Portable bathroom company Diamond Environmental showcased its new, all-electric RIZON medium duty commercial truck at a San Marcos, California mobility event last month – and the verdict is in: these electric trucks don’t stink!

City officials from San Marcos attended the electric vehicle and sustainability-focused event, including San Marcos Mayor Rebecca Jones, San Diego Land Policy Advisor Hunter McDonald, and councilman Ed Musgrove. The stars of the show, however, were Diamond Environmental’s four RIZON e18L medium-duty commercial EVs.

“RIZON trucks are perfect for our daily local operations and align with our environmental and sustainability goals,” explained Alex Fortunati, CEO of Diamond Environmental. “Thanks to San Diego County’s incentive programs, we could economically make the transition to electromobility.”

Diamond Environmental equipped their RIZON electric trucks with stake bed/flatbed style bodies for two of the trucks, enabling a wide range of versatility for transporting portable toilet facilities, sinks, and other sanitation supplies to construction job sites and outdoor events like the Super Bowl in San Diego and the Coachella Music Festival.

For their part, the RIZON seems genuinely excited for the high-visibility partnership with Diamond Environmental.

“We’re pleased to support Diamond Environmental in their transition to zero-emissions RIZON trucks, enhancing both convenience and flexibility in their operations. Our sales team collaborated closely with them throughout the selection process to customize trucks that perfectly meet their business needs,” said Alex Voets, General Manager of RIZON USA. “We are proud to contribute to the innovations in today’s electric truck market, driving towards a more sustainable future for our communities.”

The RIZON offers fast-charging options for its 124 kWh battery pack, including DCFC up to 104 kW and Level 2 AC up to 14.9 kW, minimize downtime for the company’s daily delivery routes, achieving a range of up to 160 miles on a single charge. More than enough, in other words, to handle whatever loads Diamond Environmental will dump on it.

Funding for the trucks came, in part, from the Innovative Small e-Fleet (ISEF) Program that offers qualifying small fleets a minimum voucher of $120,000 toward an all-electric Class 4-5 electric truck, as well as region-specific incentives, like the San Diego County Air Pollution Control District’s grant program.

Electrek’s Take

There’s a total place in the North American market for an agile, easy-to-drive medium duty truck like the RIZON, and Daimler’s nationwide network of Freightliner and Western Star dealers should give first time MD buyers a bit more peach of mind than they might get from a startup brand.

SOURCE | IMAGES: Daimler Trucks North America (DTNA).

Developed by Indian company Farmrobo Technologies, the iMog is a fully autonomous, multipurpose electric farm tractor designed to be a cost-effective solution to support small-scale farming operations and hobby farms.

In constant development since 2019, the Farmrobo iMog weights in at “just” 550 lbs., and is just two feet wide and four feet long. That’s small enough to allow it to easily fit between tightly-packed rows of crops without damaging them. The robot’s small size also makes it pretty efficient – its 8 HP electric motor can run for up to 5 hours on its relatively small 90 AH LFP battery (about 4 kWh, assuming a 48V system).

The robot uses RTK-enabled GPS, which stands for “Real-Time Kinematic Global Positioning System.” RTK-enabled GPS combines standard GPS signals with real-time correction data from local base stations, delivering what the company calls “centimeter-level positioning accuracy.” The robot can then be programmed to operate on a given route or path by the farmer, or operated remotely via on-board cameras.

The iMog also features an innovative Power Take-Off (PTO) system that allows it to power a range of conventional attachments that includes a roto-tiller, high-tech sprayer, a mulcher, and more. The base robot retails for €12,000 and is available in India, the Middle East, and (now) in Europe.

As I write this, Farmrobo claims 20 examples of its iMog robot tractor are currently in operation, with many more on their way to customers.

Electrek’s Take

Y’all know I love a good electric tractor, but while the North American market seemingly wants to go bigger and badder than even Solectrac’s 25 HP machines, it seems the rest of the world understands that the biggest tool for the job isn’t always the right tool for the job.

Here’s hoping the Farmrobo team has better luck than Solectrac.

SOURCE | IMAGES: Farmrobo Technologies, via Future Farming.

What would you get if you created the illegitimate love child of a Mercedes G-Wagon and a Brinks armored truck (and perhaps if the Mercedes chain-smoked through the pregnancy)? I think you’d wind up with something like the wacky-looking electric cart that has earned the dubious honor of being named this week’s Awesomely Weird Alibaba Electric Vehicle of the Week!

I’m not sure this is exactly an armored golf cart, so I wouldn’t invite any unnecessary potshots while cruising your hood, but I’m at a loss of how else to describe it.

It’s definitely not a “real” car, as evidenced by its US $6,999 price tag and the 30 km/h (18 mph) top speed. If you ask me though, that speed goes in the ‘advantages’ column. When you drive something that looks this good, you want to be going slow enough to give people a good, long look.

A vehicle like this is designed to send a statement. Unfortunately, I think that statement might be, “I wanted a Jeep but my spouse wanted to remodel the kitchen.”

So if it’s not a real car, then what is it?

Measuring a stubby 306 cm long (an entire half inch over 10 feet), this four-seater mini-SUV is less G-Wagon and more “Oh, gee” wagon. It can supposedly carry up to 370 kg (815 lb) in passengers or cargo, but there’s no telling how much of a dent that puts in the already challenged top speed.

Safety might also be a passing concern. It doesn’t have any seatbelts, but the tires look like they just about extend out past the front and rear, so at least you’ve got some nice shock-absorbent bumpers built into the design.

The advertisement claims a maximum range of up to 80 km (50 miles) per charge, which seems like several more miles than anyone needs from something like this.

There’s no word on battery technology, which means I’m assuming either features older lead acid tech or there’s a frunk full of lemons and a bunch of loose wires running through the firewall.

I’m glad to see that the roof rack is at least equipped with enough LED lights to make an airport runway jealous, just in case I find myself stuck in the wilds of my backyard after dark. And that roof rack even looks pretty heavy-duty, though since the cart is considerably taller than it is wide, tight turns with a heavily-loaded roof rack should probably be avoided.

As much as I love this thing, I don’t think I’ll be whipping out my credit card any time soon.

Don’t get me wrong, I’ve bought plenty of bad ideas on Alibaba before. But since my $2,000 electric truck ending up costing me nearly 4x that much by the time it landed in the US, I’m a bit worried what the final price tag on a $6,999 Mini-MegaOverlander would become.

I don’t recommend anyone actually try buying this cute little TinyTrailblazer either, and I’m certainly not vouching for the vendor, who I discovered by chance while scrolling through Alibaba to procrastinate real work. Keep in mind that this is all part of a tongue-in-cheek column I write, diving into the depths of Alibaba’s weird and funny collection of awesome electric vehicles.

But hey, if someone does go that route, it wouldn’t be the first time my advice has been ignored and some awesome photos have landed in inbox several months later. Just don’t say I didn’t warn you if it turns out some Nigerian prince has your last paycheck and you’re up a creek with no MicroMudder to come bail you out!