UPS deploys 100 commercial EVs in California

UPS announced the deployment of 100 fully electric commercial vehicles that will be delivering packages around the state. The vehicles were manufactured in Stockton, California by Electric Vehicles International (EVI).

These UPS electric trucks will reduce the consumption of conventional motor fuel by approximately 126,000 gallons per year. Additional benefits include reduction of carbon emissions and noise. The vehicles have a range of up to 75 miles and primarily will deliver packages to customers in Sacramento, San Bernardino, Ceres, Fresno and Bakersfield.

Partners involved in the project include the Governor’s Office of Business and Economic Development, California Air Resources Board, California Energy Commission, US Environmental Protection Agency, South Coast Air Quality Management District, San Joaquin Air Pollution Control District and Sacramento Air Quality Management District.

Mia U Van Gets a Blue and White Makeover

The Mia U is an electric van manufactured in France by Mia Electric, and it comes with some unique characteristics, including a new blue and white “Blue Star” paint scheme.

Some of those unique features include power sockets, a blue and white color scheme in the updated Blue Star model, and an 8 kWh battery that provides it with 50 miles of range per charge. While 50 miles may not seem like much, it is more than enough range for getting around town, which is what the Mia excels at.

Other features include a roof rack, PVC floor protection, the ability of the driver to sit alone in the front, while passengers sit side to side behind them. The Mia U can be equipped with a 12 kWh battery that will provide it with 75 miles of driving range per charge, and that is still very small compared to typical electric vehicle battery packs. The 2013 Nissan Leaf battery pack is twice as much, at 24 kWh, yet it offers 73 mile range.

How could a van achieve two miles more driving range than a small car like the leaf and while using a battery bank that is half the size of it? These vehicles have been constructed in France, started in 2011, and Mia will start building vehicles in the U.K.

Other specifications:

• Top Speed: 100 km/h. (62 mph).
• Length: 3.19 meters (9.5 feet).
• Width: 1.64 meters (4.9 feet).
• Height: 1.55 meters (4.65 feet).
• Cargo Volume: 1,200 liters (1.5 cubic meters)
• Curb Weight: 765 kg including the 8 kWh battery, and 815 kg if it is equipped with the 12 kWh battery

The charge time of this vehicle and its compatibility with charging stations will also be important to its success.

Source: Autoblog Green

Freightliner To Make Electric Vans Utilizing Tesla Battery Packs

An All-Electric Freightliner Van









It seems there are headlines similar to this one every day lately. Delivery vans that drive the same routes are ideal candidates for electrification. Think of the savings in gasoline, maintenance and pollution if fleet operators such as the USPS, FedEx and UPS all converted to electric vans. Certainly, the initial cost is high but the dividend is great when factored over the lifetime of the vehicle. The uncertainty of the Tesla battery pack's longevity would be the main "X" factor for Freightliner.

From Gas2.0:

Electric might not seem very practical for most of the population right now, but for many companies that employ fleets of vehicles, they make all the sense on the world. Many fleet vehicles don’t wander too far from home base, and often run the same route every day. Without the cost of gas or maintaince, companies would have much more money to use to improve their business and could also lower costs.

Freightliner, a big trucking company who already has natural gas and hybrid vehicles on the road, has turned to Tesla to provide battery packs for their upcoming line of electric vans.

Tesla’s Roadster uses a battery pack that contains more than 2,000 lithium cells much like you find in laptops. It is part of the reason why the Roadster costs north of $100,000. The truck uses three individual 18.5 kWh packs, which provides 55.5 kilowatt hours of total power, good for about 150 miles or so depending on how you drive. The Freightliner vans will have a range “north” of 100 miles, depending on payload and how many battery packs they add on.

The vans are actually lighter with the electric drivetrain, despite the 900 pounds of batteries. The Enova motor provides peak power of 160 horsepower, so don’t expect these vans to be lightning fast. But everything fits in the frame, and it can support up to five individual packs for 92.5 kilowatts of power and even more range. Sounds like Tesla is branching out beyond passenger cars, and good thing too. The electrification of the fleet market would go a long way towards reducing emissions and gaining widespread acceptance for electric cars.