A new ‘Italian-built’ and fully electric sports car is set to come to life. The SC01, a lightweight, two-seat electric sports car developed by a little-known Chinese start-up, is now preparing for a limited European launch and intends to do so by assembling the car in Italy.

Production will be deliberately limited to around 1,000 units, a number chosen to preserve exclusivity without pushing the car into the traditional supercar bracket, but with a price range of €55,000 to €65,000, far below it.

A niche curiosity

What makes the move striking is not just the choice of location, but the project’s origin. Unlike the major Chinese EV brands now familiar in Europe, the SC01 was conceived by a small group of engineers and enthusiasts with virtually no brand recognition, even on their home market.

The SC01 was initially developed by a start-up operating largely outside China’s dominant EV ecosystem, called Tianjin Gongjiangpai Auto Technology, also known by the English-friendly name Small Sports Car (SSC).

Without the manufacturing license required to sell cars domestically, the project was later brought under JMEV’s umbrella. This subsidiary of Jiangling Motors provides a regulatory pathway to production while preserving the original concept.

Financial backing linked to Xiaomi has helped keep the project alive, but the car itself remains far removed from the scale and polish of China’s leading electric vehicle players.

Assemble in Italy

That outsider status partly explains the strategy now unfolding in Europe. Rather than exporting fully built cars from China — an approach increasingly burdened by tariffs and political scrutiny — the SC01’s European backers plan to assemble the vehicle in Italy.

This decision serves both practical and symbolic purposes. Local assembly reduces exposure to import duties, while Italy offers a manufacturing environment accustomed to low-volume, specialist vehicles.

Equally important is perception. For a niche electric sports car from an unknown Chinese start-up, European acceptance is far from guaranteed when it gets here.

Associating the SC01 with Italian assembly and, by extension, with Europe’s sports car tradition is intended to soften scepticism and reposition the car as a boutique performance product rather than an experimental import.

Sports car performance

The car itself reinforces that message. The SC01 deliberately distances itself from the technology-heavy approach typical of modern EVs. It features a compact footprint, a tubular spaceframe chassis, and pushrod suspension, prioritising low weight and driver involvement.

With a combined output of around 429 horsepower from its dual electric motors, a claimed 0-100 km/h sprint of just under three seconds, and a curb weight of roughly 1,365 kilograms, the car’s figures place it firmly in sports-car territory.

Power comes from a battery of around 60 kWh, delivering an official range of more than 500 kilometers on China’s CLTC cycle, which is expected to translate into a noticeably lower but still usable WLTP figure in Europe. The interior remains sparse, with physical controls and minimal digital interfaces, a rarity in today’s electric vehicle landscape.

Only 1,000 units for Europe

For Europe, production is expected to be limited to around 1,000 units. The SC01 will undergo the necessary homologation changes to meet EU regulations, but its mechanical philosophy is expected to remain unchanged.

Pricing has not yet been officially confirmed, though expectations place it around the 60,000-euro mark, firmly in enthusiast territory.

Competition will be selective rather than direct. The SC01 does not aim to rival mass-market electric roadsters, nor does it seek to challenge established premium brands on scale or brand power.

Instead, it targets a narrow segment of buyers drawn to lightweight sports cars, such as the Alpine A110 or Lotus models, while offering a fully electric alternative in a space where options remain scarce.