There are a lot of upstarts looking to take the crowns of the OGs.
Whether it's Kendrick looking to dethrone Pac, Kylo Ren wanting to be a badder Darth Vader, Dutch Bros knocking Starbucks down a peg or two, or an Indominous Rex wanting Jurassic Park's T-Rex's lunch money. If you aim at the king, you best not miss.
And in the powersports world, there are no two kings higher in the UTV space than Polaris and Can-Am. The two have dominated the segment for ages, with Kawasaki, Honda, and Yamaha nipping at their heels.
But there's a new kid coming to town that wants the gold. And it's electric.
A lot of people likely have never heard of Kandi Technologies, as the Taiwanese-based company is more known in the electric golf cart arena. And even then, who pays attention to the brand of golf cart you hop into on the course? I've only ever wanted to do brake slides on wet grass when I get behind the seat.
Yet, the company also produces a handful of electric UTVs, and it just announced that 10,000 of these machines are on their way to the United States right now. Neat, at least I think so.
The press release handed out doesn't mention which all-electric UTVs are coming to the US, as there are two that Kandi produces on Kandi America's website. Those include the Cowboy E10K, which resembles your average workhorse of a UTV with a two-person cab and a rear cargo bed, and the Lucky T9, which is a Mad Max-style off-road buggy that I'd very much like to try out.
Kandi's Cowboy E10K is pretty conventional in the work-arena UTV space, but it's powered by a 11.52 kWh battery that offers a 40 mph top speed and 60-mile range. Bed payload is 441 pounds, and it can tow up to 2,500 pounds. It even has 9.80 inches of ground clearance, a 3,500-pound winch, all of which will set you back $13,999, which isn't terrible at all.
But the Lucky T9? Oh baby, give me more of this.
While you have wild machines like Polaris' RZR Pro R and Can-Am's Maverick R, and both look very cool, neither holds a candle to the Lucky T9. The design is straight out of some sci-fi dystopian desert world or the second Jurassic Park. It's a buggy design, but there are some serious hellscape vibes to it.
Powered by a 15.36 kWh battery, and able to select between RWD and AWD, the Lucky T9 has a top speed of 45 mph and a run time of 40 miles. We're guessing even with the bigger battery, the extra horsepower this thing produces eats up the miles. Customers will also get 11.8 inches of ground clearance, and some off-road lightbars to ensure even the night is conquered by the Lucky T9.
And, as you'd expect from a more high-performance machine, it costs more. At present, Kandi's Lucky T9 has a US price of $18,999. That's a pretty penny, especially from a manufacturer that doesn't have a lot of brand cache here in the US outside of golf carts. But they've certainly made a compelling-looking product.
Here's hoping that one of the Lucky T9s is in that initial 10,000-unit shipment headed to the US and that Kandi calls me up to try one. But what do you all think? Are these something you'd go for?
And if they work out, will they be a threat to Polaris and Can-Am's dominance?
