Canoo Announces Pricing for Vehicles, Punts on Subscription Service
By Edward A. Sanchez – May 17, 2021
Today, Canoo announced actual pricing for its three models, a rounded people-hauler model, a pickup, and a slab-sided commercial cargo van. To be fair, it’s a price range, from $34,750 to $49,950. First to be delivered will be the “lifestyle vehicle” (i.e. minibus) in 2022. The pickup and MPDV (cargo van) are promised in early 2023. Interestingly, the “subscription” ownership model that was touted so emphatically at the original debut in 2019 was not mentioned once in the release.
The Watt Car has been following Canoo with interest over the past few years. The retro-futuristic bus (and now pickup) have an appealing simplicity. Although some of the features of the vehicles seemed (and still seem) slightly far-fetched or stretching current safety regulations (purely drive-by-wire steering and smartphone-as-gauge-cluster, to name a few), we saw a market for the no-nonsense, urban-focused people haulers.
The self-named Canoo started it all for the company, and is expected to be the first vehicle from Canoo to make it to production, beginning in 2022.
However, there’s a good chance Canoo may be beaten to the market by Volkswagen’s highly-anticipated ID.Buzz electrified microbus. While there is definitely space in the market for more than one electrified people mover, VW has more than six decades of nostalgia and “good vibes” to leverage, and we expect it to do so liberally in its marketing and advertising.
In comparison, Canoo has a much more sterile, future-forward feel, which has its own appeal, but no real heritage to draw from. However, the announced specifications are appealing, with a power output of 300 hp and 332 lb-ft of torque, and a targeted range of 250 miles.
Canoo states that its pickup is expected to go into production in 2023.
We anticipate there may be a few changes to the prototype models before sales begin to the general public. Although NHTSA and the FMVSS are famously vague on certain requirements (the Tesla Model S’s yoke-style wheel being Exhibit 1), we anticipate in terms of the steering system that, barring a sudden rule change, it will probably be similar to the system used in the Infiniti Q50, which is basically steer-by-wire with a mechanical backup in the event of electronics system failure. NHTSA may also mandate a permanent instrument display of some sort instead of relying on the customer’s brought-in mobile device. However, neither of these concessions necessarily changes Canoo’s core appeal of space-efficient, modern transportation.
Canoo’s vehicles seem to be either oval or rectangular, with its cubic MPDV cargo van slated for a 2023 production date.
However, whether any of these models ultimately make it to production is still an open question. The company is reportedly still looking for a manufacturing partner. Although it had some early discussions with the Hyundai Motor Group, no iron-clad commitment came from the deal. There’s also still Magna, Foxconn (reportedly eager to establish a manufacturing presence in the U.S.) and other potential partners.
(Images courtesy Canoo)
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