Daimler Truck has announced it has officially launched threee new or new generation offerings in its expanding range of battery electric trucks saying that Australian truck operators now have some additional electric trucks (or BEVs) to consider with its new offerings.
Daimler Truck Australia says it can can now officially welcome the next-generation Fuso eCanter, as well as the battery-electric versions of the Actros and Econic, known (not too surprisingly) as the Mercedes-Benz eActros and eEconic to Australia.
The company claims that all three promise a range of around 300km from a charge, and come with all the latest safety and driver assist gear as well.
Daimler Truck president and CEO, Daniel Whitehead, said it’s an exciting time for the Fuso and Mercedes-Benz Trucks brands in Australia.
“We didn’t take shortcuts to rush these models to market but invested more time and money to make sure we delivered trucks with the innovation that our customers expect from Daimler Truck, which means the most advanced trucks in their class,” said Whitehead.
The Mercedes-Benz eActros will be available as a 4×2 and 6×2 rigid as well as a 4×2 prime mover with the company saying that all models have been developed for local distribution work.
The company also says that the Mercedes eEconic will be available as 6×2, and says that this has primarily been developed for the waste industry as a collection vehicle, but added that it could also be put to work completing urban and inner-city deliveries.
Daimler also said that its Fuso brand is offering a full line-up of new eCanters, as has been revealed earlier here in T&B News, with 14 new models, offering three different battery sizes, a variety of wheelbases, and a choice of two cab sizes.
The company underlined that the Mercedes-Benz eActros is available as a 4×2 and 6×2 rigid as well as a 4×2 prime mover, adding that rigid models can deliver up to 300km of range, while the prime mover can offer up to 200km, which is due to its higher weight hauling capacity.
Daimler says that the rigid eActros has a technical GVM of 19 tonnes , and a practical one of 16 tonnes in Australia due to axle weight restrictions.
the truck uses the Daimler eAxle concept with two integrated liquid-cooled motors and a two-speed transmission. Maximum power is said to be 536hp (400kW) peak performance and 443hp (330kW) continuous output.
It has three thermally controlled lithium-ion battery packs with 336kWh capacity.
The eActros also features regenerative braking. The company says this five-stage braking system works like an engine brake to both spare the service brakes and recoup significant amounts of electricity, which is fed back into the batteries.
The company claims that charging from 20 per cent to 80 per cent will takes around 1hr 15min (using a 160kW charger) with its CCS Combo-2 plug.
The eActros also features the second generation MirrorCam system as standard featuring two in-cab A-pillar mounted 15-inch video monitors.
The company lists a number of active safety features, including Active Brake Assist with pedestrian detection (radar/camera AEBS Advanced Emergency Braking System).
It also says it features a twin radar Side Guard Assist warning system to detect cyclists, moving pedestrians, and cars when the truck is making a left turn.
Other features include, stability control assist, front guard assist, lane keeping assist, attention assist, stability control assist, roll control assist, tyre pressure monitoring, acoustic vehicle alert system (pedestrian alert feature and a multimedia cockpit featuring two 10-inch high-resolution information screens
Daimler produces the eActros at its giant truck manufacturing plant at Worth in Germany.
The Mercedes-Benz eEconic shares the same electrical architecture as the eActros e300 and its application as a waste collection truck and the associated demands, means that its range is specified at up to 200km.
Daimler says the eEconicfeatures the same safety technology as the eActros and is based on the diesel Econic model that was designed from the ground-up as a city-centric waste collection truck with low entry and excellent panoramic visibility.
Fuso’s eCanter offering includes 14 different models, available in both City Cab and Wide Cab configurations and with a GVM ranging from 4.5 tonnes to 8.5 tonnes.
Daimler says the eCanter features an eAxle with an integrated liquid-cooled motor and reduction gearbox. It is claimed to be the only truck in its class with an eAxle, which the company says optimises the eAxle design to boost efficiency and reduce weight.
The eCanter produces 110kW or 130kW depending on the model and can be charged using AC or DC charging, so some customers may not need to invest the extra in a faster DC charger for their application.
Daimler claims the charging times are approximately 1 hour for a full charge with a 100kW DC charger or 4.9 hours using AC 3-phase, while it says it can only take 45min to go from five per cent to 90 per cent using a 100kW DC charger.
The eCanter use lithium-ion phosphate (LFP) battery packs, with buyers being offered the options of one, two or three battery packs, with 83kWh capacity combined.
Daimler says these are thermally-controlled with a class-leading in-battery liquid thermal control system, which it says ensures the batteries operate at the most efficient temperature in all conditions.
The company says its Canter models up to six-tonne GVM feature Independent Front Suspension (IFS) which it says offers superior handling, while precise rack and pinion steering is also a part of the spec, something most light trucks don’t offer, with a majority featuring the vagueries of recirculating ball on their light trucks.
Daimler says the eCanter range depends on the battery back chosen by the buyer, with the options starting at up to 100km for the single battery version, moving up to 200km for the e615, and up to 300km for larger three battery units.
The company says that the exact range will vary depending on the geography of the area, driving method, type of load, and body, among other factors. All of this underlines Daimler’s conservative approach which in our experience with some recent test drives under promises and over delivers.
The eCanter also features regenerative braking, which as in the eActros works like an engine brake to both spare the service brakes and recoup significant amounts of electricity, which is fed back into the batteries.
Daimler adds that eCanter buyers can choose to specify a flange or pulley Power Take Off (PTO) and that the eCanter first arrived in Australia in 2021 and was claimed as the first production electric truck to be introduced locally.
Other features include of the eCanter include, standard advanced brake assist 5 with pedestrian detection, active side guard assist (ASGA), stability control assist, lane departure warning system (LDWS), hill start assist, high voltage shut-off crash sensor, and also features the acoustic vehicle alert system (AVAS) as standard.
The company also says the eCanter features a new-look interior with an electric handbrake, high-resolution 10-inch driver display screen, ISRI driver seats (suspension driver seat for Wide Cab).
The company adds that on the outside of the eCanter, there are new design elements including LED headlights, LED taillights and LED Daytime Running Lamps (DRLs) for additional visibility.
Australian eCanter models are manufactured at the company’s plant at Kawasaki in Japan.
