When you look back over some automotive icons and place a “cool” filter on them, the original Meyers Manx bubbles up toward the top. It was peak California, taking a shortened VW Beetle chassis and tossing on a monocoque shell and the bare minimum you’d need to hit the beach. It established the street-legal dune buggy category and there have been tons of variations over the years. For more geekery on the original, and how the new one relates to it, check out our buddy Jason’s rundown on the Autopian.

Credit for this new version goes to a chap named Freeman Thomas who helped resurrect Meyers Manx, the company, in 2020. Thomas was a designer who penned the original Audi TT and VW New Beetle with VW-Audi, as well as cool shit like the Panoz Roadster, Dodge Sling Shot and Tomahawk, and a lot more.

You read that right, the new Meyers Manx 2.0 is now an EV. Weight is mercifully low at just 1,500 pounds, which isn’t really all that much more than the OG Manx. You can choose from two lithium-ion batteries including a 20 kWh battery with 150 miles of range, or a 40 kWh battery with an impressive 300 miles of range. Naturally it’s hard to compare these figures to the latest crop of EVs, since this isn’t a crash-tested production vehicle in the same way the 9,000 pound Hummer EV is.

Still, it looks massively fun and we love the idea of using new EV tech to create something like this. We also can’t wait to see more of this thing the Quail in Monterey on 19 August. Until then, here’s a gallery to peruse to check out some details of the new EV Meyers Manx 2.0.