Ford has also announced an electric version of their small Transit van to be sold in North America in the next few years.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Bearleener
What takes getting used to is the regenerative braking feature, which causes noticeable braking as soon as you let off the gas.
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OEM manufacturers seem to be going with two approaches in that regard. Some program in only a small amount of regen when you release the accelerator, which mimics engine drag of a conventional car.
Others have very aggressive regen on releasing the pedal, and you can effectively drive the car most of the time using just the one pedal (the brake lights even come on in heavy regen, despite not pressing the brake pedal yet).
The Solectria Force (Geo Metro sedan factory conversion) had both modes, selectable by the user.
My concern would be that there needs to be a "neutral" position on the pedal that lets you
coast when you want to, with NO energy flow to/from the batteries. Coasting is ultimately more efficient as an ecodriving technique than using regen, though not always possible depending on traffic/terrain.