2022 Ford eTransit , an EV cargo van is here

Christopher Tracy

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Ford updated the Transit van this year with an all-wheel-drive system, color-matched bumpers, and lots of safety tech. Future Transit vans are going to have more powertrain options. Ford announced that the E-Transit is coming for the 2022 model year. The new EV vans will be constructed at the same plant as the rest of the North American Transits in Claycomo, Missouri.

Range Anxiety

Ford has been the leader in commercial vans for decades. The initial numbers for the E-Transit are not record breakers. The batteries and electric motors will produce 266 horsepower and 318 pound-feet of torque. The estimated range is 126 miles. This seems like an incredibly low number especially given the world’s mixed reactions to the Porsche Taycan being rated for 202 miles of range.

Since Ford has dominated the commercial van space, it also means that the Ford team has data for miles driven on those vans. The average commercial vehicle’s daily distance is 74 miles. The E-Transit has the ability to charge 30 miles of range in 10 minutes on a 115-plus-DC fast charger and approximately 45 miles of range in 15 minutes. The charge times are currently based on simulations. We will have to see what it looks like in the real world. The E-Transit features should make a move to an EV easier to swallow.

Capacity & Flexibility

The batteries for the E-Transit are located underneath the rear floor of the van and do not encroach on the cargo area. The rear suspension was adjusted to make room for the batteries and maintained the 487.3 cubic feet of cargo volume.

The E-Transite is also available with the Pro Power Onboard, which turns the van into your personal generator. It produces enough electricity to run power tools. Pretty handy if you are on a job site with no electricity.

EVs are the future, whether we want them or not.

All-New-Ford-E-Transit-All-Electric-F-150 (1)

There isn’t a current EV that this large enough for my family to use consistently. But a wave of EVs coming: the Rivian R1T & R1S, Tesla Cybertruck (maybe by 2025, j/k), F-150 EV & Mustang Mach-E, GMC Hummer EV, Lucid Air, Bollinger B1 & B2, Polestar 1 & 2, and more. There is going to be an option soon that is functional for a large family, possibly a passenger version of the E-Transit someday too.

We will see.

About

Christopher Tracy

Christopher Tracy

Chris works in marketing by day and writes offroad automotive pieces by night. Chris is the producer/cohost of the Off The Road Again Podcast. A dad trying to get his kids outside more. IG: @overlandingdad.

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15 responses to “2022 Ford eTransit , an EV cargo van is here”

  1. Tiberiuswise Avatar
    Tiberiuswise

    This has the potential to dominate the small school bus / day camp van market. With good corporate visibility.

    Reply
    1. Scoutdude Avatar
      Scoutdude

      Also the hotel and rental car shuttles. Each round trip is usually just a couple of miles and it sits at its home base between runs. Even if it doesn’t get a full recharge between runs it will top off overnight.

      Reply
      1. Tiberiuswise Avatar
        Tiberiuswise

        Good point Great visibility for the hotel chain too. See how green we are!

        Reply
        1. Scoutdude Avatar
          Scoutdude

          The other one I just thought of is universities and colleges. The typically have vans for maintenance staff. They often stay on campus and when they do go some place it is usually fairly local.

          Reply
  2. neight428 Avatar
    neight428

    Folks that operate vans usually aren’t going to pay a premium if they can’t get their money back. Interested to see prices.

    Reply
    1. Scoutdude Avatar
      Scoutdude

      I’ve seen the price listed as $45k. In many places running it on electricity will be cheaper than gas or diesel. Particularly for vehicles that have a lot of idle time.

      Reply
    2. Maymar Avatar
      Maymar

      Rough estimate is this would save about$1000 in fuel cost per year, and it’s looking like a $10k bump in price (not including any tax rebates). Plus, Ford is quoting 40% lower maintenance costs. Should be possible to save money over the total life, but curious to see how the residuals will work out for shorter ownership cycles.

      Reply
    3. crank_case Avatar
      crank_case

      Don’t forget that the Transits heartland is Europe, though it’s clearly making waves in the US and a lot of those European cities increasingly have ULEZs and congestion charges. Simply not having to pay such charges each day (EVs are generally exempt) adds up. Maintenance would be a big one too, especially for a van doing urban deliveries. No hours of crankshaft wear in low speed traffic, no particulate filter getting clogged because you haven’t done enough highway miles to do a proper regeneration cycle.

