Canoo doesn't have the same instant brand recognition as Tesla, but it has slowly been building a loyal fanbase with its hard-working electric vehicles, designed to compete in the commercial market as last-mile delivery solutions.
Heck, it even fulfilled an order with NASA recently, when it delivered three futuristic looking Crew Transportation Vehicles to NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. These funky little things will transport the astronauts to the launch pad for the Artemis lunar missions, scheduled for November 2024.
But funkier still is the recently announced American Bulldog: a quirky little dual cab truck that has the potential to go into production and offer a more affordable, and arguably more practical, alternative to the Tesla Cybertruck.
Details of the American Bulldog remain very scarce, but in reality, Canoo's unique modular EV platform can be configured for a variety of use-cases - this is just a hardcore play on the notion of a practical and capable electric pick-up.
The battery packs are incorporated into the platform itself, the system can be geared up for two or four-wheel-drive and the steer-by-wire system means the steering wheel can effectively be placed anywhere.
Canoo says: "A powerhouse of engineering, this vehicle sets a new mobility standard and reflects the grit and resolve of the American people". That’s about all of the information you will get from the US company, which goes on to throw in phrases like "this vehicle is loyal and courageous" and that it is "woven into the American spirit"... yada, yada, yada.
However, we do know the American Bulldog is based on the Screaming Eagle Light Tactical Vehicle that was delivered to the US Army for "extensive testing" back in 2022.
The military link could be why Canoo is remaining tight-lipped about full specification, such as range, payload and performance. However, its website also lists a very generic "pick-up" model for pre-order that is stated to have a payload capacity of 1,800 lbs (816kg), an EV range of over 200 miles and over 500bhp on tap from an all-wheel-drive or rear-wheel-drive configuration.
The American Bulldog is likely even more capable, given its tough guy exterior, but we will likely have to wait for the Texan company to stop throwing around superlatives and start dealing in real facts before we can get properly excited by this mighty pup.
