Lordstown Motors, the startup automaker born from the ashes of General Motors' Lordstown, Ohio, manufacturing complex, has big plans for June. The startup confirmed to Roadshow it plans to show its electric pickup truck, the first vehicle it plans to produce, at the 2020 Detroit auto show.
A representative for the brand confirmed comments Lordstown Motors CEO Steve Burns made to Reuters in a Tuesday report. Then, mentioned the firm will show off its pickup, called the Endurance, and added the truck will be drivable. So, not just a shiny concept with no guts.
The news comes as Lordstown Motors requests a $200 million loan from the US Energy Department to retool the Lordstown facility for electric truck production. Burns said the government loan would create more jobs more quickly, but the company is "viable" without it. Workhorse, which Burns previously oversaw, owns 10% of Lordstown Motors. The company is also reportedly in late-stage talks with a strategic investor to raise more money for EV truck production.
Not a bad looking truck.
Lordstown MotorsThe startup's timeframe is ambitious. According to Burns, the company will show the pickup in Detroit this June, begin crash testing it in July and then start hiring workers to build the vehicles in September. Production will start in November or December of this year.
Should it all come to life, the Lordstown Motors Endurance could edge out numerous rival electric pickup on the horizon. The Rivian R1T is the closest to production from a startup, while the Tesla Cybertruck remains a couple years out. General Motors and Ford also have electric trucks in the pipeline, with the former poised to reintroduce the Hummer nameplate for its EV pickup.
