Enlarge / Unfortunately, this is the only photo of the new EVs that Fisker chose to share with the media. From left to right, a Fisker Ocean, a Fisker PEAR, a Fisker Alaska, and a Fisker Ronin. (credit: Fisker)

The electric vehicle startup Fisker made a splash in Huntington Beach last night, showing off a range of new EVs it plans to build alongside the Fisker Ocean, which is slowly beginning deliveries in Europe and the US . With shades of Lotus circa 2010 , it seems there's something for most tastes, with a powerful four-door GT, a versatile pickup truck, and an affordable electric city car.

"We want the world to know that we have big plans and intend to move into several different segments, redefining each with our unique blend of design, innovation, and sustainability," said CEO Henrik Fisker.

Starting with the cheapest, the Fisker PEAR—a cutesy acronym for "Personal Electric Automotive Revolution"—is said to use 35 percent fewer parts than other small EVs. Although it's a smaller car, the PEAR seats six thanks to front and rear bench seats. Oh, and it has a frunk, which the company is calling the "froot," something that will satisfy some British English speakers like Ars' friend and motoring journalist Jonny Smith.

Enlarge (credit: Ram)

Ram was the last of the big three automakers to show off an electric pickup truck , finally doing so during this year's Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. The Ram 1500 Revolution concept was boldly styled, with dramatically raked A pillars, that same angle repeated between cab and bed, and wheel arches so swollen you might think they were having an anaphylactic reaction.

Today, Ram showed off the production 1500 REV electric pickup at the New York International Auto Show, and while the styling is a lot more conventional than January's concept, a look at the specs left me audibly uttering "WTF."

If you can’t be first, you might as well go farthest

So far, Ford and Rivian have the electric pickup market to themselves. GMC had to stop building the gargantuan Hummer EV for a while, and Tesla's Cybertruck is still poised to enter production without any sign that has actually happened. Meanwhile Chevrolet's Silverado EV should be about to start appearing on roads and job sites, as spring 2023 is when deliveries of the work truck version are scheduled to begin.

Enlarge (credit: Aurich Lawson | Getty Images)

General Motors provided flights from San Francisco to Detroit and back, plus a night in a hotel, so we could visit the GM design center. Ars does not accept paid editorial content.

After years of insisting that truck buyers are demanding larger and larger vehicles, automakers have seen the light and understand that many people want smaller, more efficient pickups. Maybe.

Hot on the heels of the explosive sales of the Ford Maverick and the relatively good sales of the Hyundai Santa Cruz, GM seems to have caught “small trucks with efficient powertrains” fever. Well, at least the designers have come down with that rare—and hopefully incurable—condition.

During a tour of GM’s design center in Warren, Michigan, the automaker gave Ars Technica a peek into its thoughts about future EVs.

Enlarge (credit: Aurich Lawson | Getty Images)

Ah, the annual end-of-year roundup, when it's time to sit down and think about all the vehicles we tested in 2022. Comparing this year to years past, it's notable how many electric vehicles make the list. Partly that's because the industry released some pretty compelling new EVs this year, but it's also a reflection of our coverage priorities—in the past, you've told us loud and clear you aren't that interested in reading about new gasoline or diesel models. Read on to find out what impressed us most in 2022.

1. Kia EV6

Our winner is actually one of the first cars we tested this year, and it's the Kia EV6 . It uses a new 800 V EV architecture called E-GMP, shared with last year's winner, the Hyundai Ioniq 5 , that delivers impressive levels of efficiency for larger, heavier EVs while also boasting some of the best fast-charging in the industry—just 18 minutes from 10-80 percent on a 350 kW charger. Despite the shared roots, the Kia drives very differently compared to the angular Ioniq 5, with a sportier nature. And unlike the Hyundai, the EV6 is sold in all 50 states.

Sadly, Kia dropped the cheapest configuration from the roster this year—the $40,900 EV6 Light used a smaller battery and motor but only accounted for about 3 percent of customer orders, according to the company. Earlier this month, we got a chance to test the other end of the spectrum—the $61,400 EV6 GT, which is very fast but might just be overkill.

Enlarge / The GMC Sierra EV will be the brand's third EV after the Hummer EV truck and SUV. (credit: GMC)

In January, Chevrolet showed off its first fully electric pickup truck, the 2024 Silverado EV . And on Thursday it was the turn of General Motors' stablemate GMC, which opened the order books for its new Sierra EV, which will arrive in dealerships in early 2024. Like the Silverado and the GMC Hummer EV , the Sierra EV uses GM's Ultium Drive motors and Ultium batteries, as well as GM tech like Super Cruise.

It's no surprise that's there's a family resemblance to the Silverado EV, although to my eyes GMC's nose treatment looks a little more successful—definitely a little more futuristic. It looks like quite a versatile pickup, with a big locking frunk, GMC's clever multi position tailgate, and a midgate between the cabin and the truck bed like the old Avalanche and Escalade EXT trucks.

As we've come to expect now, the first trucks off the line will be the most profit-laden for GMC; fully loaded Denali Edition 1s with an estimated range of 400 miles (640 km). That means a battery pack somewhat near in size to the Hummer EV—GMC is not giving out those specifics now—and helps explain an msrp of $107,000.

Enlarge / Volta Trucks' Zero has been designed from the ground up as a battery-electric logistics vehicle. The driver can enter or exit from either side and sits in a central driving position with eyes at the right height to spot cyclists and other vulnerable road users. (credit: Volta | Getty Images | Aurich Lawson)

If you live in Los Angeles, you might start seeing some of Volta Trucks' distinctive-looking electric vehicles driving around, as the Swedish startup plans to deploy a pilot fleet of Class 7 trucks in the city next year. After initially focusing on Europe, Volta Trucks revealed on Thursday that, like Prince Akeem, it's coming to America.

The Volta Zero was designed from the ground up to be an electric heavy-duty truck rather than an adaptation of an existing internal-combustion platform. The truck features a central driving position, with a minimum of blind spots, that places the driver at an appropriate height to spot vulnerable road users like cyclists. Range is a route-appropriate 95-125 miles (152-201 km)—the Zero is meant for urban logistics, not long hauls.

But don't think of Volta Trucks as a research project. The batteries and motors are both sourced from leaders in the field, and rather than set up a new factory with plans for world domination, the trucks are being contract-manufactured at the former MAN plant in Steyr, Austria.