Another American battery bakkie – but one that is the 'right' size.

Amid the excitement about Tesla and Rivian’s futuristic battery-powered double-cab bakkies, nobody is talking about how huge these vehicles are.

For buyers who are more familiar with the Hilux/Ranger size bakkie, and prefer a single-cab configuration, the market for battery power is quite niche. But now there is the promise of a new option, which is only 4.67m long, making it a lot more driveable, in theory, for most markets.

The bakkie in question is Alpha’s Ace Wolf, which looks like it has just rolled out of a 1981 dealership. Styling and exterior design is nothing like the Cybertruck or anything from Rivian.

With this bakkie, retro design theme abound, including a small steel nudge bar up front and very conventional bakkie proportions. Alpha won’t say much about the Ace Wolf platform, although it is expected to be a skateboard type design, instead of the classic bakkie ladder frame.

There’s a spacious frunk above the front wheels, which is secure and weather-safe stowage space, whilst a deployable solar panel can be fitted to the loadbox.

Alpha says that it is planning to use a lithium-ion battery pack in the 75- to 85 kWh range, which should be entirely adequate, considering the size of this bakkie, which is not much larger than a Ranger.

There are no power or torque claims for the Ace Wolf’s electric motors, but Alpha does commit to it having 440 km of usable range. Performance is brisk instead of radical, with Alpha claiming its single-cab can run the benchmark 0-100 kph sprint in only 6.5 seconds.

Interestingly, the default drive configuration is through the front-wheel only, with an optional second electric motor for the rear axle, making it four-wheel-drive. The only other mid-to large-size bakkie with front-wheel drive is Honda’s Ridgeline.

The Ace Wolf’s cabin has only two seats and a very simple ergonomic layout, with the obligatory oversized infotainment screen, and dark chocolate trim. Very Hilux circa 1980, indeed.

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