Israel’s REE not considering passenger electric cars before 2025

In an interview with Yahoo Finance, REE Co-founder & CEO Daniel Barel has confirmed that the company is not considering entering the passenger cars segment with its EV platforms for another four years and will focus on commercial applications.

Commercial market is growing year over year, it grows exponentially and we have a very strong market to come into especially when we can show a low TCO (Total Cost of Ownership) which is one of the parameters looked at for scaling up fleets. Later on in 2025, we will probably look at passenger vehicles.

REE Co-founder and CEO, Daniel Barel, to Yahoo Finance

In April, Hino Motors Co. Ltd., a subsidiary of Toyota Motor Corporation, signed an agreement with REE to develop next-generation commercial mobility solutions. The partnership will bring together Hino’s knowledge and technologies as a commercial vehicle manufacturer with REE’s proprietary EV tech to create solutions to carry passengers, goods and delivery services.

The modular platform will be developed by REE and feature a low-floor with a fully flat design and will support autonomous driving. In addition, the body (which is referred to as the Mobility Service Module) can be detached from the platform, the companies said. Work on hardware prototypes will begin in FY 2022 by evaluating business models and identifying prospective customers in parallel.

Hino’s presence in Canada & Australia

Hino has a presence in Canada, New Zealand and Australia, aside from operations in 80 countries with four major plants in Japan. It produces trucks and buses in over 20 countries. In Canada, Hino trucks are produced at an assembly plant in Woodstock, Ontario.

This partnership would undoubtedly benefit Hino Australia, which is looking to bring electric vehicles to the region. The Australian subsidiary is already in discussion with HQ regarding a release date for the Hino Dutro Z EV, Hino’s first full-scale EV that launches in Japan in mid-2022.

REE P1, P2 & P4 platforms

REE, the automotive EV startup company from Israel, has shown three next-gen EV platform prototypes on the track. These prototypes are operational and give a peek into the company’s upcoming electric delivery vehicles.

Source: Youtube/REE

The next-gen REE EV platforms are called P1, P2 and P4, and they illustrate the company’s expertise in X-by-Wire technology. The REE P1 platform offers load up to 1.3-tonne GVW and is suited for LSV last-mile inner-city deliveries. The REE P2 platform can handle up to 2.5-tonne GVW and is purposed to transport both cargo and passengers.

The REE P4 platform is the pinnacle of REE’s work, capable of handling 4.5-tonne GVW. The company says that it has developed this platform mainly for the delivery segment in the North American market. This platform has a low step height and is built for more volume, 1-tonne payload and extended range.

The futuristic REE EV platforms incorporate X-by-Wire technology. The parts for steering, braking, motor and suspension are housed in the arch of the wheel. This allows constructing the chassis in a fully flat form, and so, the customers can go for a body of any shape or size on the top. REE says that its modular platform technology is also autonomous-ready, and thus, these platforms are future-proof in almost every way.

Production from 2021

Last year, a report from reuters.com suggested that Israel’s REE Automotive may launch electric vehicles at the end of 2021 or in early 2022. The company’s CEO Daniel Barel has told the business publication that it aims to start using its platform in Q4 2021 (October-December 2021) but did not specify the manufacturing partner.

Barel said that REE Automotive is forming collaboration contracts with “a majority of the market” and hinted that it will make more announcements very soon. Keren Shemesh, the company’s Chief Marketing Officer, said that it is possible to use its technology in trucks of up to 12 tonnes.

REE Automotive is a start-up from Israel that has developed a futuristic urban mobility electric vehicle platform family. It needs to outsource the manufacturing of 2,00,000-2,50,000 units of this model over a few years.

The main innovation of REE Automotive is its EV corner module and platform technology that combines powertrain, suspension and steering components in the arch of the wheels. A full skateboard platform and wheels with in-axle motor provide a high level of flexibility.

On 21 April 2021, REE signed a deal with French autonomous driving solution company Navya. The companies will develop level 4 autonomous systems which will be used for future products.

REE Air, Share & Bolder EVs demonstrated on the skateboard architecture

Source: Youtube/REE

Depending on the requirement, REE Automotive can launch EVs with multiple top hats with a similar, cost-effective package underneath. The company can make passenger cars, taxis, shuttles, last-mile delivery vehicles, mid-duty delivery trucks and commercial vehicles. It shows three examples in the video above, called Ree Air, Ree Share and Ree Bolder.

The Ree Air is a delivery vehicle providing maximum storage volume. It has two electric motors that generate 60 kW at the rear and they can use either a low-voltage, 48V battery or a high-voltage, 400-volt battery. The range is up to 250 km (156 miles).

The Ree Share, as the name suggests, is a ride-sharing shuttle service EV. It has two electric motors with a power of 100 kW at the rear. There are two battery options: 400V and 600V. The range is up to 400 km (250 miles).

The Ree Bolder can have two or four electric motors, with up to 180 kW of power. A 400V or 600V high-voltage battery provides juice to these motors and gives a range of 200 km (125 miles)/450 km (281 miles).

Featured image: REE