Canoo’s 200-mile electric pickup is a compact truck with a full-size bed

The California electric vehicle startup Canoo announced its electric pickup on Wednesday, ahead of a reveal planned for Thursday. 

Canoo’s truck takes the pickup truck tailpipe-emissions-free, like the Tesla Cybertruck or the Rivian R1T, but in a very, very different way.

Simply put, the lean, techno-cute compact pickup design urban truck fans will say they’ve wanted for a long time—made even better by being all-electric. And barring no announcement yet otherwise, it’s likely the truck will be offered through the same by-the-month subscription model the company is planning for most of its other vehicles—other than its $33,000 electric delivery van.

Canoo is estimating a 200-mile range for the truck, which will be offered in dual- or rear-motor configurations, with output ranging up to 600 horsepower and 550 pound-feet of torque. Like Canoo’s other vehicles, the pickup has steer-by-wire and brake-by-wire technology. 

Canoo pickup truck

Canoo pickup truck

But that’s not really the remarkable part. The pickup truck, which isn’t yet named anything but that, takes cab-forward packaging to an extreme, with no need for a large engine bay and the driver’s seat essentially over the front wheels. Front and rear, the truck has tow hooks and skid plates fog lights are built into the bumper. 

At about 184 inches long, but riding on a 112.2-inch wheelbase, the Canoo is roughly the same length as compact pickups were more than 20 years ago—when the engine bay was part of the packaging. So without the long hood, there’s actually a lot of space for the cab and bed. 

Yet the Canoo pickup truck is claimed to have a payload of up to 1,800 pounds, and it can fit the often-cited 4×8 sheet of plywood. 

Canoo pickup truck

Canoo pickup truck

Canoo pickup truck

Canoo pickup truck

Canoo pickup truck

Canoo pickup truck

While the truck’s width of 78 inches should keep it compact enough to park easily, two measurements really stand out. At 76 inches tall, the Canoo truck is as tall as American full-size trucks. And although the bed is just 72 inches long, a 30-inch extension makes it also about the length of a full-size truck bed—and secondary lamps in back makes it usable with that extension. 

The Canoo truck’s bed height and width of 21 inches and 64 inches, respectively, are in the vicinity of full-size trucks, too. 

If there’s a down side, it’ might be passenger space. The Canoo truck is primarily a two-occupant device, in an extended-cab configuration, although it notes the potential of two smaller seats in back.

There are many creative details. A flip-down side table becomes a workbench, and there’s a lockable, flexible storage area under the bed step. Cargo tie-downs and a space-divider system for the bed wall can help secure items. 

Canoo pickup truck

Canoo pickup truck

Roof racks will be optional, and it’s even designed to accommodate a topper and a camper shell—pop-up of course. An outlet capable of all-day power for tools or campsites is also included. 

The company plans to offer its vehicles with a set of customized wraps—so that owners might tell them apart, perhaps. Look for some creative thinking with respect to this truck, too. 

According to the company, the pickup will be open for pre-orders in the second quarter of 2021, with deliveries starting “as early as 2023.”