Looking for an eco-friendly vehicle? This electric van might be the solution

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With the push for more sustainable transport, electric vehicles (EV) are becoming the talk of the town.

However, the focus still remains on passenger cars as they get the most daily usage. But, what if we told you that goods vehicles get just as much, if not more, usage as they're often operated throughout the day?

If we want to do our part to reduce pollution, then re-examining our goods vehicles is essential. And using an electric goods vehicle — such as the Maxus E-Deliver 3 -— could be a step in the right direction.

The E-Deliver 3 has 4,800 litres of boot space, perfect for cargo delivery. There isn't a rear view mirror, but you get a reverse camera instead. It's activated when the gear is put in reverse. Speaking of gears, the gear stick has a simple setup of three notches — one each for drive, neutral, and reverse.

You might think of electric vehicles as modern, but the interior doesn't much feel like it. That being said, goods vehicles are catered for utility and less for driver experience and engagement. After all, the boss who buys the van probably won't be the one driving it.

The vehicle also utilises an analog instrument cluster with an LCD digital display. This is where you get information like range and settings, especially when switching between the regenerative braking levels.

There are three regenerative braking levels, and at the highest setting, you can drive without needing to use the brake pedal as it automatically slows the van down.

With this setup though, energy is expended to move off, only to be converted back to battery energy, and there is some energy drop-off during the transition.

Think of it like transferring water from one container to another and having spillage. As such, it makes me wonder about the efficiency of such a setup.

However, this isn't unique to the E-Deliver 3. The Nissan e-Power system and the Kia Niro EV have a similar feature as well.

Strong and 'torquey'

Being an electric vehicle, the E-Deliver 3 felt strong and 'torquey' while driving. It accelerates easily, compared to its petrol or diesel counterparts which require some build-up.

The weight distribution of the van is also a plus point. Due to the location of the battery, it is less front-heavy compared to most vans with an internal combustion engine (ICE), resulting in better stability while driving.

On paper, the E-Deliver 3 has a 240km range, and that's rated on a 70 per cent max-weight load. In simple terms, the van can travel for an estimated 240km on a full charge if it is carrying 70 per cent of its maximum load weight.

This is something for business owners to consider as the E-Deliver 3 really shines if you're travelling within the recommended distance.

If you intend to travel beyond the recommended 240km, it becomes more challenging. Refuelling for an ICE vehicle with petrol or diesel takes mere minutes, as opposed to electric vehicles taking 45 minutes (on DC charging stations) to get 80 per cent charge on the battery.

And that's also assuming you can find a charging station easily.

Switching to electric might save you a ton in gas money but you incur invisible costs through time — both from charging and finding charging points.

With a majority of Singaporeans living in HDBs, charging is going to be a hassle as ports are not readily available in those areas. Even if you have a charging station nearby, you'd still need to see if there's an available parking lot.

Commercial owners, though, are a little more fortunate as those with accessible parking spaces can have their own charging stations installed at their business location. In fact, you can request a list of vendors from Cycle and Carriage.

One last thing I'm not too keen about is the speed warning system. All goods vehicles in Singapore are regulated to have an alarm that goes off once the vehicle reaches 70km/h. My first vehicle was a Suzuki Every, also a goods vehicle, and the speed warning's incessant beeps almost drove me crazy.

All in all, the E-Deliver 3 provides a unique solution that offers great value if it's allowed to shine.

Small businesses, and start-ups (like home businesses) that want to be more eco-friendly and require some form of transportation for their goods will get the most mileage out of this.

Side note: You can use it to ferry people around, but that's not really the intended use.

If you're looking at heavy-duty usage, then a traditional ICE van will be more suitable for now due to the limitations of the E-Deliver 3, and the fact that an EV commercial vehicle fleet might still be some time away.

editor@asiaone.com