Despite the reversals, the sliding backward into internal combustion engines, and the rhetoric around electric vehicles, they're probably the future. And not just because the Earth is warming at an alarming rate.
No, because, well, crude oil is a finite resource. And extracting that crude oil isn't the easiest method of energy production. It also costs a lot in the long term for corporations to shift against progress. I mean, administrations and representatives are finite themselves. They have end dates. Even monarchs, though they usually end up on the wrong side of the masses.
Which is why I say, electric vehicles are probably the future. So even though many manufacturers are returning to the internal combustion engine, they aren't going all in. New models will come about with a gasoline motor, but these same companies can see that they won't be able to do that in perpetuity. Electricity will come about, and if you aren't planning for that future, you'll be relegated to the same fate as the dinosaurs that currently power our vehicles.
Case in point, Polaris is getting ready to build an all-electric RZR side-by-side, and we discovered the patents to prove it.
What you see above is clearly a current generation Polaris RZR. But where it differs from the UTV that our very own Janaki Jitchotvisut drove last year, is that it doesn't feature the manic turbocharged engine perfect for sending you into the stratosphere when you hit the edge of a dune. Or racing across the Baja desert, as Robbie Bacon found out. Instead, it features an all-electric powertrain.
According to the patent's abstract, "The enclosed disclosure relates to a configuration of an electric vehicle. The embodiments described within provide improvements in the way of packaging associated batteries, motors, transmissions, controllers, and associated components...The vehicle includes a powertrain comprising a battery supported by the frame and the battery is under at least partially under at least one of the seats."
This, however, isn't the first all-electric Polaris UTV. The Ranger XP Kinetic exists.
Brought out a few years back, the Ranger XP Kinetic is a pretty damned formidable UTV, and it's one of the favorite offerings of Maui Nui Venison out of Hawai'i, who'll be the subject of a forthcoming story. It's quiet, has all the torque, and keeps the ethos of reliability and power from the rest of the Ranger lineup. But it isn't the same thing as an RZR, which is all "Send it!" and less workhorse.
While the patent doesn't describe what battery pack or motor the electric RZR is using, it does state that "In the present embodiment, motor is a DC brushless motor. In various embodiments, motor may be an AC induction motor, a permanent magnet DC motor, or other type of motor." If you think that's vague, it's because it is. Likely that's the case because, well, this is a patent and not a press release or launch. Details are rarely given in these, apart from some minor pieces as to not give anything away before the vehicle launches.
But from what I can glean from the images, the EV RZR works like most conventional EVs, as there's a battery system beneath the floor of the UTV that then sends power to the driven wheels, i.e. all four. The images point to a two-door RZR model, but little else besides the propulsion system is changed, though I'd have to imagine there'd require more modifications. Battery packs are notoriously heavy, so springs and dampening would likely have to change, as well as suspension pickup points, and more.
That said, it sure looks like it's just an electric RZR, which is pretty cool if you ask me. Polaris is working on electrifying the outdoors, too, though that's still a ways off. Especially given the current administration's cutting of electric infrastructure. It is, however, coming.
But what do you all think? Are you ready for your all-electric future in the guise of an EV Polaris RZR? Let us know in the comments below.
