Harbinger begins serial production of medium-duty EV chassis

Medium-duty electric vehicle (EV) manufacturer Harbinger Motors announced it has officially started production for its EV platform, making more than 100 units for customers. The company said it reached this production milestone just four years after it was founded in February 2021.

“Completing production of 100 chassis is an important achievement for Harbinger,” said John Harris, co-founder and CEO of Harbinger. “We chose to announce the start of production only after reaching this milestone to highlight that we are producing vehicles at a volume and scale that is truly impactful for our customers and the industry.”

Harbinger manufactures its medium-duty EV stripped chassis in Garden Grove, Calif. (Photo: Harbinger Motors)

Harbinger manufactures its EV platform, also known as a stripped chassis, in Garden Grove, Calif. The chassis is designed specifically for medium-duty vehicles, such as walk-in vans, box trucks, delivery vans, emergency and disaster response vehicles and more. It includes all major vehicle systems, including the electric drivetrain, high-voltage battery system, steering and brakes.

Harbinger said it is the only truck manufacturer building electric drivetrain systems in-house. The company’s vertically integrated manufacturing approach keeps production costs low for its EV product. Once Harbinger assembles its electric stripped chassis, a dealer or customer works with a third party to upfit the chassis with a commercial or specialty body, which Harbinger said is standard practice in the medium-duty industry.

“From the moment Harbinger was founded, we took a deliberate approach to building a scalable production foundation,” said Gilbert Passin, chief production officer for Harbinger. “A lot of the experience that helped shape Harbinger’s manufacturing processes came from the experience our team brought from other EV manufacturers and automotive brands. We learned what didn’t work elsewhere, and we adopted what worked best.”

Harbinger recently conducted extensive vehicle testing in Arizona and New Zealand. The company also recently announced an order book of 4,690 vehicles valued at approximately $500 million, and a $100 million Series B funding round, which will help the company scale up beyond the start of production. The funds will help accelerate Harbinger’s growth and increase volume production capacity to meet demand for its purpose-built electric platform.

To support its continued growth, Harbinger said it aims to hire an additional 100 employees in 2025.