A new white paper designed to help operators prepare for ageing diesel van fleets caused by the Zero Emissions Vehicle (ZEV) mandate is now out.
The document, developed by FleetCheck, explains how current fleet resistance to van electrification, coupled with increasing shortages and higher prices for diesel vans, is likely to result in substantially extended replacement cycles – and advises on the new issues that operators could face.
Barrie Wilson, commercial fleet consultant at the fleet software specialist, explained that van fleets are not electrifying at anything like the rate envisaged in the ZEV mandate and warned that diesel vans are likely to become harder to get hold of and more expensive, as major manufacturers look to meet ZEV mandate sales quotas by reducing diesel van production.
“The most probable result of these market conditions is that diesel vans are going to become in increasingly short supply and more expensive, he outlined.
“Yes, some fleets will start to electrify in response but the indications that we see across our customer base are that many will hang onto their existing diesel vans for much longer.”
This development – which could see older vehicles kept continually roadworthy over decades by a high level of attention to maintenance – is dubbed ‘Havana Syndrome’ by FleetCheck, referring to the US cars from the 1940s and 1950s still in use in Cuba.
Wilson added that fleet replacement cycles are typically already a couple of years longer for diesel vans than before Covid, and there is now a possibility they could be stretched even further.
“This creates a range of issues for operators of which the most important are safety and running costs, but it’s also crucial to minimise the environmental impact of these older vehicles and keep them looking good to protect your corporate image.”
The FleetCheck white paper highlights four areas where fleets need to concentrate efforts – routine service and maintenance, defect management, record keeping and data collection, and budgetary pressures.
Wilson went on: “There’s no denying that operating vans into probably eight years and longer will create significant issues for fleets and we use the white paper to examine these. Our view is that it is viable for operators but will require a high degree of effort and, of course, fleet management software has a key role to play.”
The FleetCheck ZEV mandate white paper can be downloaded here.
