Nissan’s Ice Cream Van will save the world and the ice cream from warming

Japanese car manufacturer Nissan has joined efforts with ice cream maker Mackie’s of Scotland to build a commercial vehicle prototype called the e-NV200 Ice Cream Van Concept. The all-electric van is nature-friendly in more ways than one.

First, you should probably realize that nearly all ice cream vans used throughout Great Britain operate on diesel power. Aside from the engine, this includes the refrigerator part. You cannot turn the diesel generator off even when the car remains stationary, otherwise the ice cream inside will quickly melt. This has even led to the British government seriously considering introducing prohibitive taxes on such vehicles or banning them altogether. In both cases, the average consumer would end up paying more than before.

When someone in the Nissan management caught the drift, they came up with the e-NV200 Ice Cream Van Concept. The car itself is all-electric, drawing its power from a 40 kWh battery, but the refrigerator unit uses its own lithium-ion power pack called ROAM. Once fully charged, the car can cover up to 125 miles (200 kilometers), and you can take advantage of roof-mounted solar panels to replenish some of the battery juice.

The company advertises the latter function as a means to save costs and even earn an extra bit in wintertime by feeding the energy generated by the NV200 Ice Cream Van into the public power network.

Photos: Nissan