Lordstown Endurance EV ute unveiled
Yet another rival for the Tesla Cybertruck has been revealed.
The Lordstown Motors Endurance is a battery electric pick-up with four in-wheel electric motors and an ambitious January 2021 production start-up date.
Hit that timing and it will be the first of many electric pick-ups onto the market.
To be built at an ex-General Motors plant in Lordstown Ohio, the five-seat double-cab Endurance is not confirmed for Australian sale.
That’s unlike the Nikola Badger, which has Australia in its sights, as does the Cybertruck. Meanwhile we’re also hoping to see the Rivian R1T and maybe even the local H2X Mad Max one day.
At a production vehicle unveil that had the trappings of a political rally rather than a new vehicle launch, the star speaker was vice-president Mike Pence who spent little time on the Endurance and plenty of time spruiking the achievements of Donald Trump.
What little new that was confirmed about the Endurance was left to Lordstown CEO Steve Burns.
“We are very excited,” he said. “This is probably the biggest moment for a car company. It looks like a pickup truck on the outside, but underneath it’s like nothing else.”
Combined peak power is claimed to be 447kW and continuous torque availability is 2711Nm stretching to a mammoth peak of 5965Nm. Towing capacity is as much as 3400kg.
Range is claimed to be 400km-plus, top speed is limited to 128km/h and 0-100km/h acceleration should be achieved in around six seconds.
Lordstown Motors is keeping details of the battery pack quiet for now, but a 7kW AC recharge takes 10 hours and a DC fast charge as little as 30 minutes
Pricing starts at US$52,500 (about $76,000) and the aim is to sell the Endurance to commercial and fleet rather than private customers.
Already it’s been confirmed Servpro, a fire and water restoration company, plans to buy 1200 trucks, and FirstEnergy, an electric utility company, plans to buy 250.
Goodyear Tire & Rubber has announced a strategic relationship with Lordstown and said it would acquire new Endurance vehicles for its fleet.
So far 14,000 have been pre-sold, Burns says.
