Plans are afoot to develop a new ‘back-to-basics, utilitarian four-wheel-drive electric vehicle’, with construction taking place in Glasgow.
Established in 2019, All Terrain All Electric Ltd. (ATAE) hopes to offer customer demonstrations in a prototype of its ‘Munro Mk1’ by spring 2021. After ‘a 12-month campaign of extensive road and off-road testing around the world’, initial deliveries of production-ready vehicles are scheduled for early 2022.
The beam-axled, body-on-frame layout makes this a unique approach in the world of EVs, and something never productionised by Land Rover. Body and chassis are both to be sourced from Ibex in the UK, giving the Munro a ‘face’ and silhouette which will be familiar to many in Land Rover circles. Power from a central motor will be split front-to-rear via a transfer box.
The 300Nm motor and 52kWh battery will enable a range of about 150 miles, and with five seats the Munro is expected to have a luggage space of 1250 litres, giving similar capacity to a Discovery 3 or 4. Interior refinements will extend to an optional touch-screen media centre, but the focus will remain on simplicity and ease of maintenance.
‘We decided early on that we weren’t looking to re-invent the wheel. We’ve used straightforward and readily available components to minimise the cost of production and provide owners with an accessible means to maintain and repair their own vehicle. We hope that our vehicles will last longer, making them better for the environment than most other “consumable” vehicles on the market.’ - Ross Anderson, Co-founder
Inspiration for the Munro 1 came on a camping holiday to the highlands of Scotland, and ATAE has adventurous leisure buyers in its sights. However, we can’t help feeling that until charging networks are better developed (especially in remote areas such as north-west Scotland) the concept behind the Munro 1 may have greater appeal to certain areas of the utility market.
