Note: This is the first in a three-part series that explores the emergence of a new generation of truck manufacturer. The remaining two installments will publish this week.
Drivers often declare their truck preferences early in their career and many times do so with a seething, sometimes illogical, hatred for other nameplates.
Brand loyalty that can date back generations has been the hallmark of trucking behemoths like Freightliner, Peterbilt, Kenworth, Mack, Volvo and International, but it complicates entry into the industry for entrepreneurs simply seeking to invent a better mousetrap.
“Credibility is everything and we have to build it,” says Nikola Motor Company founder and CEO Trevor Milton, who is in the process of developing a hydrogen fuel cell, electric drivetrain tractor. “We don’t have a legacy of issues or a legacy of success. It kind of goes both ways.”
Recalls, warranty repairs and trucking tech that debuts ahead of its time are not uncommon but for brands working to raise their profile, there’s no wiggle room for getting it right.
“The most important thing is that we have to make sure this truck is 100 percent sound and perfect,” Milton says. “We’re focused solely on our electric semi over-the-road truck. We are not over-promising. We’re going to deliver what we have [promised].”
