OAK PARK, Michigan—The Bollinger Motors story is one FleetOwner has followed closely for the last year. In September 2024, FleetOwner attended the launch of production of the all-electric Bollinger B4, a Class 4 commercial vehicle.
From September 2024 to March 2025, FleetOwner covered Bollinger Motors’ B4 deliveries, each dealer and EV charging provider partnership, and its partnerships with mobile maintenance providers and dealers that sell to government agencies.
FleetOwner caught up with the young OEM at Work Truck Week 2025 in March.
“We’re mapping out a strategy for Canada,” Jim Connelly, Bollinger Motors’ chief revenue officer, told FleetOwner in March, referring to the company’s plans to begin selling to our Northern neighbors.
While he admitted the company anticipated a slow first quarter, it seemed like Bollinger Motors was full steam ahead.
“Long term for our company, EVs and electrification aren't going away,” Connelly said at the time. “This is our chance to look at those activities now and be ready when the market takes off.”
But at the time of that conversation, Bollinger Motors' B4 production had been halted for nearly a month, which Connelly told FleetOwner recently. While he said that was planned—“Based on the election ... we planned for downtime,” he stated—one could argue that it was the start of a troubled next few months to come for the electric automaker.
See also: Bollinger Motors moves from EV startup to production
Bollinger's legal struggles: The lawsuit(s)
Less than a week after FleetOwner published its article catching up with Bollinger Motors at Work Truck Week, the Detroit News reported that the OEM was “broke” and that truck production had stopped, based on a lawsuit filed by the company’s founder, Robert Bollinger, who had stepped away from Bollinger Motors completely shortly before Bollinger Motors launched its production last September.
While he no longer made decisions for the company, he did loan it $10 million in October 2024. He filed the lawsuit because Bollinger Motors failed to make a payment toward the loan in February 2025. The conditions of the loan, according to the lawsuit, stated that any default payment would result in “the aggregate principal amount of this note ... [to] become immediately due.”
The lawsuit also alleged that Bollinger Motors owed its production facility, owned by Roush, $1.2 million and that the production team had been furloughed.
According to the filing, this wasn’t the first lawsuit against Bollinger Motors. On March 11, 2025, Auto Metal Craft Inc., a supplier, sued Bollinger Motors for $728,329 in damages. The filing mentions one other lawsuit and alludes to others possibly to come: “Numerous other suppliers are demanding payment on the amounts they are owed, and Bollinger Motors likely will be facing a deluge of collections lawsuits.”
Over the summer, the lawsuits rolled in.
On May 1, Wurth Electronics sued Bollinger for nearly $2 million. Other lawsuits against Bollinger Motors include those from Webb Wheel Products Inc., Productivity Team LLC, and Human Capital Ventures, according to Automotive News.
How Mullen restructured Bollinger Motors
Bollinger Motors announced on June 5 that its parent company, Mullen Automotive, which manufactures two light-duty electric vans, settled the claims in Robert Bollinger’s lawsuit but upped its ownership of Bollinger Motors from 60% to 95% as a result.
Bollinger Motors announced on the same day that David Michery, Mullen’s CEO, would also become the CEO of Bollinger Motors.
One month later, Mullen Automotive announced the merging of its two brands to become Bollinger Innovations. Former Mullen sales, marketing, and service employees (aside from the 155 whose positions Mullen eliminated this year) are now part of a combined Mullen and Bollinger Motors workforce, operating out of the Bollinger Motors headquarters in Oak Park, Michigan, and reporting to Connelly.
Connelly believes the decision to consolidate, while quickened by the lawsuit, was the right decision for the companies.
“It's a good thing for the company in total, right?” he asked. “Having two different brands, two different sales forces, two different accounting [departments], two different finance groups ... for three vehicles. It just makes sense to consolidate.”
Mullen Automotive produces the Class 1 Mullen 1 and Class 3 Mullen 3 vans in Tunica, Mississippi. For now, however, Mullen has halted production of the Mullen 1 and Mullen 3 to modify its facility for the manufacturing of Bollinger Motors' B4.
Currently, Bollinger Innovations is relocating its facility from Roush to Tunica and transferring its equipment.
“We'll bring the line, rebuild the line, test it, and everything, and then come up for production, I would say, either late this year or early next year,” Connelly said.
In the meantime, the merged companies will sell off their current inventory, including the Bollinger Motors B4 and the Mullen 1 and Mullen 3. Once Bollinger Innovations has sold its Mullen-branded assets, the plan is to begin production of the light-duty vans once again, but this time, with Bollinger Innovations' badging, Connelly said.
See also: A commercial EV-only OEM’s outlook in a Trump presidency
Bollinger Motors is down but not out
While Bollinger Innovations has paused its vehicle production, Connelly assured that both the Bollinger Motors and Mullen brands are still selling, and potential buyers and current customers can be confident in their purchase.
“Having a good dealer network is key, and the dealers that we have relationships with have been around for a very long time,” Connelly said. “I think that adds comfort to a startup when you have dealers that are reputable.”
As chief revenue officer, Connelly is continuing his focus on selling to companies with sustainability goals and in EV-friendly states—much like he told FleetOwner back in March.
As for the B5 and B6, Connelly said Bollinger Innovations isn’t giving up on them, and if anything, their timelines only look a bit longer.
While it’s had an eventful first 11 months as an OEM, Bollinger Motors, now Bollinger Innovations, might be down, but it’s holding on for now.
