A new quad bike manufacturer, Volt Quads, aims to re-establish production and sales of a pioneering battery-electric ATV design for farms and estates.

Previously built and distributed in the UK and overseas under the Eco Charger name, the design has evolved with a more powerful 23kW electric motor (up from its predecessor’s 15kW) and increased towing capacity of 900kg.

The single-model VQ drives through a two-speed gearbox with high and low ratios, park, neutral and reverse, and selectable two- and four-wheel drive. 

There is also an electrically lockable front-axle differential completing a hardware combination that should provide maximum versatility in terms of power delivery, traction and speed to suit different applications and terrain.

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Its designer, Fred Chugg, a farmer-engineer on Exmoor who has long championed the benefits and appeal of electric power for quads, supplied numerous examples over the years, until Eco Charger entered administration at the end of 2023.

Former Eco Charger director Peter Anderson, now Volt Quads chairman, believes the economics and practical advantages of running an electric quad still hold true, even more so in times of volatile petrol prices.

“The VQ gives landowners the smoothest and most peaceful ride on the market and is cost-efficient to own and operate, making now an ideal time to shift to electric vehicles,” he says.

He calculates that charging the VQ costs 85% less than fuelling a petrol-engined ATV and £3,500 less to own than a comparable petrol model over five years.

Using a 48V battery makes it simpler to fix, he maintains, and with a claimed 50-mile range, subject to how hard and fast the VQ is used, operators get the added attractions of very little noise and zero emissions during their daily routines.

Production is now under way in Telford, Shropshire, with units shipped to north Devon for testing.