On the home front, where the Connect EV has been up for grabs for longer than in Europe, the model continues to enter the big fleet operators budget plans. After it managed to sell all the models in the initial test program, Ford and Azure Dynamics, the company responsible for converting the model to an EV, announced an order for an extra 27 vehicles to a variety of customers.
Purchased by FedEx Express, the City of Toronto, DTE Energy and a bunch of Ford commercial truck dealers, the new EVs will hit the roads with some precise goals in mind: take part in the creation of the world's hardest working vehicle fleet (FedEx), become the first pure EVs in DTE's fleet or be employed by local authorities in Toronto.
"These new orders underscore several key drivers in the electric vehicle market expansion," said Scott Harrison, Azure Dynamics CEO. "Some major vehicle fleets like Azure customers' FedEx, AT&T, Canada Post, Post Norway, etc, are employing specific quantities of Transit Connect Electric vans to gain operational experience with the technology in advance of expected increased deployment.”
Based on the long wheelbase Connect, the electric version of the Transit is powered by a Force Drive system that comprises a battery electric drive train capable of giving the vehicle a range of 130 km or 80 miles on a full charge and a top speed of 120 km/h (75 mph).
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