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UPS Testing Modec Electric Delivery Van in London
7 March 2008
TNN. UPS has begun testing a Modec electric van (earlier post) which will operate from its Camden facility within the London Low Emission Zone.
On a single charge, the Modec van offers a range of more than 100 miles and a top speed of 50 mph carrying a load of up to two tonnes. The 70kW motor (102hp) develops 300Nm of torque.
Modec started with twin parallel-wired 288-volt Zebra sodium-nickel-chloride battery packs, with a life span of around four years (1,000 full charging cycles.) Regenerative braking recharges the batteries in addition to grid charging, which takes 8 hours for a complete charge.
The battery pack sits amidships in a drop-down mounting which can be swapped out to avoid downtime while recharging. Modec leases the battery to its customers. The company signed a supply agreement in November 2007 with Axeon Holdings plcs for lithium-ion packs and charging systems as well.
Modec launched its dealer network in London in January. A demonstration fleet, funded by Cenex, is based at four dealer locations.
(A hat-tip to John!)
March 7, 2008 in Brief | Permalink | Comments (8) | TrackBack (0)
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Comments
Shall we thank mayor Livingston?
No doubt that future batteries will extend range, life span and reduce weight and charging time.
A move in the right direction to reduce fuel consumption, down town GHG and noise.
Posted by: Harvey D | Mar 7, 2008 8:54:38 AM
I still don't understand why there are no PV cells on the roof! With all the real estate on the roof, why not add solar so that you can capture some more miles out of it?
Posted by: Richard | Mar 7, 2008 9:22:27 AM
Richard: Try doing the math and see if they work out for Vans (larger roof area). The math certainly doesn't work out for regular cars (too much weight and cost for very modest returns). Since these were designed with drop-down mountings for battery swapping, your probably better off mounting some PVs on the roof of your garage (where they will get optimal efficiency) to charge the off-duty battery.
Posted by: Neil | Mar 7, 2008 11:44:27 AM
I've been aware of this truck for quite a few years and was very impressed from the start. Recently in Anaheim I had a chance to take a short test drive and it is a dream to drive. The styling puts the Modec in a class by itself. I believe we will be seeing them everywhere once fleet operators have had an opportunity to test them in daily use.
Posted by: Wayne Worden | Mar 7, 2008 9:35:31 PM
It sure is a good looking van. The solar panels on the roof might generate enough for 10-15 more miles per day, but the cost per kwh is so much higher than grid power it may not be worth it.
Posted by: sjc | Mar 9, 2008 11:37:34 AM
I see Modec just won themselves the title of Best New Product (or summat like that) at the recent Work Trucks Show in Atlanta, Georgia.
How come it is two UK firms who are making the running in this field? ( http://www.smithelectricvehicles.com being the other, with plans to produce 10,000 trucks per year in the US by 2010).
I guess they have the advantage of working within a region of western Europe where cities are more compact than most US cities - and where governments concerned about pollution are fiercer in applying legislation, and where gas prices are very high. Yet both Modec and Smith have clearly identified a sizeable addressable market in the US (200,000 vehicles say Smith EV). So how come American companies are not interested?
Posted by: Stan Wellaway | Mar 12, 2008 4:38:44 AM
what are goverments doing to reduce pollution their areas?
Posted by: marmik | May 1, 2008 12:04:35 AM
I'm so interested in these vans. I am opening a plumbing company specializing in eco plumbing. anyone know what they are going for? assuming not affordable at this point
Posted by: acw | Jun 1, 2008 10:32:20 PM
