A battery-powered Mercedes-Benz eActros tractor unit has demonstrated its readiness for UK work by completing a five-day, 1,400-mile journey around the country, writes Chris Tindall.
Hauling a standard trailer and fully freighted at 40 tonnes, the truck maker said its eActros 600 saw off the challenge at this year’s EV Rally event.
It saw 50 vehicles of varying sizes and types set off from Oldbury in the West Midlands, on a tour that took in visits to 26 locations corresponding to every letter of the alphabet, although some creative licence was employed when it came to the letters X and Z.
Day one involved a 258-mile drive via five intermediate checkpoints to finish in Carlisle. Day two’s route covered 285 miles, ending at the Daimler Truck UK complex at Wentworth Park, near Sheffield.
The longest single day’s drive was 366 miles and the final stint of 265 miles brought the participants through Wales to the finish line in Chester.
Daimler Truck UK head of future sustainability, James Venables, said the eActros was ‘big, bold and exciting and taking part in this event has been great fun but, more importantly, we’ve proved that our engineers are right when they say the truck can cover 500 km on a single charge’.
He added: “The EV Rally is all about showcasing today’s electric vehicles and the fact that a multi-day marathon journey is very much achievable, using the current network of charging points.
“As the national infrastructure develops that will only get easier.”
Production of the eActros 600 will start in December.
