Quad bike, Paxster | Paxster is taking steps towards the private market – launching a new four-wheeler

(Sarpsborg Arbeiderblad) “Utility vehicle” is the English description of the vehicle that Paxster is now launching. In practice, it is a four-wheeler with loading options, which can also be suitable for, for example, snow plowing of smaller areas.

In addition, it can be delivered with a trailer, but the company’s new general manager Aleksander Säfvenbom emphasizes that at launch it will not be approved for driving with a trailer on public roads.

– Many will still be able to benefit from it because these vehicles will often be used in closed areas, he says.

Different from an ATV

Many will associate the type of vehicle that Paxster is now launching with the term ATV. The difference, however, is that an ATV is four-wheel drive and built for off-road driving.

The Paxster is two-wheel drive and has load capacity both front and rear, but is not equally suitable for driving in forests and fields. The company believes it will nevertheless meet many needs.

– It is estimated that only around one in ten ATV buyers really need the features such a vehicle has. But so far, many dealers have not had a fully satisfactory alternative to offer, says Säfvenbom.

He and sales director Thor Øivind Johansen expect that the business market will also be the largest for this type of vehicle.

But for the first time, the products from Kampenes will reach a dealer network, which also offers the potential to connect private customers.

Environmentally friendly reuse

The entry price for the new model is approx. NOK 100,000. Then you get the version that the company calls “Second drive”. These are vehicles that the manufacturer has bought back from their customers and rehabilitated to a quality that allows them to offer a new warranty.

– There is a big environmental benefit here, emphasizes Säfvenbom.

The vehicles that are bought back are picked apart to the smallest part, and everything that can be reused is used again. The general manager says they achieve a reuse percentage of 90-95 per cent of the parts.

Paxster’s distribution vehicles, which are used by Posten, among others, are usually replaced after six years. Then there is still a lot left that can be used.

– It is too bad that those vehicles are being scrapped. The “Second drive” initiative gives us some new opportunities, including this utility vehicle, notes the general manager.

The company also produces brand new vehicles of this type. They will cost around NOK 170,000.

Aiming for 200–500 sales a year

Paxster believes the sales potential for the new four-wheeler will be between 200 and 500 vehicles a year. How much of this becomes “Second drive” vehicles will depend on the availability of used vehicles.

– We will certainly not reach those figures in the first year, but we are now in the process of building a dealer network, and have the advantage that we have well-tested vehicles through ten years of production, says Thor Øivind Johansen.

So far, the Kampenes factory has produced more than 4,000 of the type we are used to seeing in the local environment.

According to the plan, the company’s new factory in Kampenes will be ready for use by the summer, which means a significant strengthening of production capacity.

The battery in the new vehicle is a 10 kWh lithium battery, which realistically gives a range of around 10-12 miles.

Considering that this type of vehicle is rarely used over special distances, Säfvenbom believes that it is more than enough.

Therefore, the vehicle can also serve as a power outlet for other types of machinery.

– It can, for example, be useful for craftsmen who need to charge the batteries of their tools, operate a welding machine, a high-pressure washer or a wood splitter. We have made arrangements for that, he says.