Alternative fuel LCV ancestors

Unlike the passenger car sector, the low-carbon commercial vehicle market is still in its infancy. Constant new developments aim to change that, but it is not a new challenge. GreenFleet puts on its rose-tinted glasses and looks back at some of the greener CVs of yesterday.

Light commercial vehicles (LCVs) are a common sight on our road network, whether they are plying the motorway or scooting through urban areas. Ever-developing technology is making the sector cleaner, but the number of low-carbon LCVs in daily use is still small compared to the passenger car market. The challenge is not new: the technology has been around since the turn of the 20th century. Here, GreenFleet documents some of the past attempts to get LCVs greener.

Quiet running and reliability
London stores such as Harrods were among the first to use electric LCVs in the 1910s. A number of 1-tonne vans were imported from the US and then, just as now, users were impressed with the quiet running and reliability the electric commercial vehicle can offer.

In 1936, the Knightsbridge store invested in a 60-strong fleet of coach‑built 1-tonne vans with a 60-mile range. It wasn’t until the mid-1960s that Harrods retired its electric van fleet, with a few having covered around 350,000 miles.

Surprisingly, almost two thirds of the US’ fleet of heavy duty commercial vehicles were electric as early as 1905, and the Electric Vehicle Association of America was set up in 1910 in a bid to convince the public that green was good. In the UK, the Royal Mail dabbled with a fleet of electrified vans, but was still reluctant to invest in a large order.

It wasn’t until after the Second World War that there were ripples in the UK’s burgeoning electric commercial vehicle market with the arrival of new towns and concrete housing developments. Increased populations in these areas needed access to facilities and services, and so mobile shops and delivery vans were seen as a necessity to serve these off-the‑beaten track families.

Small battery-powered commercial vehicles such as the Trojan Electrovan delivered a quiet and popular service to customers and operators alike.

Major player
Another major player was the Harbilt HSV3. A UK‑manufactured light commercial van, the HSV3 could keep up with urban traffic flow easily, and although heavier batteries meant its payload was reduced compared to the thousands of milk floats Harbilt also made, the HSV3 was extremely popular and helped Harbilt Electric Trucks and Vehicles become the market leader – over 80 per cent of the 50,000 electric vehicles on the road up to the 1970s were Harbilts. It even exported vans to the US.

The world’s first hydrogen fuel cell vehicle arrived in 1966, in the shape of the General Motors (GM) Electrovan. Using high power silver-zinc battery technology and an AC‑induction motor with a solid‑state controller from GM’s Electrovair II electric car, the Electrovan was a converted Corvair van which ditched Electrovair’s batteries for a cryogenic fuel cell system. The rather sizable van had continuous and peak outputs of 32kW and 160kW respectively.

Not particularly safe and therefore not approved for full‑scale production, the Electrovan also carried a pair of rear‑mounted pressurised storage tanks for liquid hydrogen and oxygen.

While it may have not been safe, the Electrovan had an impressive range of over 120 miles, but the inherent danger of explosions was as volatile as the gas in its tanks. The use of fuel cells in the 1960s space race proved the inspiration behind the Electrovan, but as time was to prove, it was by no means the final frontier as far as the technology was concerned. However, in some quarters, it was seen as the most advanced electric vehicle yet built. 

Number of powertrains
Around the same time as General Motors was experimenting with hybrid fuel cells, Volkswagen was developing a number of powertrains for its popular Type 2 light commercial vehicle. The T2 Elektro Transporter was powered by a 17kW/23bhp continuous output electric motor, with a with a peak output of 33kW. Range was around 50 miles from the 850kg bank of lead acid batteries, which were sandwiched between the cargo floor and the chassis.

Heavy batteries meant a heavy overall weight, though. The 3,075kg Elektro Transporter had a top speed of 46mph and got to 31mph in a very leisurely 12 seconds. A single‑speed drive transmission put the batteries’ power down to the wheels, while an early form of regenerative braking showcased technology which we take for granted today.

Around 150 Elektro Transporters were actually built for use in urban areas, and VW also developed prototype hybrid-electric microbus taxi and gas turbine T2 variants. As Volkswagen concentrates on developing its electromobility offerings and displayed its all-electric BUDD-e microbus concept at this year’s Consumer Electronics Show (pages 22-23), the Elektro Transporter shows that the company has investigated the electric commercial vehicle before.

First fossil fuel-derived mass‑produced EV
British electric components company Lucas Batteries Ltd also made several commercial EVs. The 1982 Lucas Electric Delivery Van was based around the Bedford CF van. The CF Electric was the first mass-produced EV derived from a fossil fuel vehicle. Built in partnership between Bedford, Lucas, Chloride Group and the UK government on a five-year grant scheme, the CF Electric had batteries mounted below the load compartment in-between the front and rear axles, just like several modern-day EVs.

A motor at the rear, coupled to a step-down reduction gearbox, provided the motive power, with a control system mounted under the bonnet, while a diesel-powered heater provided warmth. Regenerative braking also featured in the CF Electric, though was not advisable in the wet, as the motor locked the rear wheels in a similar fashion to applying the handbrake.

Among users of the CF Electric were government agencies, Royal Mail as well as local authorities. With a much higher price than a standard CF van, and slow-advancing battery technology out paid to the CF Electric, it was withdrawn in 1987.