Callum Reveals an Electric ‘Activity Vehicle’ Named Skye

• Auto startup Callum has revealed images and specs of an electric off-roader named the Skye.
• The Skye will weigh around 2600 pounds, built on a space-frame chassis with 13.7 inches of ground clearance, and offer about 170 miles of range between charges.
• The company says it will have “curated variants” ready for Europe in spring 2024. Whether it comes to the U.S. is still an open question.

Ian Callum is one of the world’s best-known car designers, the former styling boss of both Jaguar and Aston Martin. As such his design résumé includes highlights from the DB7 to the i-Pace. Against that list, the Callum Skye is definitely a radical departure.

After leaving Jaguar in 2019, Callum founded an eponymous (but capitalized) company named Callum, together with several other former JLR execs. The company’s first project was a high-end restomod version of the original Aston Martin Vanquish, one we experienced in 2020. Since then, Callum has apparently done a substantial amount of uncredited “white label” work for other automakers. Now it is getting ready to launch an all-new vehicle under its own branding: a lightweight EV that you’re seeing in these rendered images.

Named Skye after the Scottish island, it is set to feature a space-frame chassis, all-wheel drive, and genuine off-road ability thanks to what engineering director Adam Donfrancesco says will be up to 21.6 inches of wheel travel and 13.7 inches of ground clearance. The Skye’s proportions make it look a little like a side-by-side coupe, but it is actually set to be considerably larger, with a 159-inch overall length and a 74.8-inch width, plus what we’re told will be a two-plus-two seating configuration inside the unseen cabin.

Working out exactly what to call it is a challenge, even for Callum himself. “I like the notion that you can’t really categorize it,” he says when we spoke to him and Donfrancesco by phone. “It’s a little like the i-Pace in that regard; people will have to decide what they think it is. I know it will have an off-road ability which is not too far from some of the ultimate off-roaders, but we also want it to be an urban car as well.”

The Skye’s space frame will use carbon-fiber links between metal joining sections, with Donfrancesco confirming that it is unique to Callum and not shared with any other manufacturer. Bodywork will be made from lightweight composite material. Suspension will be fully independent, with two different articulation options to allow buyers to choose more or less ground clearance.

Power comes from a 42.0-kWh lithium-ion battery, although an ultrafast charging alternative capable of being fully replenished in just 10 minutes is also planned. As launched, the Skye’s target weight will be 2535 pounds—very svelte for an EV—with a static 50/50 weight distribution. CALLUM hasn’t released any power figures, but the target of a sub-four-second time to 60 mph suggests it will have at least 300 horsepower.

While this is very different from any of his previous projects, it is possible to see some familiar Ian Callum design touches in details like the heavily contoured fenders front and rear and the subtle curve of the roofline. “It was important to do something that looks unique,” Callum says. “The top is clearly a sports-car profile, with an off-roader lower down.” The double-glazed doors are intended to combine both form and function, giving a good view of the ground when maneuvering off-road.

The plan is to built the Skye at Callum’s existing factory in Warwick, England, at the rate of around one a week, although with customer deliveries not starting until 2025. There is no official word on price yet. It will be less than the $600,000 (plus donor car) that was asked for the Vanquish 25, but we can’t imagine something so small and elegant being cheap.

Callum’s current plan is to sell the Skye within Europe, although Donfrancesco says the additional cost and effort of U.S. federal type approval is being considered.