Tesla’s HGV Finally Revealed

A few months back, we wrote a piece about how September was a very exciting time for The HGV world. In case you didn’t see it, we’ll put a link to it here. Back then, the electric postal vans for the UK had been brought out and were in testing, and 2 big names had been battling to unveil  their electric HGV’s. But while one of those names was already in the HGV scene, the other was a relative newcomer on the block. But despite that, Tesla have made their boldest move yet and revealed their all electric HGV.

The Looks

The first thing we noticed about Tesla’s ‘semi’ is its distinctive look. Unlike other HGV’s, the Tesla model is sleek, angular and futuristic. Overall, its stunning. The low profile, angled cabs and silver casing has challenged what HGVs should look like, and definitely take us one step closer to that iRobot future.

The Specs 

But really, it’s less about what’s on the surface and more about what under the hood. During the launch event, which featured 2 semi models, we also saw the Class 8 aerodynamic prototype and a new, never before seen low roof version of the vehicle. Each model shown had achieved a drag coefficient of 0.36, which is unheard of for a large goods vehicle, and even for some commercial passenger cars. Even more impressive, the semi is equipped with 4 independent electric motors on the rear axels, which enables insane torque for a 0 to 60 mpg acceleration with a full load in just 20 seconds. The powertrain feature also enables another interesting performance spec: a speed of 65 mph going up a 5% grade. Elon Musk himself characterised the semi’s as a ‘bad ass mother f**ker, and we have to say, we agree. The specs of this vehicle have exceeded and even crushed our expectations. There were also murmurings of a semi-autonomous driving capacity, which shows that Tesla is steering clear of full self-driving HGV’s for now. Instead, the semi’s will feature enhanced autopilot features to create semi-automated convoys, making the Tesla semi the safest HGV yet.

The Range

But one of the biggest concerns with any electric vehicle is its charge capability and range. Since electric charging points aren’t a national standard, the issue of length between charges is a serious consideration. However, Tesla have been pioneering in electric cars for quite some time. Elon Musk announced that the Tesla HGV’s would come with two different battery pack configurations, allowing for a range of between 300 to 500 miles per charge. Not only that, but he also announced that Tesla will be bringing out the Supercharger V3 and a new Megacharger. These megachargers will add 400 miles of range to the Tesla HGV’s in just 30 minutes. 30 minutes! Using the same metrics that tesla released for energy consumption, that translates to roughly 1.6 MW charging, which is around 10 times more powerful than Tesla’s superchargers.

Since the launch event on the 16^th, Tesla have seen a huge demand for their electric HGVs. Within days over 200 orders had been placed, with more sweeping in as the days went on. Firms ordering range from small American haulage firms to businesses like DHL. To keep up with the latest HGV news, or to find out more about the electric HGV developments, just get in touch with us today.