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ElectraMeccanica is a Canadian automotive manufacturer specializing in single-person pure electric commuter vehicles, known for designing and developing the unique three-wheeled electric vehicle SOLO. The brand was founded in 2015, with headquarters and R&D centers located in Vancouver, British Columbia; production facilities were previously established in Mesa, Arizona, USA, and China. The brand is committed to creating micro commuter vehicles that integrate fun, environmental protection, and practicality for urban commuters, aiming to change the way people move in cities. Brand founder Jerry Kroll was formerly a racer and engineer, who with great enthusiasm described SOLO as "a necessity for future personal mobility." However, due to product quality defects and financial difficulties, the SOLO project ultimately failed to achieve commercial success. The company was acquired by Xos, Inc. in 2024. After completing asset disposal, the brand was essentially removed from history.
Founding and Concept Launch (2015—2016). ElectraMeccanica was registered in Vancouver, Canada in 2015. Founders were Jerry Kroll and Henry Reisner. Immediately after founding, the company launched the conceptual design and engineering verification of the first model, SOLO. In 2016, ElectraMeccanica officially unveiled the SOLO prototype, positioning it as a zero-emission single-person three-wheeled short-distance commuter electric vehicle. Its unique triangular body structure and single-seat design attracted widespread attention worldwide.
Booking Boom and IPO Listing (2017—2021). SOLO quickly garnered a large number of pre-order orders in the market. The company claimed that pre-orders once exceeded 23,000 units. In 2021, ElectraMeccanica successfully listed on Nasdaq with the trading symbol SOLO, raising funds through the capital market to support mass production of the project. The first-generation SOLO was produced in small batches by hand in Vancouver. The second and third-generation models were subsequently outsourced for production by the Chinese Zongshen Industrial Group, completed at factories in China and Mesa, Arizona, respectively.
Serious Product Defects and Recalls (2022—Early 2024). In August 2022, a SOLO owner reported to the company that the vehicle suddenly lost power while driving. Afterwards, multiple owners reported the same issue, involving several models from 2019 to 2023. The company was unable to identify and thoroughly resolve this technical defect. In February 2023, the U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) issued a mandatory "Do Not Drive" recall order for 428 SOLOs. ElectraMeccanica launched a voluntary buyback plan, repurchasing the vast majority of affected vehicles at the recall price. The repurchased vehicles piled up at a desert scrapyard in Arizona, awaiting destruction.
Acquisition and Brand Termination (2024-Present). On March 26, 2024, U.S. electric commercial vehicle manufacturer Xos, Inc. completed the acquisition of ElectraMeccanica, exchanging approximately 1.766 million shares of Xos common stock. At the time of acquisition, ElectraMeccanica had no deliverable products available for sale, and both the SOLO project and the four-wheel E4 project were terminated. The vast majority of the company's product inventory was destroyed. Xos considered that there were no substantive business processes in the acquired assets and accounted for the transaction as an "asset acquisition" rather than a "business combination" in finance. Xos's core strategy focuses on commercial vehicle manufacturing, and the passenger car business under ElectraMeccanica will no longer continue.
ElectraMeccanica has only one model under its brand, the SOLO. SOLO is a single-seat three-wheeled electric vehicle with a two-front one-rear layout. The body length is approximately 3.1 meters, width approximately 1.2 meters, wheelbase approximately 2.0 meters, and curb weight approximately 450 kilograms. The power system is equipped with a rear-mounted AC synchronous motor, maximum power 82 horsepower, peak torque 190 N·m, 0-100 km/h acceleration approximately 8.0 seconds, and electronic speed limit up to 130 km/h. The energy storage device is equipped with a 16.1 to 17.3 kWh lithium-ion battery pack, with mainstream reports stating a range of 160 kilometers.
ElectraMeccanica had planned to launch the Tofino two-seater electric sports car, with a target range of 250 miles (approximately 400 kilometers) and a starting price of approximately $50,000, but this project was shelved after the company's financial situation deteriorated and never entered mass production.
ElectraMeccanica received significant media exposure and consumer pre-orders during the product development phase, accepting over 23,000 pre-orders. However, actual deliveries were extremely limited, totaling approximately 428 to 500 units, representing a huge gap compared to the pre-order volume.
The company achieved its highest annual revenue of 9.13 million Singapore Dollars in 2022, but plummeted to between 770,000 and 810,000 Singapore Dollars in 2023. In August 2023, the company announced a merger with British electric truck manufacturer Tevva, planning to shift to the commercial electric truck sector. Subsequently, the merger agreement was terminated due to disagreements between the two parties, and Tevva also filed a lawsuit against ElectraMeccanica and its CEO. Data from August 2025 showed the company's annual revenue was approximately 35 million U.S. Dollars, mainly related to asset liquidation after the acquisition.
SOLO uses a lightweight space frame chassis, laying the large-capacity lithium-ion battery pack flat at the lowest part of the chassis to lower the center of gravity and gain stability. The AC synchronous rear-mounted motor rear-wheel drive layout combined with a simple single-speed automatic transmission achieved a "highly simplified" powertrain. The exterior adopts a front-wide, rear-narrow three-segment "bullet-shaped" design that is extremely rare in mass-produced cars, aiming to optimize aerodynamic performance to improve range.
ElectraMeccanica had established a global supply chain network covering North America and Asia. SOLO mass production work was first completed manually in Vancouver, Canada; of the 200+ vehicles produced, only about 40 were delivered to users. Later, core production work was outsourced and completed by the Chinese Zongshen Industrial Group, with a total output of approximately 300 units. The company invested in building an advanced assembly and technology center covering 235,000 square feet in Mesa, Arizona, USA, planning to transfer the final assembly of the new SOLO to the United States. This project was terminated after the brand collapsed.
ElectraMeccanica has ceased operations. Xos clarified that its strategic focus is on zero-emission commercial trucks, with no intention of retaining the ElectraMeccanica passenger car brand or expanding into new energy passenger car business layout. ElectraMeccanica has been regarded by the industry as "the standard case study for the failure of three-wheeled electric vehicle startups". Xos believes it no longer possesses any substantive business capability for sustainable operations. In the foreseeable future, no new models under the brand will enter the market.
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