There are currently a number of companies aiming to roll out electric delivery vans – including Rivian, Ford and Canoo – but Michigan-based Electric Last Mile Inc is looking to make its Urban Delivery van the first Class 1 commercial EV to hit the US market.
Electric Last Mile is currently going through the homologation process, while also tweaking the design of the Urban Delivery EV to meet customer end-use specifications, and is looking to turn 45,000 non-binding pre-orders into solid commitments by announcing production plans.
After recently announcing its intention to acquire a 675,000 sq ft (62,700 sq m) manufacturing facility in Mishawaka, Indiana, the company hopes to begin making the Class 1 commercial EV by the close of the third quarter of this year, which will reportedly make it the first such vehicle to be available in the US market.
"The interest we have seen for the Urban Delivery has been overwhelming as fleet managers continue to seek solutions that will reduce their total cost of ownership and help them to achieve aggressive sustainability targets," said the company's co-founder and CEO, James Taylor.
The Urban Delivery van offers 170 cu ft (4.8 cu m) of hauling capacity and can handle a maximum payload weight of 2,403 lb (5,625 kg). It features 100-kW JJE electric drive and 42-kWh battery combination, with the latter based on the same CATL LFP chemistry used in the Tesla Model 3 in China. And it's expected to be capable of up to 150 miles (240 km) of per charge – with the company noting that average daily usage figures for Class 1 commercial vehicles tends to be in the 45 to 60 mile range.
Fleet managers will be able to remotely track vehicles thanks to over-the-air data and telematics powered by Geotab, which includes LTE connectivity, GPS tracking, remote diagnostics, vehicle management and data analysis.
The Urban Delivery electric van is being priced at US$25,000, after federal rebate, with the company expecting that price tag combined with savings in operating costs to result in a lower total cost of ownership figure compared to existing gas-powered solutions. Future plans also call for the production of Class 2 and 3 electric trucks to follow from next year, which will have cargo capacities up to 600 cu ft and a per charge range of up to 225 miles.
Source: Electric Last Mile
