Is This Single

Helixx reveals prototype of its tiny cargo van, but it’s not quite suited to every country.

There is no shortage of high-priced EVs at the moment, and that goes for commercial electric vans as well, with the reduced demand for the typical range of small commercial vehicles failing to keep prices aligned with existing diesel models. Even Volkswagen has chosen to keep its ID. Buzz Cargo out of the US, while making plans to bring the passenger ID. Buzz here as a premium MPV of sorts.

Despite predictions years ago that commercial vehicles would lead the EV charge, so far we haven't seen too many affordable commercial EVs aimed at small businesses.

UK-based startup Helixx wants to change that, with a range of four small and affordable commercial EVs aimed at small businesses and ride-hailing companies alike, and designed to be manufactured locally.

Earlier this spring we got a preview of Helixx's uncompromisingly boxy design. Now, the company has built the first live prototype, previewing a small commercial van expected to enter production in 2024.

The van is designed to offer a payload of 1102 pounds and 74.1 cubic feet of interior space, sitting on an aluminum chassis. The rear doors are just wide enough to accommodate a variety of common shipping pallets, with a width of just 4.92 feet, while the van itself measures 10.4 feet from nose to tail. It's a small van, after all.

Helixx focused on simplifying the eventual construction process as much as possible, to rely heavily on 3D printing to produce parts. Instead of using sheet metal fabrication processes, the startup relied on a recyclable polymer molding body system meant to reduce complexity as well as the impact on the environment.

"The end result is a decomplexified body system with 30% less mass and hundreds of fewer individual components than traditional vehicles, in line with Helixx's goal of defining an entirely new vehicle category," the company says.

The van itself features a central driving position with just a single seat inside, meant to maximize cargo space as well as make the van compatible with right-hand-drive and left-hand-drive markets alike.

When it comes to the drivetrain, the cargo van is designed to be powered by swappable lithium-iron phosphate (LFP) batteries, with each vehicle using up to six individual battery packs offering 2 kWh each. It's a bit like a scaled-up version of electric scooters in Asia, and it helps that the size difference is not vast. But the six battery packs should give it enough range to cover a very respectable 124 miles.

In all, Helixx plans four vehicles of this type dubbed simply CARGO, TRUK, RIDE, and TUK, designed to offer flexibility to small businesses in the developing world, with local factories meant to be set up in a relatively short period of time.

"We developed this demonstration vehicle to prove and stress-test the global replicability of our digital-first approach," said Steve Pegg, Helixx CEO and co-founder. "The vehicle visually represents what licensed Helixx Mobility Hubs can produce in as little as 180 days from initial site survey to vehicles rolling out onto the street, offering subscribers access from $0.25 per hour."

As Helixx's model lineup will be aimed at developing countries, replacing small motorcycle-based three- and four-wheeled trucklets, Europe probably won't see too many of these in use. And it remains to be seen just in which countries vehicles so spartan will be permitted to mix with larger traffic.

Will electric vans of this size be in demand in developing countries, or will modern business needs still favor larger gas- and diesel-powered vans? Let us know what you think.

Jay Ramey grew up around very strange European cars, and instead of seeking out something reliable and comfortable for his own personal use he has been drawn to the more adventurous side of the dependability spectrum. Despite being followed around by French cars for the past decade, he has somehow been able to avoid Citroën ownership, judging them too commonplace, and is currently looking at cars from the former Czechoslovakia. Jay has been with Autoweek since 2013.

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