All-electric Ford E-Transit in the bridle test: also an electrician?

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Unbelievable but true: For almost 60 years, since 1965, Ford’s Transporter Transit has been a welcome aid to construction companies, freight forwarders, and craft businesses. As a box truck or flatbed truck, it is mostly used in urban areas or in agglomeration where the usual diesel fumes are particularly harmful. No wonder Ford is now introducing an all-electric drive to the workforce. An excuse exercise or a real alternative to Büezerbuden? Blick wanted to know more about it and hired E-Transit to move his music room.

Visually, you can’t see the E in the Transit: Only the blue crossbars in the radiator grille indicate that the test vehicle is fully electric. For propulsion, there is a choice of two electric motors of 135 kW (184 hp) or 198 kW (269 hp) – 125 kW (170 hp) in the diesel version with the highest performance feel. Of course, the E-Transit, like its combustion-engined brethren, is available in numerous variants: single or double cab van or chassis in two heights and three lengths. Our test vehicle is the shortest (L2) and flattest (H2) variant 350 with an allowable total weight of 3500 kilograms.

Two colleagues, who often travel for work in vehicles like the Transit, stare in amazement from the front passenger seats: “You don’t even notice the van is already moving, it’s so quiet!” There’s also strength when it comes to rest: Although we’re driving the weaker of the two E variants, the E-Transit is unusually fast for a commercial vehicle and is smooth even at full load, thanks to its full torque of 430 Nm. . The transporter is extremely enjoyable to drive and almost as easy to drive as a passenger car: the steering is finely tuned and the chassis is not too tight thanks to the rear-independent wheel suspension. It’s also okay for the e-transit to run at a maximum speed of 110 km/h on the highway in favor of range: with a practical range of around 250 kilometers, it’s no longer a long-distance runner.

E-Transit is as modern in the cockpit as it is enjoyable on the road: a central 12-inch touchscreen with Ford’s latest “wireless” updated Sync 4 infotainment system is standard on the E-Transit, with automatic climate control on board, heated windshield and as seats. The latest driving assistants on the shelves of the group are also available – sometimes for an additional fee. There are also practical shelves and clever details, such as a 230 V socket in the luggage compartment (1235 Fr.), which can be used to cool the load or power tools. But most importantly: E-Transit loads a lot. In more than six cubic meters of cargo space of the 2660 kg test car, the payload is 840 kg. Theoretically, a maximum payload of 1624 kilograms is possible in the E-Transit (model 425 L2 H2).

We cannot detect many weak spots. Controlled by pressing the “L” button on the gear selector lever on the one hand and tapping the brake on the other, the power of recovery is a bit cumbersome in practice – the paddles on the steering wheel would be the better solution here. And the price of the E-Transit also seems high at first glance: without the extras, our test van costs more than 73,000 francs, about 15,000 francs more than the comparable diesel variant. E-Transit will still be beneficial for trade or transport companies, as fuel and maintenance costs are also significantly lower than with an internal combustion engine.

In other minibuses, the diesel engine is buzzed; In the extremely quiet E-Transit, it is the air conditioner that sets the sound to unusually loud during start-up. Otherwise, the strong current convinces with a lot of power and utility, and it is so enjoyable to drive that no Büezer would want to do without it after the first test drive. If necessary, the 77 kWh battery (68 kWh usable) is recharged to 80 percent on the DC fast charger (115 kW max) during the 35-minute master lunch. For us Ford E-Transit is a true electrician!

Source: Blick