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Utilities contractor trials eVito


Lightning pick-up leads Ford revolution


It may not be coming here, but Ford’s all-electric F-150 Lightning marks an important turning point in the move to an electric future, says Dan Gilkes


W


hile Ford is now moving rapidly to elec- trify its car and light commercial ve- hicle lines, it is certainly not an area


in which the US giant has taken the lead over the last decade. That said, if the E-Transit can deliver on the promises that have been made, it has the potential to change the way in which many van users operate. In the company’s home market of North Amer-


ica, things have moved relatively slowly. The fi rm’s F-150 pick-up has been the best-selling vehicle of any kind in the US for decades, yet it doesn’t even have a diesel version. America’s love affair with large capacity petrol engines, thanks to relatively cheap fuel supplies, continues. So, for Ford to launch an electric pick-up, the F-150 Lightning, is a potentially seismic move. To have any hope of selling in the numbers that its development requires, the F-150 Lightning doesn’t just have to match the performance and productivity of its petrol-powered stablemates, it has to take the business and domestic truck market to a whole new level. It can’t just succeed on the Toyota Prius and


Tesla dominated streets of Californian cities. It has to work in the cornfi elds of America’s Mid- West, in the oil fi elds of Texas and in the Appa- lachian and Rocky mountains. “For both Ford and the American auto indus- try, F-150 Lightning represents a defi ning mo-


ment, as we progress towards a zero-emissions, digitally connected future,” said Bill Ford, execu- tive chair of Ford Motor Company, at the truck’s unveiling in May. “F-Series has been America’s best-selling


truck for 44 years, it is the backbone of work across the country and a trusted icon for gener- ations of customers. Now we are revolutionising it for a new generation.” The truck is powered by dual eMotors, for the front and rear axles, to provide four-wheel drive. The standard battery model puts out a healthy 426hp, while the extended battery ver- sion delivers a crushing 563hp. In both cases the peak torque output is an incredible 1,051Nm. Of course, the F-150 Lightning is somewhat larger than your standard UK pick-up, offering a max- imum payload of 907kg and a towing capacity of up to 4.5-tonnes.


Actual battery capacity hasn’t been revealed


yet, but the best guess is somewhere between 115-125kWh. Ford is promising a driving range of up to 230 miles on the standard battery and 300 miles for the extended model. More than that, the company is to offer a range of Pro Pow- er Onboard options, already seen on the E-Tran- sit. This would allow on-site workers to operate a range of electrical tools using up to 9.6kW of power from 21 outlets around the truck. Indeed, continued on p20


JULY 2021 •VANUSER 19


Utilities contractor Clancy is trial- ling its fi rst seven Mercedes-Benz eVito vans. Based at depots in the south and east of England, the eVi- tos will be used to support water me- ter replacement teams and to deliv- er essential parts and materials to sites in London. The vans are all L2 length, fi ve in the Pure speci- fi cation and two higher-trim Pro- gressive models, with body-coloured bumpers and wheel covers. In total, Clancy took delivery of more than 500 Mercedes vans in 2020.


e-Dispatch added to council's fleet


Falkirk Council has added seven Citroën e-Dispatch electric vans to its fl eet, as part of a move to a more sustainable future. The XS body vans have been supplied with the smaller 50kWh battery, offer- ing up to 143 miles of range. They were funded with the help of Trans- port Scotland’s Switched on Towns and Cities Challenge Fund, and the Switched on Fleet Fund schemes, that aim to encourage the adoption of EVs. All of the vans have been ply- lined and supplied with pipe carrier roof racks through supplying dealer Arnold Clark in Armadale.


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