Electric cars are slowly gaining traction with buyers, but what will it take to get commercial vehicles plugged in?
The United Kingdom’s Liberty Electric Cars unveiled this unusual-looking electric delivery van called the Deliver.
According to its maker, the Deliver’s powertrain consists of a lithium-nickel-manganese-cobalt oxide (LiNMC) battery pack of indeterminate size and in-wheel electric motors, although Liberty did not say how many, which wheels they power, or the vehicle’s total power output.
Also unknown is the amount of time it takes to charge the battery, but Liberty does quote a 62-mile range and a top speed of 62 mph, which should be easy for PR reps to remember.
It won’t compare to favorably with the performance of the upcoming Nissan e-NV200, though.
Nissan is hoping to do for electric commercial vehicles what the Leaf did for electric passenger cars with this battery version of its compact van. Since it shares, the Leaf’s powertrain, the e-NV200 should best the Deliver in range and top speed. Plus, it will have DC fast-charging capability, allowing for an 80-percent recharge in 30 minutes.
The Nissan won’t have the Deliver’s unusual styling, though. It may look like a reject from a science-fiction movie, but this gawk-inspiring bubble should at least attract attention to a given business.
Tesla Motors has shown that a startup can build a vehicle that’s competitive with offerings from major manufacturers, but it’s a little too early to tell if Liberty Electric Cars will have the same success, or even if the Deliver will make it into customer hands.
Still, it looks like businesses looking to go green could be in for an interesting year.
