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May 14, 2008 
Electrorides, which unveiled its electric ZeroTruck prototype at a conference in Las Vegas this week, is seeking $20 million, CEO Tedd Abramson told Greentech Media.
The company was founded with $500,000 of self-funding last year and has only taken money from private individual investors so far (see Pimp My Commercial Truck). But Electrorides is ready to move beyond its bootstrapping phase and is open to different financing opportunities, Abramson said at the Alternative Fuels & Vehicle Conference.
Electrorides plans to use the money to expand its vehicle sales and development, he said, adding that the round would support the company through its fifth year. Abramson said finding the right investors is the company's biggest challenge.
“We want to make it simple: Meet us and listen to our plan,” he said. “We have a good plan, we’re easy to deal with and we have the right team to execute. Are there going to be bumps in the road? Of course. But if you have the right people, you can solve them more easily. Getting the right financial partner is the key – the right investors with the energy that meets our energy.”
The company plans to sell kits to convert the engine in the Isuzu N-Series chassis into an electric powertrain. The kits include a 100-kilowatt electric motor from UQM Technologies (AMEX: UQM) and a 350- to 400-volt lithium-ion polymer battery pack from South Korea manufacturer EIG, as well as parts like cables, brackets and mounts needed to install the system in the truck.
The truck will be able to drive about 100 miles on one charge, and Gordon Vallely, executive vice president, said the company hopes to be able to offer options to extend the range.
Electrorides, which began developing the kits a little over a year ago, said it chose the Isuzu chassis, which customers can pair with different bodies, because the manufacturer has 78 percent of the medium-duty market.
“People know how to repair them and work on them; they feel comfortable,” Abramson said. “We want to make it as simple as possible to own, to operate and to repair.”
On Monday, the day it introduced the ZeroTruck, the company had some 40 to 50 potential customers express “realistic” interest in buying trucks for their fleets, Abramson said.
The company also has selected Boshart Engineering as its engineering firm and LA Freightliner as its distributor, he said at the show, and Supreme Corp. to supply the truck bodies.
The company is testing its prototype now and plans to begin full beta testing in a month to accumulate real-world driving miles for Boshart, Vallely said.