Amazon is now adding electric vehicles
to its fleet. It has ordered 100 of Mercedes-Benz’s eVito transit vans, which
Mercedes says will hit the market sometime next year. The vans’ range is only
150 – 100 Km, depending on use conditions, which is 62 miles – 92 miles, but in
a city that can cover a lot of ground. They charge in 6 hours.
Amazon’s eVito deployment will take
place by the end of next year. Mercedes says that it can be customized for the
task and customer, with different lengths and wheelbases for instance. The
eVito will have 3 different driving programs and 4 recuperation phases that
“enable the driver to get the very best from his/her vehicle at all times based
on different usage parameters and individual driving style.”
Mercedes-Benz also announced a new
eSprinter full-size delivery van. The alternative-fueled vehicle has the same
amount of cargo room as the internal-combustion-powered version (10.5m cubed),
with a max 900Kg (about 1,984 pounds) payload and 55 kWh battery capacity and
150km of range. Mercedes also teased a fuel-cell-powered Sprinter van concept.
This is an interesting partnership. It
will be interesting to see how Amazon uses these vans in the field and if they
buy more. It is perfect for city use everywhere.
