Re: [EVDL] EVLN: (Spy shots)> USPS's New Electric US Postal/Mail Truck

[Mark Abramowitz via EV]

Support has to be there from the top, and it has to be generated downward, or 
once again, the effort won't be successful.

Sent from my iPhone

> On Oct 15, 2017, at 12:28 AM, EVDL Administrator via EV  
> wrote:
> 
> The USPS has flirted with EVs off and on since the 1970s.  They've run 
> pilots and prototypes.  I remember an AMC-made Jeep body conversion in the 
> 1970s.  In the the early 1980s, the infamous ill-fated Commuter Vehicles 
> postal vans went far wide of the USPS's requirements, essentially putting 
> the final nails in CVI's coffin.  Also in the early 80s were rather nice 
> boxy prototype postal vehicles built by either AM General or Grumman (I 
> forget which) and based on the VW Rabbit; at least some of these were fitted 
> with an EV drivetrain.  
> 
> In the  early 2000s the USPS had a small and IIRC rather short-lived affair 
> with postal vehicles using Grumman LLV bodies on Ford Ranger EV pickup 
> chassis (the current ICE LLV uses an old Chevrolet S10 chassis design, and 
> gets an excruciating 9mpg).  The Ford-based EV LLVs I think were deployed 
> only in California.  Maybe Bruce remembers more about these, and will 
> correct any errors I've made.
> 
> None of these trial programs has ever led to serious EV adoption by the 
> USPS.  They seemed to be more window dressing than anything, and I also 
> heard rumors of outright sabotage by their mechanics (this has happened with 
> many corporate EV fleet tests in the past).
> 
> The USPS wants a $25-35k price tag for this new delivery vehicle.  I can't 
> imagine the one described here coming in anywhere near that, especially 
> since it isn't a pure BEV, but rather a true series hybrid, with a small 
> onboard range-extension genset.
> 
> I may be making too many assumptions, but despite what they say, I don't 
> really think the USPS's top brass want EVs.  So I have some doubts that 
> we'll end up with a BEV or even a true hybrid delivering our mail.  But we 
> can hope.
> 
> David Roden - Akron, Ohio, USA
> EVDL Administrator
> 
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Re: [EVDL] EVLN: (Spy shots)> USPS's New Electric US Postal/Mail Truck

[EVDL Administrator via EV]

The USPS has flirted with EVs off and on since the 1970s.  They've run 
pilots and prototypes.  I remember an AMC-made Jeep body conversion in the 
1970s.  In the the early 1980s, the infamous ill-fated Commuter Vehicles 
postal vans went far wide of the USPS's requirements, essentially putting 
the final nails in CVI's coffin.  Also in the early 80s were rather nice 
boxy prototype postal vehicles built by either AM General or Grumman (I 
forget which) and based on the VW Rabbit; at least some of these were fitted 
with an EV drivetrain.  

In the  early 2000s the USPS had a small and IIRC rather short-lived affair 
with postal vehicles using Grumman LLV bodies on Ford Ranger EV pickup 
chassis (the current ICE LLV uses an old Chevrolet S10 chassis design, and 
gets an excruciating 9mpg).  The Ford-based EV LLVs I think were deployed 
only in California.  Maybe Bruce remembers more about these, and will 
correct any errors I've made.

None of these trial programs has ever led to serious EV adoption by the 
USPS.  They seemed to be more window dressing than anything, and I also 
heard rumors of outright sabotage by their mechanics (this has happened with 
many corporate EV fleet tests in the past).

The USPS wants a $25-35k price tag for this new delivery vehicle.  I can't 
imagine the one described here coming in anywhere near that, especially 
since it isn't a pure BEV, but rather a true series hybrid, with a small 
onboard range-extension genset.

I may be making too many assumptions, but despite what they say, I don't 
really think the USPS's top brass want EVs.  So I have some doubts that 
we'll end up with a BEV or even a true hybrid delivering our mail.  But we 
can hope.

