EV makers are split on whether to get frunky

It's still early in the race for electric vehicle supremacy, and while auto engineers have rushed to improve driving ranges and charging speeds, they remain split on the front trunk.

Roughly one-third of the 30 or so EV models for sale in the U.S. have supersized the feature in recognition of its novelty and utility — after all, a "frunk" is one of few things EVs offer that a gasoline-powered vehicle cannot. Another third of models, however, skip the frunk altogether, freeing up cabin space on a bet that customers accustomed to frunkless living will not demand one when they go electric.

Those that embrace the frunk offer novel uses such as Ford Motor Co., which suggests filling the refrigerator-sized space that comes standard on two of its EVs with seafood or even 1,000 chicken wings. The frunks even come with a useful drain to help transport food items.

Frunks are not new to the auto industry. Models with engines in the rear of the car, such as Porsche's 911 and the defunct Chevrolet Corvair, have offered a front trunk in lieu of a rear one. But for the first time, EVs are allowing drivers to get the best of both — and automakers are reacting accordingly.

Ford's EV pickup, the F-150 Lightning, boasts the biggest frunk space on offer, but even some smaller, sportier EVs are designed to carry large cargo where an engine would have been. The Lightning's Mega Power Frunk has 14.1 cubic feet of cargo space and maximum payload capacity of 400 pounds.

The Lucid Air has a 7.1-cubic-foot cavity up front, roughly the size of a freezer chest, while Tesla's Model Y stretches the tape to 4.1 cubic feet, a fair-sized wine fridge.

And yet, frunk-free EVs are also common. Neither of BMW's new electric vehicles — the iX SUV and the i4 sedan — has a frunk. Nor does the EQS sedan from Mercedes, which will not even let customers pop the hood on its EVs without a deep YouTube search and some ill-advised tinkering.

"In our view, the trunk in the rear is more than large enough," Mercedes spokeswoman Cathleen Decker said.