Slowly but surely, electrification is taking off in the passenger vehicle market, but arguably, there’s an even bigger opportunity for this technology to make a difference in the commercial space. Helping companies clean up their vehicle fleets, late last month California-based Motiv Power Systems announced the introduction of its next-generation medium-duty all-electric trucks.

Motiv Power Systems has been in business for nearly a decade and a half, developing battery-powered step vans, box trucks and shuttle busses, vehicles that form the backbone of countless industries. The firm’s latest and greatest models feature a new motor and battery pack that, together, have fewer components, which means simplified maintenance and less to go wrong down the road.

The sixth generation of all-electric commercial trucks from California-based Motiv Power Systems will ship out in June, sporting the first LFP battery system on the market, company leaders say.

LFP stands for lithium iron phosphate and these American-made ONE Aries batteries have a range of up to 200 miles, or plenty of juice to haul 2- to 6-ton payloads without using fossil fuels like gas and diesel.

Motiv Power Systems —  the leading innovator of EV trucks and buses helping industry leaders like Cintas, Bimbo Bakeries, Purolator drive the backbone of modern commerce — today announced its next-generation all-electric trucks for medium-duty fleets. 

Motiv is a 14-year veteran providing all-electric step vans, box trucks and shuttle buses capable of moving 2-6 ton payloads. The company has deployed more than 150 vehicles and driven more than 2.5M miles with fleets across North America.  

Motiv has been in business since 2009 and we spoke to CEO, Tim Krauskopf, and CTO and founder, Jim Castelaz, about why Motiv has elected to use legacy components in conjunction with electrification despite building commercial vehicles from the ground up. “Mostly historical reliability,” Krauskopf explained to us, “We're using the standard Dana differential and we don't have anything in the axle, brake system, or the diff and driveshaft that is not of decades-old reliability. The motor comes from one of the top five worldwide motor manufacturers. We're just assembling them in an application that's new but we're building on reliability, component by component, that allows us to make sure our uptime is really, really high.”

The new trucks build on the company’s previous generations, engineered to meet today’s fleet needs while embracing the latest EV technology.

The models include a new motor and battery system, which Motiv noted is assembled with a far more efficient powertrain design with fewer parts.

Motiv worked with Nidec to design and patent a six-phase motor and motor controller producing torque that surpasses internal combustion engine (ICE) counterparts.

Motiv also co-developed and has patents pending for its battery interface to the new battery system, the first ONE Aries LFP battery system on the market, capable of reaching a 200-mile range on a single charge. The base version is rated at 150 miles range.

Motiv Power Systems has been making significant strides in the commercial fleet industry, introducing its latest electric trucks for medium-duty fleets.

Additionally, they’re currently testing a zero-emissions refrigerated truck equipped with Carrier Transicold’s Pulsor eCool unit and have recently received an order for 30 more electric delivery vans from Cintas.

 

US American BEV commercial vehicle chassis manufacturer Motiv Power Systems has announced a new vehicle order from Cintas for 30 additional battery-electric delivery vans.

Motiv’s decision to expand its relationship with Cintas follows a successful pilot test of seven Motiv-powered vehicles across three US states in 2022. The new order of 30 Motiv trucks will be deployed on existing Cintas routes and brings the number of Motiv-powered EVs in the Cintas fleet to 37 vehicles driving daily routes across Michigan, New York, and California.

The new order of 30 Motiv trucks will be deployed on existing Cintas routes. This new order brings the number of Motiv-powered EVs in the Cintas fleet to 37 vehicles driving daily routes nationwide across Michigan, New York, and California.

Since the initial pilot program, Motiv has helped Cintas reduce tailpipe greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 37 metric tons—in line with the company’s broader Electric Vehicle and Alternative-Fuel Vehicle Strategy.

Carrier Transicold, a part of Carrier Global Corporation, is spotlighting an expanded portfolio of eCool transport refrigeration products at the Advanced Clean Transportation (ACT) Expo in California.

Among the developments, Carrier Transicold announced that its Supra eCool truck refrigeration unit rollout will begin with two versatile models and announced collaborations on new commercial evaluations of trailer and truck technologies, including an emerging development for light- and medium-duty trucks.

Following the successful pilot of seven vehicles across three states last year, Cintas has contracted with Motiv Power Systems for 30 additional zero-emission all-electric delivery vans to be deployed on existing Cintas routes.

The new order brings the number of Motiv-powered EVs in the Cintas fleet to 37 vehicles driving daily routes across Michigan, New York, and California.