With a 75% market share, Tesla might as well be a synonym with electric cars. Apart from Musk’s company, most people got acquainted with EVs through the new offerings of established brands like Mercedes, General Motors, Toyota, and Volkswagen, especially in Europe. Yet, the 25% of the global car market that Tesla hasn’t seized is pretty lively with new and promising brands that could soon give Elon Musk a run for its money. We’ve picked five that we think you should watch for their positioning and approach to car design.
The 5 best electric car manufacturers you do not yet know about
There’s more than Tesla in the EV market: here are five promising brands you should definitely watch out for in 2022.
Vinfast debuted at the Paris Motorshow in 2018 with models designed by Pininfarina and BMW. The carmaker builds both traditional vehicles and EVs but is currently investing heavily in the electrification of its entire fleet. In late March, the company signed a deal to build a $2bn EV factory in the US.
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- Andrea Nepori
- 24 June 2022
Once the skunkworks division of Volvo, Polestar is now a Swedish EV brand in its own right. It's owned by Geely, the same Chinese manufacturer that took over the Volvo brand in recent years. After the Polestar 2 sedan, the brand will soon introduce the Polestar 3, "an aerodynamic SUV," marking the next evolution of the Polestar design.
Photo Courtesy of: Polestar, Fisker, Rivian, Vinfast, Rimac Automobili
Rivian is an American EV manufacturer based near Detroit. The EV startup made the headlines in 2021 as the most promising brand in the space, recording the biggest IPO of the year. Since then, the company's value has been falling, causing losses for its main investor Amazon, and pushing Ford, another major stockholder, to get rid of their participation in the company. The company's EV truck, the R1T, is still one of the most exciting vehicles coming out in the last year, and it's touted to be the main competitor of Tesla's upcoming CyberTruck.
Photo Courtesy of: Polestar, Fisker, Rivian, Vinfast, Rimac Automobili
Fisker is an EV company founded by American entrepreneur Henry Fisker in 2016. The brand builds the Fisker Ocean, an electric SUV that has been described by the company as the most sustainable vehicle ever. The car has a solar charging roof and a declared range of 350miles. Strong headwinds in production, though, have forced the company to postpone the launch of its first model, expected at the end of last year, to November 2022.
Photo Courtesy of: Polestar, Fisker, Rivian, Vinfast, Rimac Automobili
The lesser-known brand in our selection is certainly Vinfast. The company, which builds electric vehicles in Vietnam, is a privately owned subsidiary of Vingroup, the holding founded by Vietnamese tycoon Phạm Nhật Vượng.
Vinfast debuted at the Paris Motorshow in 2018 with models designed by Pininfarina and BMW. The carmaker builds both traditional vehicles and EVs but is currently investing heavily in the electrification of its entire fleet. In late March, the company signed a deal to build a $2bn EV factory in the US.
Photo Courtesy of: Polestar, Fisker, Rivian, Vinfast, Rimac Automobili
If you haven't heard of Rimac Automobili, it's probably because the Croatian electric hypercar manufacturer is quite a niche brand for EV connoisseurs. Founded by Mate Rimac in 2009, the company is primarily a technology powerhouse that develops and then sells its powertrains, battery packs, and vehicle designs to other companies. Rimac also produces insanely fast hypercars under its brand, such as the Nevera. Unveiled in 2018, the race EV can reach a top speed of 415km/h and accelerates from 0 to 100 in 1.85 seconds thanks to 4 motors providing a total of 1914 horse-power of torque.
Photo Courtesy of: Polestar, Fisker, Rivian, Vinfast, Rimac Automobili