Vehicle autonomy is a trend that’s proceeding in parallel with electrification, so it’s no surprise to learn that Tesla is working on the technology. This week, Elon Musk outlined an ambitious plan, saying that the company hopes to produce a car that can run on “auto-pilot” within the next three years. Tesla’s autonomous car will… Read more »
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The heavy-duty electric truck market could break out in 2024
Electrifying heavy-duty trucks is essential if we’re to fight climate change and air pollution, but the pace of the transition has been painfully slow—many, many pilots, but few truly large-scale orders. For example, shipping giant Schneider acquired 92 Freightliner eCascadias in 2023—a good start, but only that, considering that the company currently operates over 10,000… Read more »
Megawatt Charging System will kill hydrogen trucks once and for all, says electric truck expert
The sales figures make it increasingly plain that fuel cell passenger cars have no future, but hydrogen fans still have high hopes for applications like long-distance trucking, in which long range and fast refueling times are important. The endless articles churned out by anti-EV interests tend to have a lot to say about hydrogen, along… Read more »
Hino speeds production timeline for its Class 4-8 electric trucks
Hino Trucks, a subsidiary of Toyota, is accelerating the production timeline for its suite of battery-electric vehicles. The new Class 4-8 electric trucks are now slated to go into low-volume production in Q4 2022 and full production by the end of 2023. The company originally planned to have its BEV range in production by 2024,… Read more »
Heavy-duty electric trucks start to appear in fleets
Charged has been reporting on electric trucks for a decade, but the electrification of real-world fleets has been frustratingly slow, and several would-be e-truck builders have gone bust waiting for fleet operators to conduct years-long pilots. Now we’re finally starting to see some large orders. Will 2021 be the year of the electric truck? A… Read more »
Task force to develop Megawatt Charging System for heavy-duty EVs
In September, an international task force including representatives of the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) and the Charging Interface Initiative (CharIN) hosted a meeting of “leading OEMs, utilities, equipment manufacturers and suppliers” to test prototypes for a new charging system for heavy-duty vehicles: the Megawatt Charging System (MCS). The task force says the test, which… Read more »
New EU emissions targets would lead to end of new diesel truck sales by 2040
The road to a new set of emissions regulations tends to be a long one, winding through committees, public comment periods and court challenges, but as far as a layman can tell, the European Commission has reached the finish line, agreeing on CO2 targets for heavy-duty vehicles that would require phasing out almost all sales… Read more »
Lucid quadruples size of its Arizona assembly plant for Gravity SUV launch
While sales of the Air sedan have been slow, Lucid is planning much greater capacity for the Gravity, a three-row luxury SUV with 440 miles of range. Startup electric-car maker Lucid Motors cut the ribbon Wednesday on a massive expansion of its U.S. assembly plant in Casa Grande, Arizona. The company has built the Lucid… Read more »
Another reason to buy electric trucks: driver recruitment and retention, because drivers love them
The trucking industry has a serious driver shortage, and operators are exploring all kinds of ways to improve driver recruitment and retention. Meanwhile, trucking industry trade groups are fighting tooth and nail against electrification. They might be surprised to learn that deploying EVs could be a major hiring advantage, because drivers love them. In a… Read more »
Range Energy’s smart trailers boost electric truck range
Towing has always been a sore point with EVs—towing a trailer inevitably eats into range, and towing a massive semi-trailer requires a tractor with a massive battery pack. But what if the trailer itself could share the burden? That’s the idea behind Range Energy, which is developing a trailer that’s equipped with a battery pack,… Read more »