Karma Automotive shows off a new range-extended EV cargo van
The platform is called E-Flex and could be sold as a BEV or with a range extender.
It's big, white and boxy, and it could be Karma's next vehicle.
California's Karma Automotive seems not to be content with manufacturing luxurious cars based on now-very-old-designs. Back in January, the brand teased that it was working on an electric pickup, and now it seems like it's working on an extended-range electric cargo van, or at least the platform that underpins it.
The van, according to an announcement made Thursday, will be called the E-Flex and will be available as either a purely battery-electric vehicle with a range of 200 miles or as a range-extended electric vehicle -- meaning it has an internal combustion engine too -- with a 400-mile maximum cruising range.
It's not made expressly clear in Karma's press release, but we expect that the E-Flex is packing a slightly detuned version of the Revero GT's drivetrain, which sports a gasoline engine from the folks at BMW .
"Our Karma EREV E-Flex van platform offers a variety of e-powertrain configurations and a flexible design. We provide the canvas for our partners to create mobility solutions their way, while integrating Karma technology that has been featured and validated by our 2020 Revero GT on the road today," Lewis Liu, vice president of business development for Karma Automotive, said in a statement.
Karma has shown off several concepts recently in an effort to prove that it's not a one-trick pony. These have included a fairly stunning sports car concept that debuted last fall in Los Angeles as well as a battery-only version of the Revero and another van capable of Level 4 autonomy (in theory, anyway).
Will the company be able to convert these concepts and ideas into real forward momentum? I don't know, but I'll keep some fingers crossed.
