Chicago Auto Show

Ford ready to take wraps off Transit Connect Electric

Bryce G. Hoffman / The Detroit News

Dearborn --Ford Motor Co. is scheduled to unveil the Ford Transit Connect Electric on Wednesday at the Chicago Auto Show. It's the first in a series of battery-powered vehicles from the Dearborn automaker.

As The Detroit News first reported last week, the new version of Ford's compact commercial van will be powered by a high-voltage electric motor that takes its power from a battery pack charged by being plugged into a 120- or 240-volt outlet. The company says it has a top speed of 75 miles per hour and a range of 80 miles on a full charge.

The Transit Connect Electric will be available later this year to commercial fleet customers.

Analyst Erich Merkle of Autoconomy.com in Grand Rapids said that is the right market for the all-electric van.

"It's perfect for transporting cargo around urban settings," he said, noting that commercial vehicles often follow fixed routes and can easily return to their garage for recharging.

"It's most viable for business applications. Electric vehicles really aren't viable right now for consumers looking for everyday transportation."

Derrick Kuzak, Ford's global head of product development, said the company already is in discussions with a number of commercial fleet customers that are interested in the new electric van.

"It's the first of our next set of electrified vehicles," he said, noting that the Transit Connect Electric will be followed next year by the Ford Focus Electric, a battery-powered version of the company's new compact. In 2012, Ford is scheduled to begin shipping a next-generation hybrid and a plug-in hybrid built off the same platform.

Though the Transit Connect is built in Turkey, all of those vehicles will be assembled at Ford's Michigan Assembly Plant in Wayne.

Azure Dynamics Inc. of Oak Park will make the electric powertrain for the van. The company already manufactures hybrid electric and electric drive technology for shuttle buses and commercial trucks, some of which are based on Ford platforms.

"For us, it's an important evolution of our existing relationship with Ford," said CEO Scott Harrison, who promised the new powertrain will be built in Michigan. "We see a growing demand from all segments."

He said telecommunications companies, utilities and delivery services are among those clamoring for electric commercial vehicles.

The lithium-ion battery pack will be produced by Johnson Controls-Saft.

Ford also is scheduled to debut a Transit Connect taxi for livery customers. It incorporates a special version of Ford's Sync system that will allow passengers to access news, sports scores, weather and other information from the back seat of the van, which features more leg room than the regular model. The same system also will allow riders to pay with a credit card.

The Transit Connect taxi will be powered either by compressed natural gas or liquid propane.

"That approach makes a lot of sense in an urban environment," Merkle said. "It's also easy to exit and enter. In many ways, it's going to be better than the Crown Victoria."