Ford on Thursday unveiled the all-electric version of its popular Transit delivery van, aimed atfleet and cargo delivery customers. Ford calls its 2022 E-Transit van – a fully electric version of the world’s best-selling cargo van – “a smart workhorse for North American cities.”
The E-Transit will have a smaller battery and less range than most passenger EVs released in recent years, but Ford said it will be more than sufficient to meet the last-mile delivery needs of its commercial customers.
The vans, which are expected to retail for under $45,000 for fleet customers, have a 67-kwh battery pack using LG Chem cells installed under the van’s body, and can go an estimated range of 126 miles in the low-roof cargo van version.
The company said that the van was designed based on extensive research from its fleet customers. Ford said the typical U.S. customer using the E-transit drives about 74 miles a day, and the vehicle has been tested in extreme conditions to make sure it meets that standard.
The cargo van has a maximum payload of up to 4,290 pounds for cutaway versions or up to 487.3 cubic feet of space in the high-roof version. Vehicle options include three roof heights, three body lengths, and cargo, cutaway and chassis cab versions. The company has not yet said whether the E-Transit will be offered in a passenger van version.
The E-Transit is part of a major push by Ford into the EV market. According to Yaro Hetman, Ford’s global marketing director for electric trucks and commercial vehicles, there are about 1,800 Ford commercial vehicle dealers across the U.S. and about 90 percent are EV-certified.
The E-Transit will arrive in late 2021 and will be made in Ford’s Kansas City plant, following a $100 million investment into that facility. Motors and gearboxes for the E-Transit will come from Ford’s Van Dyke Transmission plant in Michigan, which will also supply them for the upcoming F-150 Electric.
