Vauxhall is gearing itself up for the electric van revolution

It would be something of an understatement to say that the automotive industry has been enduring a bit of a bumpy ride these past few years. Most recently of course, entire industry was forced to reckon with the economic impact of the successive lockdowns across the world. Even before that though, it’s been dealing with its own unique challenges – firstly that of Brexit, and then the impending ban on the sale of petrol and diesel vehicles. All of that’s had an impact not just on the manufacturers, but also influenced the decisions of anyone looking for cheap van deals.

The petrol and diesel ban in particular means that many manufacturers are now stepping up their plans for electrification of their offerings, and Vauxhall has just made an especially significant step; it’s investing £100 million into its Ellesmere Port factory, intending to shift it to 100% electric van production. That’s great news for the factory itself, which was being threatened by the impact of Brexit, and the move will safeguard about 1000 jobs. So, what can we expect from now?

Ellesmere Port buzzing with ambition

Vauxhall’s parent company, Stellantis, says that production will primarily be focused on building electric versions of established favourites like the Vauxhall Combo-e, the Peugeot e-Partner and the Citroen e-Berlingo. What’s more, the company intends the entire process to be carbon neutral as early as 2025, so if you’re looking at electrifying your own fleet in time for the 2030 deadline, a Vauxhall van might be worth a look!

So, how exactly is it being spend? Well, in terms of what we know so far, the investment will be going towards a new body shop, an upgraded general assembly area, and establishing a new on-site battery back assembly area. That’s slated to be a major priority of Vauxhall’s going forward, as currently these batteries are made and assembled off-site. But maybe it’s not just assembling the batteries that Vauxhall needs to worry about – according to industry commentators, Ellesmere Port may need a fully-fledged manufacturing facility itself in order to remain properly viable in the long term.

Notably, Stellantis also owns Fiat, so there are rumours that the facility may eventually start producing electric Fiat vehicles too. But it’s worth stressing that nobody knows that for certain yet – we’ll have to wait for future updates!

What’s the range on these new electric vans?

In terms of what we can expect from the new vans, they’ll be powered by a 100kW (136hp) electric motor to drive the front wheels. That motor will draw its energy from a 50kW pack which has been discreetly installed under the load floor. They are supposedly capable of a WLTP driving range of 174 miles, and of reaching an 80% charge in just 30 minutes on a 100kW charger.

However, the school of thought from some quarters is that those numbers may be a little generous. But just like many other aspects of this story, we’re unable to independently verify that for ourselves at the moment here at Van Discount. We’ll just have to wait and see!

We know that electrifying your fleet is a big challenge, and likely something you plan to do in stages. So, until you’re ready for the new electric vans, rest assured that we’ve got a fantastic range of new van deals to choose from right here at Van Discount. Not just from Vauxhall and Fiat, but also from a range of other leading manufacturers like Peugeot, Renault and Ford.

What’s more, drawing on our decades of expertise and network of personal contacts, we actually save our customers an average of 40% off the recommended retail price of a new van – often translating to thousands of pounds. Give us a call on 01282 872 530, or take a look around our site, and see what you can find!