ROUSH CleanTech is providing Penske Truck Leasing with all-new Ford F-650 battery-electric vehicles (BEVs) later this year for deployment across Southern California.  

“Penske has been expanding its battery electric fleet for the past several years,” said Paul Rosa, senior vice president of procurement and fleet planning at Penske Truck Leasing. “We are working with our customers to evaluate ROUSH CleanTech-powered BEVs across various real-world applications.”

The BEVs were built to Penske’s specifications to ensure a satisfactory experience across many market segments.

Medium-duty is growing in popularity today. The 26,000-pound GVWR truck achieves a peak hp of 335 at 1,844 lb.-ft. of torque and continuous horsepower of 201 at 907 lb.-ft. of torque. There will be three wheelbase options to fit various applications. 

"Our fleet customers and partners have asked us to focus on the Class 6 segment as that is the area of 'pain and expense' with traditionally fueled vehicles. Our ability to leverage our electric vehicle product development expertise to bring a non CDL truck to the market that offers almost 8,500 pounds of available payload and 100 miles of range answers two of the biggest concerns fleets have to a greater adoption rate. Couple that with the fact that we have been in business for more than four decades and have almost 40,000 clean advanced vehicles on the road gives fleets confidence that we will be by their side as they begin the transition to full electrification in their transportation system," said Todd Mouw, president of ROUSH CleanTech. 

ROUSH CleanTech is backed by decades of electric vehicle engineering capability from parent company, Roush Enterprises. Roush’s expertise in electrification, partnering with companies like Canoo and FarmWise, includes production design, functional performance validation, compliance testing, assembly set up, and vehicle second-stage manufacturing.

The demonstration units were funded in part by the South Coast Air Quality Management District, the regulatory agency focused on improving air quality for large areas of California's Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, and San Bernardino counties.

“Our work with Roush has played a major role in the development and commercialization of clean air technologies,” said Wayne Nastri, executive officer for South Coast AQMD.

“Over the past decade, ROUSH CleanTech has put more than 37,000 vehicles on North American roads,” Mouw added. “We bring that experience and expertise to the battery electric vehicle market and to partnerships like South Coast Air Quality Management District and Penske to deliver solutions for a sustainable future.”

According to the company, ROUSH CleanTech’s battery-electric vehicles:

• Have a maximum speed of 65 mph and a 100-mile range.

• Reduce operating costs for customers.

• Foster healthier communities by emitting no exhaust and zero emissions of nitrogen oxides, carbon monoxide, particulate matter, volatile organic compounds, and hydrocarbons.

• Meet all Department of Transportation regulations, comply with all applicable vehicle Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Specifications (FMVSS) requirements, and adhere to the California Zero Emission Powertrain certification program.

ROUSH CleanTech was the first company to offer a near-zero, 0.02g g/bhp-hr propane autogas engine certified by the California Air Resources Board (CARB). According to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), operating vehicles with ultra-low or zero-emission engines make significant improvements to regional air quality and reduce a wide variety of human health impacts.

The Roush Ford F-650 electric truck was first shown off at the ACT Expo in 2018. At the time the initial unit was displayed, Mouw noted that “An electric battery option for medium-duty trucks and buses is a great fit as there is increasing demand in this gross vehicle weight range with very few OEM solutions."

The truck in 2018 was an early stage prototype and the vehicles now represent production intent hardware. Production starts in summer of 2021.