The mass-produced electric car already in the 70s

In the 70s, an electric car was produced on the Greek island of Syros. The car has been called Enfield 8000 It was one of the first mass-produced electric cars in the world. It was developed by Greek millionaire Giannis Goulandris.

Enfield Automotive, as the company was called, was based in the British Isle of Wight – Giannis also lived in the UK.

With roots in the 60’s

In the 1960s, the British government explored various possibilities for building and developing an electric car. This was how the seed for the Enfield 8000 was sown.

The car met all the requirements such that the car had to be made in Great Britain. Nevertheless, Giannis looked across the Atlantic toward the United States.

At the time Ronald Reagan was governor of California, in order to support a bill specifically related to emissions, he brought three cars home by freighter flight. However, production never began in the United States and what happened to the cars is unclear.

Enfield 8000 was produced in several versions

A total of 120 cars were produced, of which 65 were used by various authorities in the south of England.

There is one on display at the Carlton-Coalville Transport Museum in the UK.

Shortly thereafter, production was moved to Greece.

Exactly why hasn’t he been contacted as it is said to be due to the Greek owner, Giannis Goulandris, It was nationalist and he believed that since the car was developed by the Greeks and designed by the Greeks, it must also be built by the Greeks.

The car was seen as having a lot of potential, not least in the early 1970s when the oil crisis hit. In 1977, production was discontinued, as the tax system in Greece was not suitable for electric vehicles.

Performance wasn’t his strong point – he hit 50kn in 13 seconds while top speed was around 77kph.

The range was said to be up to 8 miles, but that was when driving at a slow pace. Thus the car was well suited for city driving or driving on a small Greek island.

Read also: Five electric cars you didn’t know existed [Dagens PS]