      Reply
  3. Scoutdude Avatar
    Scoutdude

    We have a C-Max Energi running it on electricity costs about 3.8 cents per mile. running it on gas it costs ~ 6.4 cents per mile. So electricity saves ~40% with current prices in my area of 12.5 cents/kwh and gas at $2.45/gal.

    If the van does 75mi/day 250 days/yr that is 18,750 per year. Using the 17 combined that is about $2700 per year. So potential to save $1000 per year on energy, at current prices in my area. Though in the real world in may applications the ICE powered van will do much worse with all the stopping at starting. Meanwhile that slow stop and go is where an EV shines thanks to regen braking. So I suspect the real world savings will be higher, depending on current prices.

    Reply
    1. Lokki Avatar
      Lokki

      I worked for a Florist as a part-time delivery driver for a couple years, and used a little Ford (?) Connect for the job. It was a nice design, and I liked it quite a bit. I don’t recall my daily average mileage but I would imagine this EV would do just fine particularly noting the ability to add on a quick-charge range supplement. Having said that I can’t imagine our owner -ever- springing $45K for one of these. A quick check on local pricing shows that brand new Ford Connect Transits run about $23- 24K. That means that the van has to (Using Scoutdude’s numbers) last 20 years; maybe 15 years assuming twice-a-year oil changes to effect any real savings. In my area at least any savings from shutdown at stops for either ICE or EV get eliminated by the need to keep HVAC running as we hit extremes in heat and cold. Besides, the amount of idle-time elimination on 75 miles a day is going to be so minuscule as to be irrelevant to anyone who isn’t running a fleet of a hundred of these.

      I understand that in Europe laws will require these EV’s and that California here and other niches will as well, but where regulation doesn’t force the decision, I can’t see a lot of people committing to an extra $20K, and the interest on borrowing that amount, up front.

      FWIW

      Reply
      1. Scoutdude Avatar
        Scoutdude

        Well the comparison to a Transit Connect is a bit unfair. If a TC is suitable for the job, which for many it is then this isn’t a great replacement. However if you need a Transit then this could be a viable alternative. However like you say there are places where ICE are on the way to being locked out. You mentioned CA and they have stated that they are only going to buy EVs for state owned vehicles if one is available. So at this point it looks like Ford will have a lock on every Van based vehicle purchased for gov’t use in CA. In Europe they are making areas where ICE are banned so again if you’ve got a delivery to make in that area you are going to have to buy an EV.

        Reply
    2. Lokki Avatar
      Lokki

      I worked for a Florist as a part-time delivery driver for a couple years, and used a little Ford (?) Connect for the job. It was a nice design, and I liked it quite a bit. I don’t recall my daily average mileage but I would imagine this EV would do just fine particularly noting the ability to add on a quick-charge range supplement. Having said that I can’t imagine our owner -ever- springing $45K for one of these. A quick check on local pricing shows that brand new Ford Connect Transits run about $23- 24K. That means that the van has to (Using Scoutdude’s numbers) last 20 years; maybe 15 years assuming twice-a-year oil changes to effect any real savings. In my area at least any savings from shutdown at stops for either ICE or EV get eliminated by the need to keep HVAC running as we hit extremes in heat and cold. Besides, the amount of idle-time elimination on 75 miles a day is going to be so minuscule as to be irrelevant to anyone who isn’t running a fleet of a hundred of these.

      I understand that in Europe laws will require these EV’s and that California here and other niches will as well, but where regulation doesn’t force the decision, I can’t see a lot of people committing to an extra $20K, and the interest on borrowing that amount, up front.

      FWIW

      Reply
  4. Zentropy Avatar
    Zentropy

    I think this is a smart offering, but I’m surprised Ford didn’t start with an electric Connect.

    Reply
    1. Maymar Avatar
      Maymar

      I’m fairly sure the Connect is due for replacement in a year or two, so it might be baked into the next generation.

      Reply
  5. outback_ute Avatar
    outback_ute

    I wonder if that range figure is empty or loaded, I can take a guess, and how much it drops when loaded with its 3800 lb capacity.

    I am surprised that they don’t offer more options than just a 67 kWh battery so that customers can choose between range, cost and battery weight. Perhaps that will come in the future.

    Reply