Daimler is serious about commercial EVs, announcing the Mercedes eActros LongHaul – the first electric semi to wear a Mercedes badge.
Let’s get to those juicy stats first – Daimler is claiming the Mercedes eActros LongHaul can move 22 tons of cargo 500 km, or about 300 miles, on a single charge. This is thanks to an absolute unit of a storage system, packing 600kWh into three battery packs powering an “e-axle” with peak output of 600kW, or about 815 horsepower.
Unveiled at IAA Transportation show in Hannover, Germany, Daimler is targeting volume production of the eActros LongHaul for 2024. This follows-up on the 2020 concept of the same name, and while executives are quick to caution that there are still many challenges to wider adoption of electric semis, Mercedes-Benz wants to help drive the transition across the commercial truck market.
But while this is the first Mercedes-badged electric semi, Daimler already offers the eCascadia through its Freightliner division, which offers up-to 230 miles of all-electric driving. In addition to the separate tractor version of the eActros LongHaul, Mercedes will also offer rigid body version at launch. Back to tech, Daimler is claiming that charging from 20% to 80% takes just 30 minutes, and the same “durability” requirements as the conventional versions. That means 10 years/1.2 million kilometers of supposedly worry-free driving.
While adoption of electric semis might be slower, the list of brands getting into the market is only growing. Tesla and Nikola are two of the better knowns, but well-established truck brands such as Peterbilt and Volvo are also entering this increasingly important and competitive market.
Mercedes-Benz eActros LongHaul
SOURCE | IMAGE: DAIMLER, VIA CLEANTECHNICA.
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