United States automaker Ford has started shipping its electric battery van, the first E-Transit to its customers.
Manufactured at the Kansas City Plant, this delivery phase marks an important milestone in Ford’s electrification strategy, and takes place before the start of production of the Ford F-150 Lightning later this spring.
As previously noted, Ford said that it currently has orders for more than 10,000 vans from more than 300 customers. With that, Ford has estimated it will have the global capacity to produce 600,000 battery electric vehicles per year by the end of next year.
See also: Thor Vision Vehicle Concept, electric camper van with 300-mile range
Launching its official website, Wednesday (9/2/2022), Ford has invested about US $ 100 in the Kansas City plant, which is Ford’s first facility in the US to assemble their own vehicles and batteries.
“E-Transit is testament to the fact that electric commercial fleets are no longer a vision of the future, but a modern reality that increases productivity,” said Kumar Galhotra, Ford President of The Americas & International Markets Group.
See also: Citroen e-Berlingo All Electric Van Ready for UK Market
Ford has offered the E-Transit in a variety of versions, including three wheelbases and three roof heights, as well as in a cutaway cab and chassis form, with a top estimated range of 126 miles. All versions of the van use a 68 kWh battery that powers a rear-mounted motor that produces 266 hp and 429 Nm of torque.
For now, the Ford E-Transit electric van has no direct competitors in the US, with the exception of GM’s BrightDrop EV600, whose production begins in late 2021. But the Ultium-based EV600 and EV410 and the EV410 are close to meeting production demand next year. So it might be a while before we see the BrightDrop van being offered in a comparable number of versions and equipped for a variety of tasks.
See also: Citroen e-Berlingo All Electric Van Ready for UK Market
Meanwhile, Stellantis is also building a battery-electric work van at the moment, but they are only offering it in Europe under the Opel, Vauxhall and Citroen brands, and are not expected to offer it in the United States.
In contrast, Stellantis will launch a battery-electric Ram ProMaster model in 2023. As a result, Ford will dominate most of the segment for about a year, which is a pretty good position.
“Ford Pro is committed to advancing businesses, from Transit vans and F-150 trucks assembled here in America by American workers, to the many businesses it will help grow, to communities that benefit from jobs and income,” said Tim Baughman, General Ford Pro North America Manager.
