By Justin Crooks, Founder of EV East
One of the things I enjoy most about electric vehicles is seeing the range of jobs they can take on continue to grow.
EV East began with personal mobility, but the same technology can also carry tools around an orchard, move feed on a lifestyle block, transport guests around a resort or tow a trailer across a farm.
We’re already well into that part of the journey.
From getting around to getting work done
Our first move into utility vehicles was through the EKO All Terrain range of golf, passenger and cargo buggies.
These vehicles work well around orchards, lifestyle properties, golf courses, tourism operations and commercial sites. They’re quiet, easy to drive and useful for moving people, equipment and supplies.
They’ve also taught us plenty about what matters once an electric vehicle becomes a work vehicle. Range is still important, but so are payload, towing, ground clearance, durability and how the battery performs when the vehicle is loaded or climbing hills.
Utility buggies aren’t necessarily smaller than UTVs. Some are actually larger in certain configurations. The real difference is what they’re engineered and certified to do.
A vehicle for lower-speed work around an orchard or resort has a different role from a high-performance UTV with greater speed, serious towing capacity, more demanding suspension and braking, and a ROPS-certified roll cage.
Taking the next step
The Cengo F12 is an example of where we’re going now.
It has four-wheel drive, a certified 1,500 kg towing capacity and a ROPS-certified roll cage. That moves it into a different class of work—larger sheep and beef farms, dairy operations, high-country properties, forestry and other complex sites where the terrain, workload or number of users places greater demands on the vehicle.
ROPS certification doesn’t replace a proper health and safety plan, but it can be an important part of choosing suitable equipment for a demanding workplace.
Electric drive has some natural advantages in these settings. It’s quiet around animals and workers, produces no exhaust around sheds or covered work areas, and delivers strong pulling power from low speed. If the vehicle returns to the same shed or base each day, charging can also fit quite naturally into the routine.
Of course, none of that counts for much unless it performs under load and keeps doing the job. That’s the part we’re focused on proving.
Working with New Zealand farmers
I’ve really enjoyed working with local farmers and other operators to test vehicles and hear what matters to them in day-to-day use.
The best feedback usually isn’t about a feature from the brochure. It’s about how the vehicle climbs a particular track, where tools need to sit, how easily someone can get in and out, or whether the charging setup works with the way the property operates.
We’re bringing in more demo vehicles so they can be put to work on farms, orchards and commercial properties—not just driven around a showroom. What we learn can then go back to the manufacturer or become part of a New Zealand-specific setup.
Sometimes that means a different battery, body style or accessory. Sometimes it means fitting or sourcing a component locally. We’re also working on more specialised electric options, including multi-seat vehicles, enclosed models and driverless carts for repetitive transport tasks.
Where I see it going
I don’t expect every petrol or diesel work vehicle to disappear overnight. Rural New Zealand can be tough on machinery, and electric still has to prove itself in each application.
But the technology is moving quickly, and the gap is closing. Battery capacity, motor performance, charging and vehicle design are all improving—particularly in China, where the pace of development is remarkable.
For EV East, the exciting part is helping bring that technology into real New Zealand settings, learning alongside the people who will use it and building a range that gets better as we go.