David Roden - Akron, Ohio, USA
EVDL Administrator

= = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = =
EVDL Information: http://www.evdl.org/help/
= = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = 
Note: mail sent to "evpost" and "etpost" addresses will not 
reach me.  To send a private message, please obtain my 
email address from the webpage http://www.evdl.org/help/ .
= = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = =


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[EVDL] EVLN: (Spy shots)> USPS's New Electric US Postal/Mail Truck

[brucedp5 via EV]

https://jalopnik.com/heres-the-secret-new-electric-u-s-postal-service-truck-1819339421
Here's The Secret New Electric US Postal Service Truck
Oct 11, 2017  Jason Torchinsky

[images  
https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/s--U2sDE02I--/c_scale,fl_progressive,q_80,w_800/lndrtskrfwf5ccbfbpxu.png

https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/s--no9gWDkg--/c_scale,fl_progressive,q_80,w_800/ap0k6pzytw9a7zgvjfoc.jpg
Credit USPS

https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/s--QeRLmB20--/c_scale,fl_progressive,q_80,w_800/fdmzf7oxlzy20ouxoxob.png


share
TrucksDotCom @trucksdotcom
Workhorse Group is one of the 5 finalists in the contest to build the
postal service’s next delivery truck #Spyshots https://on.trucks.com/2g5Nykj 
4:58 PM - Oct 9, 2017 
]

I’m not sure if you’re aware of this or not, but one of the biggest
competitions in the automobile world is happening right now, under our very
noses: the race to see what vehicle will be delivering our mail. The Grumman
Long Life Vehicle (LLV) that has been delivering America’s mail since the
1980s is nearing the end of its Long Life, and there’s potentially 180,000
U.S. Postal Service trucks needed to take the LLV’s place.

Right now, a number of vehicle-builders are competing for the contract,
including AM General, Oshkosh, Karsan, Mahindra, and the makers of the truck
just spotted in Virginia, the team of Workhorse Group and VT Hackney.

Workhorse has been building electric pickup and delivery trucks and is
providing the chassis and drivetrain of the all-electric mail truck, while
VT Hackney is handling the body.

Here’s what a Trucks.com reader spotted, just delivering Amazon boxes and
overdue bills like it’s no big thing ...

Woah, look at that. That’s an interesting-looking vehicle. While the USPS’
Next Generation Delivery Vehicle Program rules don’t require an all-electric
solution, about half of the entries do feature hybrid or alternative-fuel
technology, though the Workhorse/VTHackney entry appears to be the only
fully battery/electric vehicle.

The Workhorse electric mail truck is based largely on Workhorse’s pickup
truck, the W-15, there do appear to be some key differences, the most
notable of which is the replacement of the W-15's large range-extending
gasoline engine with a smaller unit from BMW. Maybe the same modified
motorcycle engine that acts as a range extender in BMW’s i3?

The all-electric range of the W-15 is 80 miles, and the truck can hold 2,200
lbs. The Post office requires only 1,500 lbs of payload. That’s a lot of
mail!

The design of the Postal Truck is interesting; the hood is quite low and
sloping., and the greenhouse is very tall, with a huge, panoramic
windshield.

The triple-headlight cluster gives the truck’s face a sort of
insectoid-alien look, and the whole thing looks comfortingly like a familiar
mail truck, just somewhat more modern.

I think for most mail carriers, the biggest question will be if these things
have air conditioning. Current LLVs don’t have anything but a dinky little
fan, and the trucks get pretty miserable in the summer heat.

This competition is already turning out to be pretty interesting. Bozi,
everyone’s favorite document-comber, found details on Mahindra’s entry,
which appears to be based on their Genio truck, but with an engine from a
Chevy Colorado pickup, fitted with GM’s mild hybrid setup. I’ve actually
driven a Genio and liked it, so I’m very curious to see how Mahindra’s bid
turns out.

In case you’re wondering why any rational person would care about mail
trucks at all, I’d just like to point something out: for most people, a mail
truck is the only vehicle they encounter on a regular basis that isn’t built
by one of the mainstream automakers.

Grumman LLVs are interesting because they’re not some modified Ford or GM
product or whatever. They’re their own unique thing. So many American cities
are just parades of the same four or five kinds of SUVs and cars that
injecting something somewhat unexpected into the mix via something as
mundane as a mail truck I think helps, in some way.

I love the idea that the Post Office gets to define its own purpose-built
vehicle, and deploy it, en masse, all across the country. When else does
that happen? I also love that nearly all the main competitors competing to
make the Next Generation Delivery Vehicle are relatively unknown in the
mainstream.

I just hope something nice and weird wins.
[© 2017 Gizmodo Media]



https://www.trucks.com/2017/10/09/spy-shots-postal-service-workhorse-electric-mail-truck/
Spy shots: The Postal Service's New Electric Mail Truck?
October 9, 2017  Jerry Hirsch

[images  
https://www.trucks.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/workhorse-electric-truck-spy-shots.jpg
Prototype electric U.S. Postal Service truck delivers mail in Leesburg, Va. 
/ Trucks.com
]

The first photos of a prototype mail delivery truck indicate that the U.S.
Postal Service may be going electric.

The photos were taken recently by a