What Van? Britain's biggest and best van buyers' guide

This is not our typical First Drive. Usually that covers one specific model, though here we are comparing two different methods of LCV propulsion in as similar a pair of vans as possible. 

Same route, same driver. We are grateful to Toyota GB for finding us two near-identical Proace Medium vans to test. They differed only in trim level so the prices listed here cover the range encompassed by the test vans. This (142hp) diesel ‘140’ version with 340Nm of torque is the closest to the 134hp and 260Nm Electric. The diesel is also available in 101,118, and 174hp guises whilst the Electric changes its output in three different (Power, Normal and Eco) modes at 134hp/260Nm, 108hp/210Nm and 81hp/190Nm respectively. Otherwise, they are physically identical sharing the same load dimensions and volume. Where they differ most is in payload. The weight of batteries means the Electric carries 1,000kg of cargo compared to the diesel 140’s 1,446kg. Large 3.5-tonne vans are now allowed to 4.25 tonnes if EV (still on a car licence) to allow for this, but here the Proace is stuck with its 3.0-tonne design weight.

So much for numbers – more of which later. Firstly, the overall design, although not the latest, ticks all the boxes for its class. Their dimensions are 4,959mm long, 1,920mm wide and 1,890mm high, short enough to park on a domestic driveway (important in the case of the Electric) easy to thread through traffic and low enough to enter underground car parks. The rear doors open to 90 or 180º, with twin side-loading doors, six lashing eyelets in the floor, and both offer a full bulkhead. Cab access is okay, yet the step, upon opening the door feels too far rearward. Once inside the seats are good, frontal-arc visibility is fine but the mirrors lack a sufficiently wide view; they really need a secondary wide-angle element. Storage is not brilliant, the door bins are big and have a bottle section, but it’s an open shelf where the lidded glovebox should be, although there’s a documents slot in the facia top. Cupholders reside at each end of the facia top and the middle seat’s backrest folds down to make a small ‘desk’ with job sheet strap. Cross cab access is just achievable, and there’s a lashing eye in the passenger side floor – a neat touch. In these days of ‘touchscreen everything’ it’s nice to see push buttons and proper switches around the cab. The column stalks are big and positive, with a separate cruise control stub and even the rollers on the steering wheel are chunky enough to use with gloves on. Good vans, both.

The diesel 140 is reasonably refined, offers a performance curve that doesn’t feel too peaky in nature and turbo-boost arrives in a decent linear fashion from 1,500 rpm. In top gear it shows 33mph for every 1,000rpm, placing its peak torque at 66mph, ideal for motorway work. In town, the six-speeder is light and quick, the clutch is nicely progressive, the enviable turning circle accessed through rather low-geared and slightly vague steering, while spring and damper rates are well judged. 

Modes of operandi

Jump into the electric version and most of the above can be taken as read. Two pedals are becoming standard in LCVs of late, but having no gear lever at all is the obvious difference. A simple R-N-D rocker flap gets you underway with a mode switch beside it. Power, Normal and Eco actually limit the motor’s output in three steps. However, don’t get drawn-in. If it takes a given amount of energy to drive a certain weight van up a particular incline, that doesn’t change. You just end up with your right foot in a slightly different position – just like Eco mode in a diesel van. Where it differs here is that, fully laden up a steep hill, the Eco mode would actually limit the performance, even foot-to-floor, compared to Power mode. However, the 81hp that Eco provides is more than enough to cruise at the motorway limit. The only switch unique to an EV is the ‘B’ or brake button. Push this and you have full regenerative braking, to charge the battery when you lift off the accelerator. It’s quite a strong braking effect and will bring the van to a complete halt without pressing the brake pedal. If you do, that gives even more ‘regen’ braking before finally applying pad to disc. 

Best (to) practice

However, that’s not the most efficient way to do things. Alongside ‘range anxiety’ entering our vocabulary, I now propose, ‘regen fever’. Full regeneration in EVs feels purposeful and swings the power needle deep into the green zone but for a given amount of energy to climb the hill, the system only recovers a fraction, going back down it. Better to gradually ease-off as early as possible approaching the roundabout on a flat road and coast, using less energy in the first place. It’s like economy-driving in a diesel, but more so!

Only when all the numbers were crunched did we see that the Proace Electric had covered the route at an average speed some 7% slower than the diesel, mainly due to traffic differences on lap three and that might account for this EV getting closer to its WTPL official range figure than we’d have expected from historic evidence. Electric cars I have tested have never bettered 85% of claimed range, while the diesel ones often exceed it.

Fuel for thought

So let’s talk money. First off, the electric version is considerably more expensive to buy, for a sole trader that’s a massive issue, for fleets maybe not so much. If payload is critical, this particular electric van loses out to the diesel, for other eLCVs it’s less so. The electric will be cheaper to service and in our experience about the same to insure. Testing unladen, I expected the diesel to beat its official figure of 37–38 mpg – we saw 39.7mpg. The electric almost matched its claims but at a lower average speed. Factor that in and driving in convoy the electric would see 85–90% of its claimed range while the diesel got 103% of its official figure. At £1.59 per litre, the diesel Proace costs 18.1p per mile. A domestic tariff of 33p per kWh (inc 5% VAT) shows 12.7p per mile for the electric, or a saving of £540 across 10,000 miles. The three public charging stations local to our supermarket diesel pump, show huge variation at 45, 55 and 59p per kWh (inc 20% VAT), slashing the saving over diesel. 

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