A startup by the name of Nikola Motor Company has emerged from the shadows to unveil two concept electric vehicles that could have a major impact on their respective markets. assuming of course that they actually make it to market one day.
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However, whereas Tesla got its start with a diminutive, sporty roadster, Nikola (seriously, where’s the originality?) is rolling out two products simultaneously – the Nikola One and Nikola Zero.
Nikola Founder and CEO Trevor Milton said combined, Nikloa One outputs over 2,000 horsepower and more than 3,700 foot pounds of torque before gear reduction and almost 86,000 foot pounds of instant torque after gear reduction.
Nikola, named after inventor Tesla Nikola, was formed without fanfare by its CEO Trevor Milton to design and manufacture electric vehicles, energy storage systems and electric vehicle drivetrain components.
While these specs sound good, you still need sufficient infrastructure to refill the massive compressed natural gas (CNG) tanks that would fuel the Nikola One.
Nikola One has a 335 horsepower electric motor and a dual gear reduction at every wheel (6×6). The turbine, Milton says, burns about 25 gallons per hour and, when coupled with the batteries, gives the truck a range of about 1,200 miles between stops and fill ups. The startup was formed several years ago by Founder and CEO Trevor Milton with the main objective to design and manufacture electric vehicles.
Utah firm Nikola has revealed the “Nikola One”, which is capable of pulling 80,000 pounds and boasts six motors, and a hi-tech touchscreen cockpit.
The Nikola One will also sport regenerative braking technology, an energy recovery mechanism that will slow the vehicle by converting kinetic energy into a form that can be stored until needed.
Free fuel is important as the truck is recharging the batteries on the go with a natural gas fueled turbine generating 400 kilowatts.
Fitted with a turbine range extender, Nikola (as in Nikola Tesla) tell us their truck, which will be known as the Nikola One, will cut operating costs in half when compared to a diesel truck.
“Nikola has built the truck of the future and will hold that title for quite some time”, Milton says. Because its electric motors are geared to the wheels, there’s no transmission and the truck will be easy to drive. All of these electronics will be powered by a 320 kWh battery pack. NMC claims the driver could theoretically stay in the cab with all the amenities on for nearly a week without draining the batteries enough to initiate the turbine charge.
“With the first batch [of deliveries] we will work with owner-operators on testing”, he says.
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You can only do so much with a truck that’s created to haul trailers – it’s misshapen by necessity, because you have to attach something to the back of it.
