given the proactive measures taken by the Malaysian government to provide efficient and reliable alternative transportation to the people, we see this country as a ‘fertile ground’ for us to work with the parties concerned and provide a sustainable solution,” he said. He was especially delighted that the Prime Minister had shown support by driving to the Merdeka Day parade in Kuala Lumpur in a Persona specially modified to run with an electric motor. The e-Persona, as it is known, was modified by Detroit Electric.
A bit of history about EVs before we go on: before cars with internal combustion engines swamped the world (and changed it forever), electric cars were actually dominant and there was a ‘golden era’ of EVs in the early 1900s. However, the early batteries could not store much electricity so the driving range was short – few cars went more than 90 kms per charge. When Henry Ford rolled out his Model T in 1908 for $850, the electric car’s decline in popularity began; by 1939, electric motors in cars no longer powered them but were instead used only to get them started (eliminating the hand-turned crank).
Detroit Electric was the brand name of the most popular electric cars during that era and closed down when no one wanted such cars any longer. It is unclear why Mr Lam bought over the company since whatever technology it had would surely be obsolete today. Perhaps the nostalgia value is worth something and it might even prove useful when he starts selling the cars in America.
“Detroit Electric was an American icon in the early part of the 1900s,” said Mr Lam. “The brand represented the most popular electric car in history and the Andersen Electric Car Company in Detroit, which made it, was the longest-running electric car company. Detroit Electric is a name, we believe, which will speak to generations past and the future of automobiles. We are proud to have a chance to rebuild this great car name after 100 years.”
Detroit Electric was earlier a joint-venture between ZAP, a US company specializing in EVs (on whose board of directors Mr Lam sits as well) and China’s Youngman Automotive Group. However, just three days ago, ZAP announced that it will transfer its ownership interest in Detroit Electric in exchange for North American sales and distribution rights for all vehicles developed and manufactured by Detroit Electric as well as US$750,000. The Youngman Automobile Group will also relinquish its ownership under a separate arrangement, but will continue to provide vehicle platforms to Detroit Electric for pure electric transit buses and coaches.
Detroit Electric’s EV technology has been under development for almost 3 years at its R&D facility in The Netherlands, and prototypes have been running using VW Golf and Daihatsu Cuore platforms. The technology is now at a stage where it can be commercialized and the company is looking for strategic partners as well as new shareholders. It does not aim to get into the car-making business itself but will focus on developing EV technology as its intellectual property. What it wants is to have a carmaker like Proton as a strategic partner which can provide the platforms and build the vehicles, perhaps in a cross-licensing agreement for the technology. Mr Lam revealed that should Proton become that strategic partner, one of the offers is that it will ‘have the ASEAN market’.
While Proton would be able to sell the EVs under its own brand, Detroit Electric would also have rights to sell vehicles made by Proton under its own brand as well in other markets. The arrangement would be somewhat like what Proton is doing with Youngman Automotive Group where the Chinese company is buying Gen2s with some cosmetic changes and putting its badge on them for sale in China. Mr Lam, incidentally, was the man who was responsible for bringing Youngman, Lotus Engineering and ZAP together for a joint-venture to develop, manufacture and market electric and hybrid luxury coaches, buses, trucks and passenger cars.
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