SsangYong SUV distributor Koelliker UK has benached out to offers its dealers “a new, low cost profit opportunity” with a range of ‘e-motive’ brand electric scooters.
Go deeper with GlobalData
Discover B2B Marketing That Performs
Combine business intelligence and editorial excellence to reach engaged professionals across 36 leading media platforms.
Several dealers have already taken on the franchise, which Koelliker said is intended “to capitalise on the unprecedented awareness and interest in electric vehicles”.
Deale margin is 25% on scooters priced from GBP1,399 to GBP3,999. Up-front cost is a refundable GBP3,000 deposit for two demonstrator scooters which will be registered and insured by the distributor.
The three e-motive models are made in China using lithium ion batteries and offer ranges of up to 80 miles (130km) on a single charge, with a top speed of 65mph (105km/h). To re-charge, they simply plug into a standard domestic socket.
Koelliker UK managing director Paul Williams said: “China is a long way down the road when it comes to battery technology, and we have spent many months researching Chinese manufacturers and evaluating their products.
The firm said it thought it was first in the UK auto industry to offer a “proper” electric scooter franchise with a network of professional and experienced dealers.
Williams added: “It’s the establishment of a nationwide network of professional dealers that sets us apart from the rest. For the first time, buyers will have the backing of solid, ongoing service and won’t be left to fend for themselves if anything goes wrong.”
Koelliker said there is now unprecedented interest in, and support for, electric vehicles in the UK. There are already more than 100 roadside charging points in London, and the south coast seaside resort Brighton is expected to have 20 roadside charging stations over the coming year.
A GBP11m scheme to install thousands of charging points should see nine UK towns and cities plugged in over the coming year. London, Birmingham, Glasgow, Newcastle, Middlesborough, Coventry, Milton Keynes, Oxford and Sunderland will be guinea pigs for the Energy Technologies Institute (ETI) scheme, which will eventually go national. Under the scheme, called the Joined-Cities Plan, ETI aims to have 50,000 electric vehicles on the road by 2015.
London mayor Boris Johnson said at the unveiling of the plan that he intended to have 25,000 charging points installed in city centre locations.
The government last month announced a GBP30m scheme that could see thousands more charging points for electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles.
This initiative – called Plugged-In Places – will support the development of between three and six electric car cities and regions which will act as trailblazers for electric vehicle technology. Employers are also increasingly providing charging points for employees.
Automaker trials under way here include a Toyota programme using plug-in Prius hybrid cars.
