Michigan-based startup of electric trucks Bollinger Motors has not started production on its rugged electric trucks, the Jeep-like B1 and the B2 pickup, but it is already rolling out a new type of car. This week, the company unveiled the Deliver-E, the fully electric delivery concept that is due for production in 2022.
Many companies, from legate car manufacturers to tech startups, are now developing their own electric vans. But what sets Bollinger apart is the variability of its platform. The launch of the EV promises a variety of battery pack sizes, including 70 kWh, 105 kWh, 140 kWh, 175 kWh and 210 kWh. This will mean that customers have a variety of range options, prices and wheelbase sizes to choose from. The front-wheel-drive platform will be designed to fit Classes 2B, 3, 4, and 5, Bollinger said.
When it finally graduates from concept to production version, the Deliver-E will face a lot of competition. General Motors is working on an electric delivery bus, codenamed “BV1”, which will go into production at the end of 2021. Mercedes-Benz already has multiple models on the road, and Ford has several versions in the works, including an electric version of its hugely popular Transit car.
Amazon, which has a fleet of tens of thousands of vans making its massive delivery operation, has ordered 100,000 electric vans from EV startup Rivian (in which it is also heavily invested). Startups such as UK-based Arrival (which received investments from UPS and Hyundai) and Chanje (which lists FedEx as a customer) are also working on electric vans. And Waymo, one of the leading autonomous car companies in the world, is working with Fiat Chrysler to design a self-driving commercial delivery bus based on FC Pro’s Ram ProMaster.
It is three years ago that Bollinger first introduced its B1 SUV and B2 pick-up truck, which were in production this year. The company now says production has been delayed until the fourth quarter of 2021, with deliveries beginning that same quarter and in 2022. The company aims to produce between 2,000-2,500 units in this first production round, a spokesman said. Both cars will start with a striking $ 125,000 – far from the sub- $ 100,000 mark the startup was aimed at when it returned the B1 in 2017. Bollinger has not announced a price of the Deliver-E van .
Bollinger still has a lot of hurdles to overcome before he can deliver on his production promises. The company, which was founded in 2015, needs to raise even more money and find a production partner to get each car into production next year. It may consider going public through a “reverse merger” with a specialty acquisition company – like SPAC – like many, many other EV startups have had so far this year.
Bollinger CEO Robert Bollinger has admitted that he spoke with some SPACs this summer. The company found that once the announcement of the Deliver-E van, regarding the higher volume game, the next step will be to announce a production partner, followed by financing news.
“We did contact a number of SPACs to do something and it just wasn’t the right time for us,” Bollinger told Reuters.
