How much would you be willing to pay for a one-of-one prototype electric Dodge van? $10,000? $20.000? $50,000? Well, believe it or not, the United States Government paid $240,000 to have this all-electric van built for the U.S. Department Of Energy in the eighties! Yes, that sounds like a fortune, but back then battery-powered vehicles were not exactly rolling down assembly lines and the technology was nowhere near as advanced as it is today. Why the government thought this van needed to be built in the 1980s is another reasonable question unless they were thinking ahead that this design might become a viable commodity for the Department Of Energy in the future. Looking back, maybe it was a good idea, but the fact is that only one was made, and at not much more than 10% of its original cost this would be an affordable acquisition for a new owner that would for sure strike up some interesting conversations at Cars And Coffee. Located in Long Grove, Illinois, this 1980’s Electric Prototype B300 Dodge Van can be seen here on Craigslist with a firm price of $28,000. Many thanks go out to Barn Finds reader Kenneth Athon for sending us the tip on this one.
Long Grove, Illinois is not far from Chicago, and the ad mentions that this van was designed and built in the Chicago area. Other than the eighties decade, the exact year of this van is unknown, and the seller says that it could have been anywhere between 1982 and 1987. There are also no other building specifications and no more detailed information listed, other than after completion it sat in some USA company warehouse and was not used until that company went out of business in the 2000s.
The van was used briefly by someone or some company in 2005, but the seller says it was not used after that because the batteries expired, although a few deep-cycle lug batteries in bank one will still power it up enough to be parking lot driven. The seller claims that this van is capable of using any batteries, and specifically mentions 108VDC for long-range or modern Li batteries. Total mileage is less than 3,000, which seems like enough for the design to prove itself for some initial runs but not necessarily for the long haul. But if problems arise, all of the modules and cables were tagged by the original factory tech, and a local Chicago area tech is available to help “for a reasonable fee”. Although the van is said to have been built with military-grade components and engineering status indicators, it was all made well over 30 years ago and age is probably a factor here, so I’d definitely save that tech’s phone number in my contacts.
Although the custom dash panel creates an air of excitement, it is a bare-bones cargo van with only two front seats and no side windows. The interior is showing a lot of dust, and the seller says that the van has not been cleaned up or detailed yet. The van also has a couple of minor exterior blemishes, including a small ding on the front of the hood and another on the rear bumper, but overall it looks to be really well preserved. Setting in a warehouse all those years and having traveled less than 3,000 miles have been kind to this vehicle. What are your thoughts on this eighties decade B300 Electric Dodge Van?
My fire thought is that we saw this come through Barn Finds before https://barnfinds.com/search/Dodge+electric+van/
My second thought is that I’m not the least bit surprised the government dumped $240k into having this built, I mean it’s not real money they are playing with right?
Agreed Bakyrdhero. This silly, overpriced thing gets posted multiple times and yet, the cool stuff I submit never makes it on Barnfinds.
Yes , it was previously posted at this ridiculous FIRM price and it will most certainly be posted again …
Yup, been here before and it hasn’t gained anything since its last visit. A perfect example if ever there was one of why the Federal Government is for all intent and purpose with over 30 Trillion a year in debt – broke! The only reason the doors are still open is because they keep raising the debt ceiling and printing 120 Billion dollars a month out of thin air. When this bubble pops, you’ll see the astronomical prices asked for some of the vehicles we see on BF drop like a stone.
What a joke. Buy it and lite it on fire 🔥 at your nearest federal bureaucratic department.
This Is A Joke Right ?
Any idea what the “Arm Chopper” light is for? It doesn’t sound pleasant…
You turn that on whenever you want to ride the Captain America tribute chopper in the back?
Just a guess from my electronics days. Arm chopper may have something to do with the armature in the electric motor. A chopper circuit was a reference to converting DC current to AC current. Usually not very efficient and not a pure AC sine wave. Cheap inverters today use a version of them and produce more of a square wave. Use a cheap one with a TV, the lines you see in the picture are this not pure AC power.
fire hazzard!
Being a Maxi Van, maybe a B250 or B350, it may be a good choice to install a real motor. It is almost a new van and should last a good while, but not for $28,000.00. $5,000.00, Yes. I have a one-of-a-kind something.
Shining example of goverment wasting taxpayer money on projects better dealt with by private enterprise? $240k ? POOF! I wonder how much ‘study’ money was spent deciding whose perspnal contact could benefit most by this “pure pork project”?
Shining example of goverment wasting taxpayer money on projects better dealt with by private enterprise? $240k ? POOF! I wonder how much ‘study’ money was spent deciding whose perspnal contact could benefit most by this “pure pork project”?
Just went back to the post, and I don’t believe that year van was classified as a B300 (those were 71 – 77, I believe), but a B350, one ton or B250 three quarter ton would be 78′ and up.
On paper they paid $250,000 for it in reality its more like $50,000 and the rest went into the pockets of what ever congress person authorized its purchase. Ok I get it I’m a conspiracy theorist
Want to buy a $250.00 hammer that the government bought 30 years ago?
Ok, forgetting the obvious financial abuse conducted by our government, someone had the right idea. Buy it (for way less money than the asking price) & install a healthy crate 360 -n- transmission. This could be a great van! I never saw Whitehall tires on a 1 ton van before lol.
My 72′ B300 came with 16.5″ Good Year white wall tires. Still had the spare that came with it when I got rid of it last year.