July 23, 2008

Electric Truck Makers Grapple with the Real World

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UNITED KINGDOM – The UK’s Smith Electric Vehicles is about to launch mid- and large-size electric delivery trucks into the U.S. market. It will be closely followed by a new company, Modec Ltd. Private fleets and utilities have committed to major orders from each.

But in pilot tests, Modec’s William Doelle said the truck makers have learned some hard lessons. Among the lessons learned are:

• Make sure trained and educated technicians work with high-voltage chargers.
• Create clear, explicit, and well-illustrated owners and maintenance manuals that cover every possible contingency.
• Evaluate a new central site for your fleet based on whether the local utility can actually deliver a new high-voltage supply lines in weeks — versus months or years.

Also, both Smith and Modec plan to manufacture up to 10,000 trucks a year in the United States. Their trucks differ, however, in that Smith adapts existing Ford commercial vehicles — their Ampere is the long-wheelbase version of Ford’s upcoming Transit Connect small van, and their Faraday II is based on Ford’s massive F-650 — whereas Modec has designed its range of electric trucks from the ground up.

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