2011 Ford Transit Connect Electric Car Review
Ford Transit Connect Electric is well-suited for commercial fleets that travel predictable, short-range routes with frequent stop-and-go driving in urban and suburban environments and a central location for daily recharging.
The Specs
This quirky EV starts as what Ford calls a "glider," a chassis built alongside other Transit Connects in Turkey but without an engine, transmission or fuel system. Ford ships its glider to contract assembler AM General's brand spanking new Livonia, Mich., facility, where it's fitted with electric goodies from Azure Dynamics.
The battery adds nearly 1000 pounds, so the rear spring rates were increased and the maximum payload reduced from 1,600 pounds to 1,000. Ouch. Azure has committed orders from several energy companies, but 2011 will see only about 200 Transit Connect Electrics produced, with full volume somewhere around 400 vehicles a year.
The Drive
It should come as no surprise to EV fans that the Transit Connect Electric actually drives better than its dinosaur-juice-powered cohort, assuming you don't have terribly far to drive. The turning radius matches the normal Transit Connect at 39 feet. The only other noticeable changes to the Transit Connect Electric is a new gauge cluster, which instead of delivering rpm and fuel level, tells the driver how efficiently he's driving and the total charge remaining.
The Bottom Line
For the commercial buyer, the Transit Connect Electric might make a lot of sense for specific routes and customers. The relatively high $54,000 starting price will be offset with the long-term savings against increasingly volatile fuel prices.
Azure Dynamics, a firm located about three miles from my suburban Detroit home that has been building electric drive systems for 20 years, is the manufacturer of record for the electrified Ford Transit Connect, and will assign each a unique AZD VIN number.
Rolling "gliders" are built in Turkey and shipped to Livonia, Michigan, where AM General (the Humvee folks) installs the so-called Force Drive battery-electric drivetrain, controllers, electric climate control systems, etc., under license from Azure. The DC-DC converter, brake booster vacuum pump, and electric power steering are Ford systems. Azure Dynamics warrants all the parts it installs for 5 years/60,000 miles, matching the Ford powertrain warranty.
Some weight savings in the drivetrain lower the total weight penalty to about 500 pounds over the standard Transit Connect.
Top speed is quoted at 75 mph.
