Comment by formerly_proven

Very few / almost no EVs are direct drive. The industry-standard layout is an integrated package of transverse motor with two-stage reduction and final drive, giving something like in the general vicinity of a 10:1 overall ratio (longer ratios are directionally more efficient, while shorter ratios are usually more cost-efficient). That's the ballpark of 2nd gear in many cars (final drive 3-4:1, 2nd gear often around 2-3:1).

So if you mount just the electric motor from an EV (insofar as it exists as a separable part) to a manual gearbox and weld that into 2nd gear you have something which broadly matches the design envelope of that motor. You could reduce gearbox losses by also removing the now unneeded but still idling gears.