Truck gets under 200 miles from a 109 kWh pack
Less than half the efficiency of a Tesla Model X
Lordstown Motors has run into quite a bit of trouble as it navigates the tumultuous path that leads from idea to production automobile. But the latest challenge for the company’s Endurance pickup might be its lack of it. Lack of range, that is, because the EPA numbers are out and they aren’t good.
The official EPA range estimate for the Lordstown Endurance electric pickup is just 174 miles (289 km). That’s not a short-range small battery pack either, that’s with a massive 109 kWh pack underneath.
How does that stack up? A Ford F-150 Lightning with the short range 98 kWh pack has a range of 240 miles. Ouch.
The EPA results show a lack of efficiency from the Lordstown truck. It is estimated at just 48 mpge, the EPA’s equivalency that helps turn the concept of electric range into something that can be compared with gas range. A Rivian R1T gets a 64 mpge figure, the F-150 68, and the Tesla Model X 102 mpge.
Why is the truck so much less efficient? It’s impossible to say, but it is most likely that the company simply hasn’t been able to engineer and build a driveline (with battery cells, inverters, and motors) that can match the efficiency of other automakers with more experience and bigger budgets.
The company said last month that it would need to stop production if it didn’t find more cash. With a range estimate like this, that cash could be tough to find. Since the company has built fewer than 50 trucks, the people of Lordstown, Ohio, might be the only ones who care.
