Nikola, most known for its forward-thinking semi-trucks, sees itself as a trident spearheading the eco movement: It's an energy company, it's a motor company, and it's a powersports company. All three prongs have the same goal, however, to change the transportation model with tech-filled emission-free concepts. Recently at an event called Nikola World, it showed five vehicles, including the global debut of the WAV electric jet ski.
At Nikola World, which took place in Scottsdale, Arizona, Nikola showed off the Two and Tre hydrogen fuel-cell semi trucks, the NZT electric off-highway vehicle (OHV, named such due to weight), the Reckless electric autonomous remote-controlled military OHV, and the WAV, or Water Adventure Vehicle electric jet ski concept. Everything but the WAV has been, at some point, shown in the past, but the event served as a way to display updated versions of everything the company has been working on.
The WAV features what Nikola is calling the world's first "wakeboard architecture," a play on the "skateboard architecture" seen in the automotive space. Despite having no hard specifications about the powertrain, Nikola threw out plenty of buzzy words to describe the new machine. Vice president of Nikola Powersports Jordan Darling compared its dynamics to that of a sport bike's, its sound to that of a sailboat's (wind and water?), and its heart to that of a power boat's, built into a fully electric package.
Darling further said the WAV will have zero environmental impact (which is not true of any battery-powered vehicle) and will have zero emissions. With an electric powertrain, it could avoid any oil or gasoline spillage into the water, and could avoid releasing fossil-fuel emissions into the air and water. Unfortunately, there is no footage of the WAV in motion.
The WAV has a sleek design modeled after sport bikes. It has angular LED headlights up front, an LED light bar in the rear, and a cool pass-through beneath the steering column. It also has a 12-inch 4K digital display that would integrate tech such as over-the-air updates and cruise control. There was no mention of how or where the jet ski would potentially be charged. Yet, Nikola was sure to mention it was accepting reservation orders for the concept — and it is still a concept — that same day.
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