Royal Mail ran 40 of these as an energy-saving trial in the 1980s — a Bedford van line that Lucas and Chloride billed at the time as the world's first mass-produced electric van in its class.
Lead trim: CF Electric, 37 kW DC motor
Bedford CF ElectricCF Electric · 1982–1986
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Nobody in Burbles has spotted a Bedford CF Electric yet. See one on the street, point the app at it, and the first card is yours — with your @handle permanently credited on this page.
FactRoyal Mail ran 40 of these as an energy-saving trial in the 1980s — a Bedford van line that Lucas and Chloride billed at the time as the world's first mass-produced electric van in its class.
The CF Electric was introduced in 1982 after more than 100 prototypes were built and tested at Millbrook Proving Ground between 1977 and 1983, the first electrically powered vehicle planned for mass production on a fossil-fuel vehicle platform, built with Lucas, the Chloride Group and the UK government on a five-year grant scheme; Bedford cancelled the programme in July 1986 after 300 to 475 vehicles had been built, most sold to government agencies, the Royal Mail and local authorities. It used 36 lead-acid cells of 6 V (216 V, 180 A-hr, 38.9 kW-hr, 1,000 kg) under the floor and a Lucas MT286 DC traction motor at the rear rated at 37 kW (50 hp), driving the standard differential through a step-down gearbox; the prototype's tested range ran from 15 mi fully loaded on steep hills to 74 mi on freeway routes unladen, and its top speed was 54 mph unladen. A heavily modified left-hand-drive version was exported to the US as the GMC Griffon (more than 30 sent for utility trials).
Collectors Spotted in the Bedford CF Lineage
No member has published a public street spot of the Bedford CF yet — the First · Worldwide stamp is wide open.
Trims & Figures
One published trim in the catalogue. A blank is a figure not recorded, not zero.
| Trim | Years | Engine | Power | Torque | 0–60 | Drive | Gearbox | MSRP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CF Electric, 37 kW DC motor | 1982–1986 | Electric | 50 hp | — | — | RWD | — | — |
Owning one
We don’t estimate running costs for a car like this. What it costs depends on its condition, its specialist and how it is driven, and an average would mislead.
Owners’ builds
Nobody has claimed one yet.
Photographs
The CF2 was Bedford’s last word — when the final vans sold in 1987, it closed out the company’s run of vehicles designed entirely in-house.
Royal Mail ran 40 of these as an energy-saving trial in the 1980s — a Bedford van line that Lucas and Chloride billed at the time as the world's first mass-produced electric van in its class.
This Bedford's 1980 facelift made engine work dramatically easier — the whole front panel came off with just 8 bolts, letting mechanics pull the engine forward instead of dropping it out from underneath.
Rivals
Same body, same money, other badges — tap any card to flip.
Chevy pitched the Astro as the anti-minivan, telling buyers life was too big for one, while it rode on a rear-wheel-drive truck frame.
The IIHS rated the Astro Poor in a 1996 crash test, yet 2001–2004 Astros later had the lowest driver death rate of any US passenger vehicle.
The boxy, unglamorous Astro quietly posted one of the best real-world safety records in America: IIHS found 2001-2004 models had the fewest driver deaths per million vehicles of any passenger vehicle on US roads.
The third-generation Tourneo Connect, released in Europe in October 2021, is a rebadged fourth-generation Volkswagen Caddy, assembled by Volkswagen in Poland.
Ford beat the 25% "chicken tax" by importing the Transit Connect as a passenger van — rear windows and seats included, then stripped out and recycled once it landed in the US.
Ford spent years in federal court over the second-gen Transit Connect: in June 2019 the US won its appeal, and judges ruled the van was cargo-only — ending Ford's workaround for the 'chicken tax.'
GM sold a rebadged Nissan NV200 as the Chevy City Express for four years, then killed it in 2018, citing weak sales and the fact that its parts weren't even compatible with GM's own parts catalog.
Its name is a pun: "S-Cargo" means "Small Cargo" but sounds just like escargot — French for snail, the shape the whole van was built to resemble.