Go out for a drive with the family during the month of December and there’s a new car game to play – count the number of UPS vans. With so many on the streets beating Santa to his delivery deadline, it’s reassuring to know that the company has made significant steps forward in reducing its fuel consumption.
The UPS first-generation diesel hybrid delivery vans have improved on-road fuel economy by 28.9 per cent, which equates to a 15 per cent improvement in total cost per mile according to an assessment from the US Department of Energy’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory.
The laboratory’s Fleet Test & Evaluation team performed a 12month evaluation of six MY2007 P70D hybrid vans and six MY2006 P70D standard diesel vans at a UPS location in Phoenix analysing performance data including maintenance and fuel economy.
Average fuel economy for the P70 hybrid vans is 13.1mpg – that’s 28.9 per cent greater than the diesel van group’s 10.2mpg. The P100 hybrid vans showed a 31-37 per cent fuel economy improvement over conventional P100 vans and there were improvements in emissions although results varied based on the cycle being run. Total maintenance cost per mile was $0.140, which is eight per cent less than the diesel vans and propulsion related maintenance cost $0.034 for the hybrid vans – that’s five per cent less than the $0.036 for the diesel vans.
The hybrid systems are provided by Eaton Corp and were manufactured by Freightliner Corp. They employ an Eaton automated transmission with integrated motor/generator and a 1.8kWh lithium-ion battery pack. Both the Freightliner hybrid model and the conventional model use a Mercedes Benz MBE 904 four-cylinder diesel engine.
The hybrids are part of UPS’s first group of 50 electric vans – last year UPS ordered an additional 200 hybrids with additional features and updates.
