The new eVito has a battery capacity of 41 kWh, which gives it a range of 150 kilometres. The charging time is six hours at a connected load of 7.2 kW AC. The preparatory investigations for the eSprinter ultimately led to the offer of two different ranges: 150 kilometres and 115 kilometres. “We learned that there are customers for whom a vehicle’s payload is more important than its range. By contrast, other interested customers said they needed a greater range and a lower payload,” Reis said.
The team developed a free-of-charge smartphone app (eVan Ready) to provide additional support for customers’ transition to electric mobility. The app can be downloaded from the App Stores. If the customer uses the app during daily drives in any vehicle, the app records the route and then calculates how much of this route can be driven with an eVito.
How will the electrification process continue in the future? The next step in the electrification of vans can be seen in the Concept Sprinter F-CELL. This prototype, which has been designed as a camper van, exemplifies all the advantages of hydrogen drive, which is especially suitable for longer courier runs.
The Concept Sprinter F-CELL combines a fuel-cell drive system with a plug-in hybrid that has a system output of approximately 147 kW. By installing an enlarged hydrogen tank in the rear area, the range can be increased from about 300 kilometres to 530 kilometres. That offers more leeway for creating customised models.