Kalashnikov UV-4: An All-Electric Taxi Designed by a Russian Military Tech Company

Just for a laugh, let's take a deep dive into the heavy electric quadricycle built by the same people as the AK-47 rifle. For those not intimately familiar with Soviet/Russian firearms or Kalashnikov, think of them as the Toyota of their field. The undisputed number one firearms developer, manufacturer, and distributor in all of Russia.

Aside from firearms, they also manufacture specialty items like UAV drones, bomb defusing materials, and even ground artillery projectiles. All fields of the industry come in handy when attempting to build an electric taxi from the ground up. If the Kalashnikov CV-1 electric passenger we featured a short time ago is anything to go by, the company set their expectations a bit lower with the UV-4.

Similar in appearance and performance to a Renault Twizzy, the UV-4 toes the line between a standard passenger vehicle and a road-legal quadricycle. Weighing just shy of 650 kilograms (1,433 pounds) and 3.4 meters long (11.15 feet), the UV-4 makes a Lotus Elise look like a Lincoln Continental. Granted, the UV-4 would probably be as quick from, say, zero to 40 miles per hour as an old Conti land barge.

The gargantuan 5,000 lb weight of the Lincoln is matched by the small electric motor of the UV-4, a motor capable of "up to 50 kilowatts of power," or around 67 horsepower. However, none of these claims have been confirmed. Kalashnikov recon their UV-4 taxi will reach a top speed of around 80 kilometers per hour (49.7 mph).

No trouble at all if the fastest you can drive in Moscow or St. Petersburg is around 3/4 of that speed. But is there an "it" factor about this quirky and totally unexpected edition to the EV revolution? Remember, Russians have no qualms with choosing other European models to drive around in over domestic products, at least in the last 30 years.

Well, at least on paper, the UV-4 is around 250 kilograms (551 lbs) heavier than the Twizy Urban 80 model, most similar to the UV-4. Again, at least on paper, the Kalashnikov makes up for this in a substantial power boost from its Russian electric motor. A motor as much as 3.8 times more powerful than the 13 kW (17 hp) managed by the Renault Twizy Urban 80.

According to official sources, the UV-4 has a target cruising range of 150 kilometers (93.2 miles). Compared to the 100 kilometers (62 miles) or so claimed by Renault with they're jointly developed with Nissan Twizzy EV.

Unfortunately, all of these claims are just words on a PDF until the media gets their hands on UV-4s to drive themselves. With all the chaos unfolding between Ukraine and Russia at this time, the chances of this happening any time soon are slim to none.

There's no concrete way of confirming any of Kalashnikov's purported power or range numbers considering the aforementioned giant mess taking place in Eastern Europe. But as little as five months before the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Kalashnikov was touting the UV-4 and its new three new wheeled variants as the next generation of Russian taxi vehicles.

This time, Kalashnikov genuinely did act like they had every intention of bringing their electric quadricycle to market. Still, forgive us for assuming the yet unnamed two-seater, three-wheeler variant of the UV-4 is a pretty bizarre take on an American golf cart. You can't argue the similarities are uncanny.

Even so, Kalashnikov appears adamant that a vehicle with no doors and only one window is indeed up to the task of tackling the bustling city streets across Eastern Europe. Although the prospects of one of these little quadricycles being as comfortable as a London cab or a New York City Ford Crown Victoria is a dubious assumption at the best of times.

With an estimated price of around half that of the average electric family hatchback, we could see how some extra frugal individuals might be tempted to drive one of these glorified quad bikes around city streets.

Especially compared to a full-sized passenger car in the same environment. At least for a handful of Russian cities, a light electric vehicle of the UV-4's variety makes a whole lot of sense. Though, we'd need to test it ourselves to confirm this one way or another. For now, all these performance figures may as well just be propaganda.

But what are your thoughts about a Russian rifle company's attempt to build an electric Taxi? Would you hop inside one if it pulled up to you on the streets of St. Petersburgh? If current events are anything to go by, such a scenario probably won't play out any time soon. Check back for more from EV month right here on autoevolution.