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veloman · 10-22-2016, 03:01 AM

I started an all electric lawn mowing business this year and I'm looking at getting a dedicated vehicle for it. So far I've been using either: my ebike with a cargo trailer, my converted electric motorcycle (yeah, don't ask how), or a Ford Focus.

I need to get more "professional" looking, mostly just so I can get some advertising out of my time driving from job to job. The business is just me, and I use about a total of 200lbs in equipment for a full days work (push mower, trimmer, blower, batteries, and hand tools).
The mission statement of my business is:
"Efficient Venture’s goal is to provide home owners and property managers with a lawn maintenance service that drastically reduces air, water and noise pollution, while offering competitive rates and excellent customer service."

That's what I believe in. I'm also, personally, very MrMoneyMustache-like - I'm very careful about expenses. My service area has me doing about 30 miles on a "big" day (6 hours). Up to 40 miles max. I need to be able to travel at 55mph minimum, ideally 65mph (assume no trailer).

With that said, I am having a hard time deciding on what vehicle to buy. I thought I was set on a 2nd gen Prius, with an attached rear cargo carrier, or possibly a small trailer for large cleanup/leaf jobs. I would remove the rear seats and any unnecessary material behind the front seats to maximize cargo area and reduce weight.

Consider: I don't use any gasoline equipment so carrying it inside the car is not an issue. I don't use a 300-500lb commercial mower. I'm building my own 40" cut at under 100lbs.

Now you may be saying - electric truck! Well, I actually looked at one recently. With lead batteries it was 4300lbs and had an unknown issue. Reliability of a converted truck is questionable it seems, even the ones manufactured by Ford/GM back in the 90s.

In a perfect world there would be a 10 yr old used Prius truck or minivan. I'm okay with getting 60mpg in a SULEV (super ultra low emission vehicle), it doesn't need to be 100% electric.

But I am hesistant to just buy a 22mpg small gas pickup. Maybe I could eek 30mpg out of a manual with strict hypermiling around town.

I have this mental budget of $4000 tops, hopefully closer to 3.

10-22-2016, 03:01 AM	#1 (permalink)
veloman EcoModding Lurker Join Date: Nov 2014 Location: Austin TX Posts: 72 Thanks: 19 Thanked 16 Times in 12 Posts	Deciding on work vehicle I started an all electric lawn mowing business this year and I'm looking at getting a dedicated vehicle for it. So far I've been using either: my ebike with a cargo trailer, my converted electric motorcycle (yeah, don't ask how), or a Ford Focus. I need to get more "professional" looking, mostly just so I can get some advertising out of my time driving from job to job. The business is just me, and I use about a total of 200lbs in equipment for a full days work (push mower, trimmer, blower, batteries, and hand tools). The mission statement of my business is: "Efficient Venture’s goal is to provide home owners and property managers with a lawn maintenance service that drastically reduces air, water and noise pollution, while offering competitive rates and excellent customer service." That's what I believe in. I'm also, personally, very MrMoneyMustache-like - I'm very careful about expenses. My service area has me doing about 30 miles on a "big" day (6 hours). Up to 40 miles max. I need to be able to travel at 55mph minimum, ideally 65mph (assume no trailer). With that said, I am having a hard time deciding on what vehicle to buy. I thought I was set on a 2nd gen Prius, with an attached rear cargo carrier, or possibly a small trailer for large cleanup/leaf jobs. I would remove the rear seats and any unnecessary material behind the front seats to maximize cargo area and reduce weight. Consider: I don't use any gasoline equipment so carrying it inside the car is not an issue. I don't use a 300-500lb commercial mower. I'm building my own 40" cut at under 100lbs. Now you may be saying - electric truck! Well, I actually looked at one recently. With lead batteries it was 4300lbs and had an unknown issue. Reliability of a converted truck is questionable it seems, even the ones manufactured by Ford/GM back in the 90s. In a perfect world there would be a 10 yr old used Prius truck or minivan. I'm okay with getting 60mpg in a SULEV (super ultra low emission vehicle), it doesn't need to be 100% electric. But I am hesistant to just buy a 22mpg small gas pickup. Maybe I could eek 30mpg out of a manual with strict hypermiling around town. I have this mental budget of $4000 tops, hopefully closer to 3.