Retro Electric has shared a neat list of interesting EVs that you may not have heard about before. Or you might have. Either way, the list is pretty neat and shows just how mainstream EVs are becoming and how much diversity there is in the industry.
The article pointed out that mainstream manufacturers are all “fighting it out for EV dominance,” and this is true, especially in Europe. Companies like Mercedes-Benz, BMW, Audi, and VW are onto the trend thanks to Tesla’s success at bringing EVs into the mainstream as well as strong policies there.
The List
Rivian
Rivian is on the list. Those who follow EVs closely have certainly heard of Rivian. Recently, Autoblog reported that Rivian identified its second of 10 showroom locations that are set to open in the near future — the first two will be in Chicago and LA. Rivian plans to begin deliveries of its R1T electric pickup and its R1S electric SUV this summer.
Triton
Triton’s main facility is in New Jersey. It’s developing a vehicle that will have 700 miles of range. Triton EV is actually a subsidiary of Triton Solar, which wants to make energy storage reliable, affordable, and applicable. It has three EV products so far:
- The Model H
- N4
- Semi
The first 100 Founders’ Edition units of the Model H vehicles have already been reserved for pre-order. If you want to order the semi or the N4, you have to fill out a form. You can read more about Triton EV here.
Uniti
Uniti’s EV, the One, is very compact. The article noted that it was designed with the urban environment in mind. It’s set to be produced in the UK and is a result of successful crowdfunding efforts. It offers seating for three people. The One has a 24 kWh battery and a 300-kilometer range.
Uniti hails from Sweden and states that its EV can be charged from 20% to 80% in just 17 minutes with a 50 kW CCS charger. You can read more about Uniti here.
Mahindra
Mahindra is based in India and aims to offer EVs as alternatives to its existing range. Motor Octane reported that Mahindra’s eXUV300, which is its newest concept, will be capable of a range of around 370 kilometers. In 2018, Mahindra scooped up an order of 1,000 of its e-Verito sedans.
With Tesla coming into India now, domestic EV companies will probably feel the heat, but this is a good thing. Business Insider India noted that India needs Tesla and the local EVs to compete. This makes sense due to India’s air quality being poor. With more EVs there and more companies competing, it will push the demand for EVs up and make a difference in the quality of the air in a few years.
Nio
Nio is actually pretty well known now. However, if you are vaguely familiar with EVs and only pay attention to Tesla news, you may not have heard of Nio. If you follow stocks, though, then you most probably have heard of Nio.
Nio is a Chinese EV startup and its stock was trading under $2 in 2019. In 2021, the stock is up 3,550% and was trading at around $57 at the time of this article from Yahoo! Finance. Just last month, Nio’s sales increased by 352.1% compared with the previous year. This translated to a total of 7,225 vehicles sold, and if Nio keeps on its sales path, it could sell 100,000 EVs in 2021.
Nio now sells 3 models — the ES8, ES6, and EC6.
Sony
If you follow Tesla, stocks, or EVs closely, then you may know that Sony revealed the Vision-S concept last year. In more recent news, its fully functional prototype is undergoing public road testing in Austria. Sony also revealed more details in its video about the Vision-S and this includes what it called a Personalized Cabin. Sony hopes to “ensure that the environment inside the vehicle’s cabin is optimized for the individual.”
Polestar
You have most likely heard of Polestar if you follow EVs closely. It’s a spinoff of Volvo Cars, and has both electric and plugin hybrid vehicles. Here is our review of the fully electric Polestar 1.
Last month, Oscar Isaac was featured in a multi-episode video series that was released by Polestar in which Isaac gave the brand his celebrity endorsement. You can read more about that here.
Riversimple
This is the only hydrogen-powered brand on the list. The article added this because the hydrogen fuel cell stores energy in a supercapacitor that feeds electricity for electric motors. Each motor is in each wheel. Riversimple is designed to be small and light, which leads to a maximized range and efficiency. It also has a carbon-fiber monocoque, and its only tailpipe emission is steam. It gets the equivalent of 250 mpg.
This is definitely a unique-looking vehicle. H2 View interviewed Riversimple’s founder, Hugo Spowers, back in December. Spowers believes that you need to make a car with a different structural arrangement, different materials, and a different business model for fuel cell technology to work in mobility, the article noted.
“Fuel cells are totally different to combustion engines; you can’t persuade a fuel cell to behave like a petrol engine. If you’re really going to work with the characteristics of hydrogen, you’ve got to rethink how we build cars,” Spowers said. You can read the full interview here.