Telo wants to be the cure for the bloated trucks we see today. The company is promising to provide big-truck utility in a package no longer than a Mini Cooper. Now, we’re finally getting a look at what the final product may look like.
The Fast Lane Truck takes the Telo MT1 for a very brief, low-speed drive in their latest video. It’s still very much a prototype—the screens cannot be used, for instance, and even the shifter and other controls are temporary. But it’s our first real look at a vehicle that the company has been teasing for a while.
The MT1 combines a full five-foot bed with a downsized passenger and frontal area, giving it something of a cab-over look. Combined with a folding mid-gate (a-la the GMC Sierra EV), he Telo can swallow eight-foot long items. Add a tonneau cover and you should be able to lock your surfboards in there safely.
It’s an innovative design, with an intentionally non-innovative powertrain. While Telo worked on a proprietary battery pack to maximize space and structural integrity, every other powertrain component is an off-the-shelf unit from a supplier. That means whether you go for dual-motor all-wheel drive or single-motor rear-wheel drive, you’ll get a standard e-motor design with a limited-slip differential at the rear for extra slippery-surface traction.
That focus on off-the-shelf tech means it also uses 400-volt power components, but Telo’s CEO says it should be good for 250-kW charging in the real world thanks to solid pack chemistry. Range for the base model will be 260 miles with a starting price of $41,520 and 300 horsepower. Upgrading to a long-range version gets you 350 miles of range from a 106 kWh-battery for around $4,000 more. You can also option dual-motor all-wheel drive with 5000 hp for another five grand. Telo says the MT1 it should be able to haul 1,700 lbs of payload and tow 6,600 lbs, though notes that it isn’t designed for long-range towing.
All of that sounds pretty compelling, but ambitious. Telo says it wants to put the MT1 into production next year, ideally, using a contract manufacturer. If the company can pull this off, it may be just what we need. But launching a car company is a tough and expensive project, so we’ll have to wait to see if the people behind Telo can pull it off.
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