bzcat Posted July 27, 2022 Share Posted July 27, 2022 (edited) On 7/26/2022 at 10:58 AM, GearheadGrrrl said: Neither is in volume production, even after massive investments of venture capital or GM's cash. I'm frankly amazed GM spent the money to tool up the Brightdrop van, was just a few years ago they got out of the step van market because of the low volumes. That's why step vans and their chassis change little over the decades, simply not enough volume to justify extensive retooling. If USPS want off the shelf electric vans, Ford's been building Transits for years and the only thing that can hold back the supply of electric Transits is the supply of batteries. Brightdrop is also way too big for USPS's needs. It is too long and most versions will be in Class 3, not what USPS wants to operate with NGDV which is supposed to be Class 2A (although designed on purpose with GRVW of 8,501 lbs so technically Class 2B to skirt light duty vehicle emission standards like Transit 150). FedEx signed on early with GM so it probably has contributed some to the development costs. The van itself is pretty good concept... not a lot of Class 2B or 3 options if you want a step van body - most of them starts at Class 4 stripped chassis. Each of the main package delivery firm in the US had signed up/invested to work with an OEM on EV delivery van: FedEx - GM UPS - Arrival Amazon - Rivian USPS - Oshkosh/Ford Honestly, Transit EV is probably what USPS really needs now. Ford can even make them in RHD... Ford has the RHD dashboard and can source all the RHD components without a sweat. The original NGDV concept submitted by the joint Ford-Oshkosh was exactly that - a RHD Transit with modified sliding doors. But eventually, Oshkosh went with a dedicated aluminum body because USPS wanted it that way and Ford decided it can just be a drivetrain supplier instead of building it. Edited July 27, 2022 by bzcat 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
7Mary3 Posted July 27, 2022 Share Posted July 27, 2022 A smaller version of the BrightDrop will be out very soon. Also, Amazon has been testing the large BrightDrop as Rivian seems to be struggling getting production if their van going. 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rperez817 Posted December 21, 2022 Share Posted December 21, 2022 Update December 20, 2022. USPS announced that NGDV delivered starting in 2026 will be 100% electric. The organization also plans to purchase 21,000 COTS BEV, which is good news for Ford because E-Transit fulfills USPS requirements. USPS Intends To Deploy Over 66,000 Electric Vehicles by 2028, Making One of the Largest Electric Vehicle Fleets in the Nation - Newsroom - About.usps.com Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
twintornados Posted December 21, 2022 Share Posted December 21, 2022 1 hour ago, rperez817 said: Just a note that both vehicles pictured run on the same basic chassis 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
silvrsvt Posted December 22, 2022 Share Posted December 22, 2022 Wow that front end on the new mail truck looks really goofy looking! I get why it has to be so tall, but the front end looks like an afterthought. 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tbone Posted December 22, 2022 Share Posted December 22, 2022 I’m curious how the new mail truck will get around in the snow. The side profile looks very low. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Captainp4 Posted December 22, 2022 Share Posted December 22, 2022 4 hours ago, silvrsvt said: Wow that front end on the new mail truck looks really goofy looking! I get why it has to be so tall, but the front end looks like an afterthought. It's like.. intentionally bad looking. Why can't it just be a taller transit?? lol Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
silvrsvt Posted December 22, 2022 Share Posted December 22, 2022 3 hours ago, tbone said: I’m curious how the new mail truck will get around in the snow. The side profile looks very low. The LLV is pretty low to the ground too Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tbone Posted December 24, 2022 Share Posted December 24, 2022 On 12/22/2022 at 12:37 PM, silvrsvt said: The LLV is pretty low to the ground too Agreed, but the new one looks lower. I don’t think it would have made it through the drifts I had to go through this morning. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joe771476 Posted December 26, 2022 Share Posted December 26, 2022 On 12/23/2022 at 8:19 PM, tbone said: Agreed, but the new one looks lower. I don’t think it would have made it through the drifts I had to go through this morning. Notice all the mirrors on the Grumman LLV! You can see ground level in front and in the rear! What nobody realizes is that mail carriers are truck drivers FIRST, then secondly mail delivery people! Carriers are taught to back up ONLY in extreme situations! As far as the vehicle, it is still the best vehicle design since their introduction around 1985 based on a Chevy S10 chassis/engine. The body is aluminum, you can turn on a dime, and all doors are sliding so there's no chance of a door being ripped off by a passing vehicle. The only drawbacks are no air conditioning, poor heat and rear wheel drive when front wheel drive was in its infancy. They are experiencing an increase in fires in recent years and I think it's the exposure of the fuse block being vulnerable to rain water seepage finding its way through the hood seams. But that's MY opinion. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bzcat Posted December 27, 2022 Share Posted December 27, 2022 LLV lived up to its name... they were extremely durable mostly due to the simple construction. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jpd80 Posted December 31, 2022 Share Posted December 31, 2022 On 12/28/2022 at 2:06 AM, bzcat said: LLV lived up to its name... they were extremely durable mostly due to the simple construction. There’s a lot to be said for keeping certain types of vehicles “simple”, there’s less to go wrong. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
7Mary3 Posted December 31, 2022 Share Posted December 31, 2022 15 hours ago, jpd80 said: There’s a lot to be said for keeping certain types of vehicles “simple”, there’s less to go wrong. Which USPS is about to find out...... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
silvrsvt Posted January 1, 2023 Share Posted January 1, 2023 On 12/31/2022 at 12:13 PM, 7Mary3 said: Which USPS is about to find out...... If anything a BEV will have less mechanical parts to break/wear out then a ICE. I remember seeing a LLV drop it’s drive shaft going down the road. I’m assuming that the new mail truck will have its electric motors built into the wheels as long as they get the software/electrical right on it, it should be even cheaper then the LLV was and last just as long. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.