There are some things that I never thought I’d see electrified. Cars? I get it. Bikes? Sure thing. Boats? Why not? But when it comes to lawn tools, I never thought I’d see a wheelbarrow go the way of electric hedge trimmers.
Yet that’s exactly what we’re checking out today in the latest installment of the Awesomely Weird Alibaba Electric Vehicle of the Week column.
That’s right, this awesome little electric wheelbarrow can be yours, ordered directly from China.
It only weighs 179 kg (394 lb) but is rated to carry up to 300 kg (660 lb). That means you and a couple friends could surely go for a ride around the farm!
In fact, there’s a little platform in back so that you actually can ride it. And with those all terrain wheels, it even handles pretty well across loose dirt like you’d find on a construction site.
Just check out how well this thing works in the video below!
It chugs along at a maximum of 15 km/h (9 mph), though its top speed in reverse is a measly 6 km/h (4 mph). To be fair though, my top speed in reverse with a wheelbarrow probably can’t hit 4 mph.
It also has some other redeeming qualities that make up for the rather slow speed. For example, it can turn on a dime. The company claims a tight turning radius of barely 1.5 meters (less than 5 feet)!
If you ever need to precisely wind your way through an obstacle course and then dump a pile of manure, this is the electric wheelbarrow you’ll want for the job.
I’ll admit, the idea of an electric wheelbarrow sounded odd to me at first. But the more I stare at this thing, the more I love it. Moving a heavy wheelbarrow around is not easy. A single trip or two is doable, but if you had to carry loads all day like that then you’d be begging for an electric wheelbarrow.
And at the low price of just $630, this thing isn’t even that expensive!
Of course as we’ve seen with some of my own Alibaba EV purchases, the final price can often be many times higher (to the tune of several thousands dollars, even on cheaper items like this). So don’t get too excited. And I always warn people not to actually send their money off to unknown companies halfway around the world. It’s better to just enjoy this thing from the safety of our screens.
Speaking of which, I’m going to go watch that video again, this thing is just too cool!
