Here is a real-world look at a GM BrightDrop EV commercial van. BrightDrop is a new company under GM’s umbrella and it is focused on electrified commercial vehicles and delivery ecosystem. BrightDrop already announced planned large-scale deployments of these all-electric vans for FedEx and Walmart delivery fleets. This appears to be a prototype or a production EV600 van with no corporate livery.
Big thanks to Matt Leos for sending us these images.
The EV600 name refers to the approximate cargo volume of the van of nearly 600 cu-ft. BrightDrop plans to produce and sell vans with smaller and larger capacities. The electrified delivery van market is quickly becoming competitive. BrightDrop delivered at least five vans to FedEx already. Rivian has been working on and has started to produce their EDVs. The 2022 Ford E-Transit is hitting the market very soon. Ram is planning to produce and sell an electrified version of the ProMaster van next year with Amazon being one of its first customers in the U.S.
The EV driving range and payload ratings vary depending on the van size and manufacturer. Ford is predicting around 126 miles of driving range for the E-Transit. Rivian and BrightDrop are estimating between 150-200 miles of range. Still, many other specifications are unknown. One of the most important pieces of information has to be the charging speed. Our real-world testing shows that DC fast-charger availability and actual charging speeds vary greatly.
There is also the matter of the charging curve. Will fleet and commercial customers need to charge their vans back up to 100% after each working shift or will a 15-80% charge suffice? Getting a full 100% charge will take much longer. How long can a van remain idle in order to recharge? Naturally, this will depend on each customer and each use case. This is why Rivian and other companies are providing fleet management and remote monitoring software (such as the Rivian FleetOS) in order to help answer these questions.
We hope to test and review more electrified vans in the near future.
