As countries around the world deal with unstable oil prices and concerns about air pollution, automakers are investing in alternative vehicles to help deal with the problem. At a recent press event in Toronto, Ford primarily focused – no pun intended – on a prototype of the all-electric Focus hatchback that it will bring to market next year. But parked outside the venue was a vehicle that’s far more likely to lead the way toward an electrified future. It’s the Transit Connect Electric, a full battery version of the little commercial van that Ford introduced to Canada for 2010. Electric trucks are already in use in many areas of the world, and Canada Post is already running a few of these Transit Connects. Full Article
I've said here and other places that for my anticipated use for a second vehicle-commuter the all-electric Ford Transit Connect is the near-ideal vehicle. Unfortunately, no one at Ford, from Corporate to local dealers is prepared/willing to discuss when it will become available to non- corporate drivers. Also from the cited article: "Battery vehicles are also ideal for companies that send their trucks out on set routes, such as couriers, since they know how many kilometres the trucks will have to cover in a day. The trucks also come back to a central depot around the same time each night, where they can be recharged. That type of range restriction is still an issue with many consumers, who want the convenience of a vehicle that can be driven for any distance at any given time, and who don’t yet have access to a network of charging stations beyond any that can be installed at their homes." The underlined portion almost exactly describes the typical use for a mostly devoted-to-commuting vehicle. It is unfortunate that unlike Nissan, and soon Mitsubishi, Ford doesn't trust potential eTC buyers to understand their needs, and the vehicles published range.
Well, the Transit Connect gasser was never actually targeted to the general public either. Limiting the eTC market may simply be to control battery and EV component supply for the upcoming Focus EV.
At first I was thinking a hybrid Transit Connect would be better, but then I started thinking that if businesses use these as delivery vehicles, they would be sitting at the company loading dock or garage for 20-30 minutes between deliveries and could be "topped off" of charged a little here and there throughout the day, aside from being fully charged over night. This could work out very well for many companies and save a lot of $$$ on gasoline. For other businesses, such as tradesmen that own their own Transit Connect, I think a hybrid is needed. In the future, when plugin hybrid costs come down, they could offer a plugin hybrid.
