TECH INSIDER | FORD TRANSIT CUSTOM PHEV
www.electrichybridvehicletechnology.com // January 2020 // 25
Cars have lent themselves
well to electrification,
with mass production
economies of scale
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helping to steer the market.
The light commercial vehicle
sector has been slower
to adapt to electrified
powertrains, but with low
and ultra-low emission zones
arriving in cities the world
over, LCVs are now firmly in
the spotlight when it comes to
meeting clean air targets.
The past two years have seen
a boom in the electrified one-ton and
two-ton light commercial markets, and the
Transit Custom PHEV is a plug-in version of
Ford’s revered 54-year-old nameplate. Unlike
rivals such as LDV’s E80 and the triumvirate of
incoming electric vans from Groupe PSA that
are targeting 200 and 300km (125 and 186-
mile) ranges, Ford has prioritized maximum
usability for its plug-in commercial. The first
PHEV in the segment, the plug-in Transit can
travel much longer distances due to its 1.0-liter
Ecoboost petrol engine which extends its total
range to 499km (310 miles) by charging the
on-board battery pack when longer trips are
required. Electric-only range is 56km (35 miles)
and charging time is 2.7 hours on a 7kW Type 2
AC point, 4.3 hours on a 240V connection. Four
selectable driving modes control the available
battery charge, and two levels of regenerative braking
capture electrical energy.
Prototype development started in June 2016. Initiated
at Ford’s Dunton technical center, UK engineering group
Prodrive Advanced Technology was involved in building
prototypes for a Transport for London and Advanced
Propulsion Centre-supported fleet trial program. “The
first running prototype vehicles were at the LCV event in
September 2017, just 15 months after the project started,”
states James McGeachie, engineering director at Prodrive
Advanced Technology. “All 27 vehicles for the trials were
delivered by March 2018, a timescale of 20 months from
concept rendering to final delivery. Ford is now entering
production, so it has effectively created a new vehicle
platform in less than three years.”
“Key to achieving such tight timescales
was how closely and well Ford and Prodrive
worked together,” claims McGeachie. “We
exchanged design data weekly so Ford
could put our prototype design data into
its production design process and see
the effect of the requirements it put upon
us almost in real time, and how it would
affect its own production design. The
senior Ford and Prodrive project teams
met at Prodrive in Banbury every week
to make key decisions on design direction.
1. Plug-in electric power for
light commercial vehicles
will enable companies to
meet emissions targets
being enforced in cities
2. A 1.0-liter Ecoboost
engine is coupled with a
92.9kW electric motor for
a combined range of
499km (310 miles)
3. Four driving modes
control the available
battery charge and levels
of regenerative braking
4. Ford wanted to ensure
there was no difference
or compromise in internal
space compared with the
internal combustionengined
Transit
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VITAL
STATISTICS
Motor: 1 x 92.9kW
Battery: 13.6kWh Li-ion
Range: 56km (35 miles) EV-only/
499km (310 miles) total
Engine: 999cc turbocharged petrol
CO2 emissions: 60g/km (NEDC)
Max speed: 120km/h (74mph)
Payload: 2,491lbs (1,130kg)
Load capacity: 211ft³ (6m³)
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