AN ELECTRIC TRUCK FOR FREE

November 16, 2011 Vol. 7, No. 26

Well, I exaggerate quite a lot with that headline, though not as much as you might think. Nothing except unwanted advice is ever free, but Freightliner Custom Chassis Corporation (FCCC) and Enova Systems launched a program just today that will make electric vehicles much more accessible to fleets. They call it ‘Green for Free’.

I’ll learn more in a web presentation later this afternoon, but the gist of it is that you can buy an all-electric truck for the cost of a diesel-powered machine. FCCC and Enova say the savings allowed by the electric vehicle — in reduced maintenance and no fuel purchases — are then used over a period of time to cover the incremental expense for the technology.

Enova builds proprietary hybrid-electric and all-electric drive systems and components. FCCC is in the motorhome, walk-in van, school bus, and shuttle bus chassis business.

The Green for Free program will use the FCCC MT-45 all-electric walk-in van chassis powered by the Enova drive system. It was first shown (see photo) at The Work Truck Show in 2010. The chassis is rated for a GVWR of 14,000 to 19,500 lb.

Fleets with set routes in pickup-and-delivery applications are the targets here, of course, given their predictable trips and nightly return to home base. The project looks to focus only on such disciplined duty cycles, utilizing about 80% of the battery’s capacity daily, versus a design for extended range.

FCCC is already well-established in the market and says it can provide immediate volume, which is required to reduce the cost of expensive components like batteries. The two companies plan to put 3000 of these vehicles on the road within two years, beginning no later than third-quarter 2012, as a result of the Green for Free program.