FedEx Adds 1,000 China-Built Chanje F8100 Electric Vans To Its Fleet

While Elon Musk believes the Mercedes Sprinter would make a good donor vehicle for a Tesla electric van, other companies are already cashing in on their zero-emissions cargo haulers.

Multinational courier giant FedEx has announced it is adding 1,000 Chanje V8100 electric medium-duty panel vans to its fleet. The delivery services company is purchasing 100 of the vehicles from California-based Chanje Energy and will lease the remaining 900 from Ryder System, which will also deliver support services for the entire fleet.

FedEx Express will operate the purpose-built vehicles for commercial and residential pick-up and delivery services in California. The company has been using all-electric vehicles as part of its pickup-and-delivery fleet since 2009.

The V8100 electric panel vans are built by FDG in Hangzhou, China and offer a driving range of more than 150 miles (241 km). Thanks to a 13.2-kW onboard charger, the battery can be replenished to 80 percent in a little over an hour using DC fast charging, or overnight with a regular charger.

FedEx estimates that each electric van will help it save 2,000 gallons (7,570 liters) of fuel annually and 20 tons of CO2 emissions over the same period. The vehicle has a cargo capacity of 675 cu ft (19,114 liters) of storage and a maximum payload of around 6,000 pounds (2,720 kg).

FDG Electric Vehicles is a Chinese company that builds electric panel vans, passenger vans, and buses under the Changjiang brand in its home market and sells the V8100 electric panel van in the United States under the Chanje brand. Chanje Energy is a Los Angeles-based startup that has FDG as its main investor. Besides vehicles, FDG also builds battery packs and other power supply systems.