General information on Vehicles & Fleet
European classification for vehicle category, based in UNECE standards:
M1 |
Used for the carriage of passengers, with no more than eight seats in addition to the driver seat, also known as passenger cars. |
M2 |
Used for the carriage of passengers, having a maximum mass not exceeding 5 tonnes. |
M3 |
Used for the carriage of passengers, having a maximum mass exceeding 5 tonnes. |
N1 |
Used for the carriage of goods, having a maximum mass not exceeding 3.5 tonnes, also known as Light Commercial Vehicle (LCV). Also includes Pick-Up trucks. |
N2 |
Used for the carriage of goods, having a maximum mass exceeding 3.5 tonnes but not exceeding 12 tonnes |
N3 |
Used for the carriage of goods, having a maximum mass exceeding 12 tonnes. |
L |
Motor vehicles with less than four wheels and some lightweight four-wheelers. |
L6 |
A vehicle with four wheels whose unladen mass is not more than 350 kg, not including the mass of the batteries in case of BEV's, whose maximum design speed is not more than 45 km/h, and whose power does not exceed 4 kW. |
L7 |
Other than that classified for the category L6, whose unladen mass is not more than 450 kg (650 kg for those intended to carrying goods), not including the mass of batteries in the case of BEV's, whose power does not exceed 15 kW. |
Definitions regarding vehicle types, charging points and alternative fuels:
Acronym |
Full Name |
Category |
Description |
BEV |
Battery electric vehicle |
Vehicle |
Also known as all-electric vehicle, BEV's has all its power from its battery packs and thus has no internal combustion engine, fuel cell, or fuel tank. |
CCS |
Combined charging system |
Charging System |
The combo coupler is based on the Type 2 (VDE) AC charging connector, with full compatibility with the SAE specification for DC charging, with additional pins to accommodate fast DC charging at 200–450 Volts DC and up to 90 kW. |
ChaDeMo |
"Charge de Move" |
Charging System |
Trade name of a quick charging for battery electric vehicles delivering up to 62.5 kW of high-voltage direct current via a special electrical connector. It is proposed as a global industry standard by an association of the same name. |
Charging Position / Charging Point |
Charging Position |
Charging System |
Recharging point « interface capable of charging one electric vehicle at a time », this includes the power supply, plug and the space to park the car |
CNG |
Compressed natural gas |
Fuel Type |
Compressing natural gas (which is mainly composed of methane, CH4), to less than 1 percent of the volume it occupies at standard atmospheric pressure. Usually it is stores in cylindrical or spherical shapes. |
FCEV |
Fuel cell electric vehicle |
Fuel Type |
Vehicle which uses a fuel cell to power its on-board electric motor, generally using oxygen from the air and compressed hydrogen. A fuel cell vehicle that is fueled with hydrogen emits only water and heat. |
kWh |
Kilowatt hour |
Measure Unit |
Unit of energy equal to 1,000 watt-hours, or 3.6 megajoules. The kilowatt-hour is commonly used as a billing unit for energy delivered to consumers by electric utilities. |
LNG |
Liquefied natural gas |
Fuel Type |
|
PEV |
Plug-in electric vehicle |
Vehicle |
Any motor vehicle that can be recharged from an external source of electricity, such as wall sockets, and the electricity stored in the rechargeable battery packs drives or contributes to drive the wheels. |
PHEV |
Plug-in hybrid electric vehicle |
Vehicle |
A PHEV shares the characteristics of both a conventional hybrid electric vehicle, having an electric motor and an internal combustion engine (ICE), and of an all-electric vehicle, having a plug to connect to the electrical grid. |
Tesla SC |
Tesla Supercharger |
Charging System |
The Supercharger is a proprietary direct current (DC) fast-charging station that provides up to 135 kW of power, giving the 85 kWh Model S some 270 km of range in about 30 minutes and a full charge in 75 minutes. |
Type-2 AC |
Type 2 AC Connector |
Charging System |
The IEC 62196 Type 2 connector (Also known as Mennekes) is used for charging electric cars, the connector is circular in shape, with a flattened top edge and capable of charging battery electric vehicles at 3–70 kilowatts. |