The London EV Company (LEVC) has announced that trials of its new electrified van will begin in January 2019.

The company is currently in talks with potential customers including the London Fire Brigade and Metropolitan Police Service about adding the range-extended electric van prototype to their fleets.

The taxi maker will use having a battery-powered electric motor and a 1.5 three-cylinder range-extender, petrol engine as its main selling point. The van will also have “class leading” safety systems and will use the latest semi-autonomous technology.

LEVC said the new model is designed to meet “the world’s highest crash safety standards,” and pass LEVC’s million-mile TaxiDur durability test. CarsCoop reported.

While final specifications for the new van have not yet been released, the related model boasts an electric range of 110 kilometres, and an overall range of over 645 kilometres. Recharging takes around 20minutes when a rapid charger is used, around two hours with a fast charger, or between 8-10 hours with a trickle charge.

Other features that are in the older model that are likely to be in the newer one include a wide-panoramic roof, wide-opening rear-hinged doors and a spacious cabin which is great for wheelchair accessibility. Its comfort features are a spacious six-seat cabin and air conditioning. Its security features include forward collision warning, autonomous emergency braking and emergency brake assistance

The company predicted that the new model will compete with diesel one-tonne vans and its main market will be fleets with “demanding duty cycles”, especially those that cover over 160km per day.

LEVC remodeled the London taxi and began selling new electric models earlier this year at £55,599 around £12,000 more than the diesel version.

By Airport Pickups London