Cruise Car, a manufacturer of Low Speed Vehicles (LSVs), has a solution for the problem of maintaining and supporting fleets with various parts, SKUs, and technicians: build each vehicle on a uniform sub-assembly.

“Fleet buyers have diverse vehicle needs depending on their specific situation. These needs often translate into the acquisition of an equally wide-ranging assortment of vehicle brands, exposing buyers to the unending costs required to support and maintain their fleets. Similarly, buyers who focus on vehicles within a preferred brand still require a variety of parts and maintenance cross-training to cover the patchwork of models. There should be a better way, and now there is,” said Nathan Kalin, president of Cruise Car.

With a modular vehicle design, fleet operations no longer have to deal with multiple vehicle categories requiring a different vehicle foundation, configuration, maintenance program, wiring diagram, parts catalog, and on-hand parts inventory. The modular vehicle design has narrowed the vehicle support down to a single, uniform system. This build approach allows Cruise Car to offer more than 100 standard vehicle models to support varying fleet LSV needs including utility and maintenance, transportation and shuttles, emergency response, and wheelchair-accessibility.

Multiple Configurations Maximize Options

Cruise Car’s sub-assembly is designed around its extra-thick, tempered, aluminum chassis (offered in five vehicle lengths), which allows each vehicle to live and work outdoors, in temperate weather, and in coastal environments without rusting or corroding. Each assembly includes a heavy-duty suspension system and motor powerful enough to allow even its largest eight-passenger vehicle to achieve street-legal speeds of 25 mph.

On top of the uniform sub-assembly sits a series of aluminum modular seat pod and utility bed options, allowing customers to mix and match different combinations of seating and utility components. This Lego-like configurability allows Cruise Car to offer functionally unlimited options to customers. All vehicles are offered in gas, electric, or solar electric power options.

The M2CV6 and M4SB3 units are among the units most used by Cruise Car’s current existing government fleet customers. The M2CV6 is a van cart that offers a sealed van box and a separate 10 square-foot locker within the hauler body.  It is popular as it allows operators to safely store cargo. The M4SB3 is a four-passenger vehicle that includes a utility area in the back.