UK's first four-seater all electric production car

The UK's first all electric four-seater car is available to buy from today, the Electric Car Corporation Plc (ECC) have announced.

The launch coincides with the government's announcement to support and subsidise electric car use, and their "commitment to make the UK a world leader in producing and exporting electric cars".

The motor, a Citroën C1 'ev'ie', is the first 4-seat car to be all electric, with a range of 60-70 miles when fully charged and with top speeds of around 60mph.

The C1 can be fully charged in 6-7 hours from a domestic 13 amp socket at a cost of around 90p.

Xavier Duchemin, managing director of Citroën UK said: "We are committed to providing greener alternatives for motorists and are delighted to be supplying ECC with C1s for this exciting project."

Over 50 per cent of the value of the car originates from the UK assembly, creating UK employment and a technology leadership in electric vehicle production, say the ECC.

David Martell, chief executive of ECC plc, said: "We believe this is the first serious alternative to a petrol or diesel car. It drives just like a petrol car and has excellent capacity for use in any town or city in the UK.

"The key to building a successful electric car is an efficient battery management system (BMS). ECC has developed an advanced and sophisticated system, which when coupled with regenerative breaking, can provide the driver with much greater range and better performance."

The car is priced at £16,850 and is available directly from ECC.