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By Jonathan Crouch

Ford's E-Transit Courier sets the standard for what a really small electric van should be, thinks Jonathan Crouch

Ten Second Reviewword count: 34

Ford's E-Transit Courier delivers full battery power more compactly than almost any other LCV. There's a decent operating range, more carriage capacity and payload than you might expect and some really clever interior touches.

Backgroundword count: 108

Small city-sized vans are the ones that need full-battery power the most. There aren't too many really compact LCVs on the market these days, but one of the very best is Ford's Transit Courier. In second generation form, it's also available in full-battery form and sold as the E-Transit Courier. And it could be the kind of compact LCV your business really needs going forward. It's made on the old Ford EcoSport production line in Craiova, Romania, built by the Blue Oval brand's Ford Otosan commercial vehicles division. It also comes in passenger-carrying MPV form, the E-Tourneo Courier. It's the LCV version though, that we look at here.

Driving Experienceword count: 163

Obviously you'll have to have an auto (the usual EV 1-speeder) if you choose the E-Transit Courier. This has a 134bhp electric motor mounted on the front axle. There's no dual motor AWD version. Expect a battery size around 54kWh and a range of around 200 miles - about 37 miles more than rival Citroen e-Berlingo, Vauxhall Combo Electric or Peugeot e-Partner competitors. Top speed is 90mph and there's 290Nm of pulling power. Owners get lots of clever connectivity services too. Subscription-based Connected Navigation can boost productivity and reduce driver workload with updates on traffic, parking, charging and local hazards. Customers with five or more of these on their fleet can also benefit from the tailored features of Ford Pro E-Telematics. This system uses live data to help maximise productivity, as well as delivering features to support effective and intuitive use of Ford Pro Charging. These include current charging status, vehicle-specific state of charge, and remaining range with customisable low range alert thresholds.

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