Luxury electric vehicle manufacturer Karma Automotive held its first customer handover of production commercial vehicles electrified by the Karma under the Powered by Karma brand at their headquarters in Irvine, Calif. Airport parking service QuikPark Los Angeles Airport received three newly electrified shuttles, which had previously been in operation as gas and CNG vehicles.

"We are happy to embark on the journey to zero emissions, Powered by Karma is changing existing shuttle bus fleets that are either gas, diesel or propane into fully electric buses," said Steve Burton, president at ACE Parking in a statement. "And in today's world, where direct fuel emissions are causing all sorts of pollution, it is great to have zero emission vehicles that are newly repurposed shuttles. The way of the future is electric, and in adapting more commercial vehicles and putting them into use in the public and private sector, the better off we'll be as we electrify our nation."

Powered by Karma is the commercial business unit of Karma Automotive and was established to leverage its existing technical and operational capabilities as an OEM. 

"We are proud to be working hard at Karma to help reduce emissions and electrify and decarbonize commercial vehicles," added Jeff Wawrzyniak, chief administrative officer at Karma Automotive. "Our innovative commercial vehicle solution delivers a robust, commercial-grade, and all-electric powertrain system that offers a drastic reduction in the total cost of ownership for fleet customers."

Wawrzyniak added that the flexible and modular architecture can power a variety of medium-duty Class 3-5 vocational applications including:

• Delivery vans

• Buses

• Ambulances

• Flatbeds

• Utility trucks

• Tow trucks

• Box trucks

The ability to retrofit existing fleet vehicles, which have been in service for years, is a key enabler in supporting the sustainability efforts of fleet operators. With the Powered by Karma solutions, the company can take existing fleet vehicles and electrify them with a commercial grade powertrain system. This capability can extend the productive operating life for these vehicles by up to 10 years.