Tesla isn’t the only company creating cool electric vehicles anymore

It wasn’t that long ago when Tesla seemed like the only company making cool electric cars that you’d want to drive.

If this year’s Los Angeles Auto Show is any indication, that niche no longer belongs exclusively to Elon Musk. After months of signs suggesting a shift in global momentum toward an electric future, some of the world’s most established automakers are starting to reveal what they’ve been working on for the EV world.

The results are not only promising but surprisingly provocative, offering a glimpse of an automotive future that is beginning to feel substantially real. Scroll down for some of the most intriguing examples on display this week.

[Why 2017 will go down as the beginning of the end of the internal combustion engine]

The MINI Electric Concept

The Mini Electric Concept Car was unveiled in the United States by BMW during the auto trade show this week at the Los Angeles Convention Center. (Kevork Djansezian)

Unveiled by BMW in Germany in August, MINI’s electric hatchback is the company’s first electric concept car. The vehicle will be powered by a lithium-ion battery, but the automaker hasn’t released details about the conceptvehicle’s range or efficiency. With the car’s bold yellow accent bar and flashy rims, company officials have touted its design.

“We wanted to create a unique car, a car which has character,” Christopher Weil, head of MINI’s exterior design automotive design at BMW, said in October. “Our aim was to create a car which is beautiful.”

The MINI will be manufactured at the company’s plant in Oxford and will go on sale in 2019, according to BMW.

Jaguar’s I-PACE Concept

The Jaguar I-Pace all-electric concept car is on display at the Los Angeles Auto Show. (Mike Nelson/EPA-EFE/REX/Shutterstock)

Jaguar’s first electric car was on display this week. In addition to zero emissions, the I-PACE Concept offers future drivers 400 horsepower and 0‑60 mph in around 4 seconds, according to the company.

“Our tomorrows will be lit by brighter suns and driven by the noble absolute forces of the universe, and there is a science to such great power,” Jaguar boldly — and dramatically — proclaims in a preemptive strike against those who say electric-powered vehicles are for wusses and hipsters.

The I-PACE will be available beginning in the second half of 2018.

Bollinger B1

The all-electric U.S.-made Bollinger Motors vehicle is displayed at the auto show. (Mike Nelson/EPA-EFE/REX/Shutterstock).

Just because it vaguely looks like something that could’ve landed on the beaches of Normandy during World War II, doesn’t mean the Bollinger Motors’ no-nonsense, sport-utility truck isn’t fully electrified. The boxy truck offers all-wheel drive, 360 horsepower and 6,000 pounds of towing capacity, a 200-mile range and a top speed of 127 mph, according to the company.

Bollinger describes the truck “as perfect for ‘rangers, builders and do-it-yourselfers’ — a slightly different demographic than the usual Model X or Nissan Leaf consumers,” auto news website Jalopnik notes.

The company says prospective buyers can “reserve a spot in line” on their website for the truck, which is expected to cost about $60,000.

[Robot-driven Ubers without a human driver could appear as early as 2019]

Volkswagen Bus

The new I.D. Buzz hybrid concept car from Volkswagen is expected to be launched in 2019 or 2020. (Mark Ralston/AFP/Getty Images)

Volkswagen’s iconic microbus hit its cultural peak during the counterculture days of the 1960s and 1970s. Though variations of the original model are lionized on Instagram by off-the-grid types everywhere, Volkswagen is hoping a new generation of electric microbuses will again capture the popular imagination when they return to dealerships in 2022.

Volkswagen estimates the bus will have a 300-mile range and a front trunk, like the original VW Beetle.

“Our goal is clear: We want to make the fully electric, fully connected car a bestseller around the world.,” said Herbert Diess, chairman of the board of management for the Volkswagen brand. “The iconic car of the electric age must be a Volkswagen.”

BMW i8 Roadster

The 2018 BMW i8 Roadster plug-in hybrid vehicle looks like a flashy sports car. (Troy Harvey/Bloomberg News)

Able to reach 60 mph in 4.2 seconds and with a striking exterior that includes butterfly doors and a soft top, the BMW i8 Roadster looks the part of a flashy sports car. And yet, the i8 — which BMW calls “an icon of progress” — is a plug-in hybrid with a 330-mile range. An electric motor drives the front wheels, while a gasoline engine handles the rear.

Assuming the $200,000 Tesla Roadster makes it past production hell and actually hits the road, it will probably face off with vehicles like the i8.

The i8 is already available for about $145,000.

Volkswagen’s I.D. Crozz

Visitors check out an I. D. Crozz hybrid concept car from Volkswagen at the Los Angeles Auto Show. (Mark Ralston/AFP/Getty Images)

The Volkswagen electric concept vehicle I.D. CROZZ, is expected to offer a range of more than 250 miles from a single charge. The company claimsowners will be able to charge the vehicle’s battery to 80 percent capacity in only 30 minutes.