Well, this has been hashed out in several threads already since I joined, and I'm still pretty much a newbie. But I realize that the concepts of HP and torque can be confusing, and even though I attended a top notch engineering university (JHU), I did not really unerstand motor speed/torque/HP curves until many years later.
A general "rule of thumb" is that you can use an electric motor of about 1/3 the HP rating of an ICE in a car, and get just about the same "feel", if not an improvement. For one thing, the HP ratings you see advertised for cars and trucks are usually peak values for a "blueprinted" engine, and what you actually get may start at perhaps 20% below that. An ICE often has a narrow range of maximum power and maximum torque, and steep drop-off below and above those ideal RPMs. So to get maximum performance they are equipped with a 4-6 speed gearbox and it takes some skill (or a well-designed A/T) to shift at the right points.
What you actually "feel" when you drive is thrust, which is the forward force exerted by the tires on the road. This is derived from the torque of the engine through the transmission and differential. At low speeds, you need enough torque to propel the vehicle up any hill you may reasonably encounter, such as a driveway, which can easily be a 20% grade. And you also want to be able to accelerate, which is really the same thing as gravity and hill climbing. So you need to determine the minimum thrust as a starting point. On a 20% grade you push 20% of the car's weight so a 2000 lb car needs 400 lb of force. This is also 0.2G, or 1.96 m/s/s or about 4.4 MPH/sec. 13.6 sec 0-60.
Power comes into play at high speeds, whether to overcome wind resistance or to be able to climb hills and accelerate with heavy loads. It is possible to get a motor which has sufficient torque for take-off and also a high end capable of highway speeds, but it will be large, heavy, expensive, and inefficient. But sometimes the removal of he weight of the transmission and differential can compensate somewhat.
Please read the other threads on wheel motors and direct drive and general power/speed/torque discussions. Good luck.