Filed under: EV/Plug-in
Brown goes green in NYC: Full-sized UPS EV truck
Click image for photo gallery of the UPS EV van
Last weekend, reader Andrew Grin accompanied a friend on one of the NY-area Tesla Roadster test drives that were being held (his friend has a Roadster reserved). Following the experience with the EV sports car, Andrew and his buddies spotted a somewhat peculiar UPS truck parked across the street from the garage where the Tesla was dropped off. The big delivery truck had "Zero Emission Electric Vehicle" emblazoned on its side panels. A walk to the front also showed a blank spot where the radiator grille would normally reside. They quizzed the truck's driver, who told them that it's one of two of its kind in New York City, and that it has a 15-mile range. The photos below come courtesy of Andrew, who happened to have his camera on hand to capture the Tesla drive. Turns out, he caught another interesting EV with it as well. Thanks, Andrew!
Gallery: UPS EV delivery van in NYC
[Source & Photos: Andrew Grin]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Joseph 3:37PM (7/16/2008)
Finally! This is the perfect application for an EV. Since it's so huge and weight doesn't matter, they can pack dozens of heavy but cheap, durable, lead acid batteries and have adequate performance for a UPS truck. I've never seen a UPS truck going faster than 50 mph and they accelerate super slow too, so an EV can easily, and cheaply, meet their very low performance requirements.
Reply
Joce03 4:00PM (7/16/2008)
15 miles may not be much, but you have to start somewhere! Hats off to UPS and the makers of this EV. Do we know who the maker is?
Reply
Alex Nunez 4:03PM (7/16/2008)
Don't know, but I have contacted UPS for additional details.
Joce03 4:09PM (7/16/2008)
Thanks Alex for looking into that. If you get any info, let me know.
Richard 4:42PM (7/16/2008)
Isn't that what Smith is doing? Sounds like it would be cheaper to buy the truck from Smith than make your own, especially if it can only go 15 miles on a charge. Wither way, there's a whole lot of real estate on the roof for some solar panels. If you're UPS, and trying to look green, that should be a given!
Reply
wildgoosechase73 5:04PM (7/16/2008)
I'd hate to see one stuck in NYC if it ran out of juice. Imagine trying to get a tow truck in to tow it.
Reply
Stan Wellaway 6:41PM (7/16/2008)
From the pictures, it looks very similar to an EV that UPS previously trialled a decade or more ago. I will see if I can dig out some archive stuff. (Or is there anything in the pictures to indicate that it must be new?).
If so, that might explain the poor 15 mile range.
Like Richard says, why build something from scratch with such poor range when Smith have a 12 tonner available off the shelf with 100+ miles range?
http://www.smithelectricvehicles.com
Reply
Greg 8:52PM (7/16/2008)
What happened to the hydraulic hybrids for commercial vehicles? They sound much more efficient for such large vehicles than electric. The trucks need their load capacity for the packages they deliver, not a ton of battery packs.
http://www.designnews.com/article/CA6549294.html
Reply
DaveD 2:59PM (7/17/2008)
I'm sure that UPS has very specific requirements when it comes to their delivery vans. Human factors, operations details involving package loading, etc. - a lot of work has gone into the design of a UPS vehicle, and they aren't going to throw that away, take a OTS vehicle and "make do" with it.
Reply