USA – Since the launch of the Class 2 Utilimaster Velocity F2 walk-in-van (WIV) in October 2020 by The Shyft Group Inc of Novi, Michigan, the company says the model has attracted significant orders from parcel delivery companies.

There has been a surge in e-commerce and home delivery demand, Shyft states, with more than 3,000 Velocity F2 units having already been ordered at the time of the launch. Demand, continued Shyft, has continued to grow for this product into 2021, as the new Class 2 vehicle, offers high capacity (600-700 cubic feet of cargo space) and corresponding payload range of 3,700-4,300lbs in a WIV body built on a sub-10,000 pound Ford Transit chassis. This combination, it adds, is highly attractive to delivery companies and benefits from a widened driver pool as, no commercial vehicle licence is required to drive it. (The Velocity is also to be offered in a Class 3 (GVWR 14,000) vehicle, available on both the Ford Transit (Velocity F3) and the Mercedes Sprinter (Velocity M3) chassis).