“Shhh… Don’t tell Mercedes-Benz!”

News

28 Aug

Electric Mercedes-Benz truck bound for Australia and New Zealand

In mid-September I’m hopping aboard a plane heading for Frankfurt, Germany. From there I’ll be attending the IAA Transportation 2022 in Hanover for a couple of days before returning to Frankfurt and heading down to Portugal.

The trip is as a guest of Daimler Trucks and while I’m over there I get to drive some of their vehicles, including the eActros. Now I know you’re all going to groan and moan and question the validity of large electric trucks and how they pertain to Australia and our vast open spaces.

I can’t answer your questions although I’ll no doubt have a better insight into electric after the trip.

But I do know that Mercedes-Benz spits out an Actros every 90 seconds from their factory at Wörth and that this is the largest truck factory in the world. No-one, least of all M-B is going to invest $Billions in a white elephant. In concert with this development, Mercedes-Benz Trucks will begin a local evaluation program for the all-electric eActros in Australia and New Zealand early next year.

From the pics provided by Mercedes, it appears that they will be heavy rigids although with a semi overseas, we could expect to see one of those on our roads in the not too distant future.

Initially, four eActros trucks will get to work in Australia and one unit will hit the road in New Zealand, with additional units to follow. The eActros, which has just been launched in Europe, produces zero local emissions and operates near silently.

Daimler Truck has extensive experience with electric commercial vehicles and was the first manufacturer with an all-electric truck when the Fuso eCanter broke new ground when it was launched locally in 2021.

Customers on both sides of the Tasman Sea have embraced the all-electric eCanter, appreciating the near smooth and quiet operation, active safety features, ease of use and original equipment manufacturer backing.

Mercedes-Benz Trucks Australia Pacific Director, Andrew Assimo, says he is excited to start the local evaluation program for eActros as part of a drive towards CO2-neutral goods transport.

“We are excited to conduct this extensive testing program on the roads of Australia and New Zealand for the advanced and innovative all-electric eActros, a truck that represents an exciting new chapter for sustainable road transport in our region,” he said.

“Mercedes-Benz Trucks always makes sure the advanced technology we introduce locally is tailored for our unique conditions and meets the specific requirements of our customers with extensive local evaluation and it is no different with zero emission electric technology.”

Daimler Truck is committed to advancing battery electric technology for trucks and buses, but is also working on hydrogen fuel cell technology that is well suited to Australian requirements of longer distances at higher weights. While hydrogen fuel cell trucks are currently being tested they are still some years away from introduction. Battery electric Mercedes-Benz trucks are already in production and out on the road with leading European fleets.

The focus of the eActros is for heavy-duty short radius distribution and development trucks have been working away in select fleets in Europe since 2018.

Andrew Assimo says Mercedes-Benz Trucks is excited to fulfill customer demand and bring the all-electric eActros to Australia and New Zealand.

“Our key customers are very passionate about advanced electric heavy vehicles and we are thrilled to begin the evaluation program that will ensure our electric Actros will succeed in our market.

“We are excited to help our customers along their emission reduction pathways with class-leading Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) trucks that are genuine workhorses and carry out their work in near silence producing zero local emissions.”

While Mercedes-Benz Trucks is keen to move forward with battery electric technology, it is also proud to help traditional internal combustion engine customers drive down their emissions.

Mercedes-Benz Trucks led the way in Australia with the first full range of Euro 6 heavy trucks with the new Actros in 2016 and the truck’s remarkable fuel efficiency is renowned across the industry. Further improvements of the Mercedes-Benz diesel Actors engines are also soon on the way.

At this stage, Mercedes-Benz Trucks is not ready to announce when the eActros will be made available to customers in Australia and New Zealand.

PS: Daimler could have saved an airfare and plonked me in the local evaluation Actros – but don’t suggest that to them!