- electric-truck startup bollinger motors has released a video showing its b1 and b2 ev prototypes being worked on by employees.
- the b1 is a boxy suv and the b2 is a traditional pickup; both have all-aluminum bodies and an estimated 200 miles of range between charges.
- the trucks will be revealed in the detroit area on september 26.
bollinger motors has about 30 days to go before revealing its all-electric vehicles, the b1 sport-utility and the b2 pickup. a month seems like soon enough to start teasing the new versions of the utilitarian evs, which is why the company has released a video that shows the work that's going into getting the fully operational, proof-of-concept vehicles ready for their upcoming public debut, which will happen near detroit on september 26.
it's the next step in a long journey to bring something new to market, bollinger ceo robert bollinger told car and driver.
"we started bollinger motors with the intent to make a truck that no one else would build," he said. "we want to be unique and the best. as a class 3 truck with unbeatable off-road capabilities and unmatched storage options, the b1 and b2 don't have any competition."
that may be bollinger's view, but there's no doubt that the public will be making comparisons to other announced electric trucks. that starts with ford's upcoming electric f-150, which was just shown towing a million pounds of train, and tesla, which has been teasing a supposed under-$50,000 futuristic electric pickup. and the competition for battery-powered trucks also includes rivian, which has announced its r1t electric pickup for the 2021 model year. that startup raised $700 million in a financing round led by amazon earlier this year and received a $500 million investment from ford.
the upcoming bollinger b1 and b2 are more easily compared to each other. both seat four, have all-aluminum bodies and all-wheel drive, and will have similar underlying powertrains, offering 614 horsepower and an estimated epa range of 200 miles from a 120.0-kwh battery pack. bollinger claims the trucks will go from zero to 60 mph in 4.5 seconds and have a top speed of 100 mph. there are minor differences: the b1 suv's 668 lb-ft of torque is 20 lb-ft less than the b2 pickup's, and its wheelbase, at 118.8 inches, is 20 inches shorter than the b2's.
bollinger will build the evs in detroit. he claims 32,000 reservations are already in—and since the company is taking them with no money down and no obligation, why wouldn't they be?