Mercedes-Benz Truck is preparing the largest test of electric trucks in the company's history – “eActros 600 European Testing Tour 2024”. It will involve two pre-production eActros 600 tractors, each of which will travel at least 13,000 km on the roads of 20 European countries as part of a 40-tonne train of sorts. And the convoy will leave on June 1 from Frankfurt am Main.
The main objectives of the tour are to test the new models on real routes with different topography and climatic zones, as well as to demonstrate to potential customers the advanced capabilities of the machines. At the same time, it is planned that the trucks will be charged while driving exclusively at public stations.
It should be noted that production of the Mercedes-Benz eActros 600 will start this year. The model is equipped with batteries with a capacity of 600 kWh and an electric axle of our own development, which provides a mileage of up to 500 km for a loaded truck without intermediate charging. According to statistics, about 60% of Mercedes-Benz Truck customers travel up to 500 km.
Currently, the trucks support charging with a power of 400 kW, which allows to increase the total daily mileage to 1000 km. Megawatt stations (MCS) capable of charging truck batteries from 20 to 80% capacity in just 30 minutes should appear soon.
This is not the first such run by Mercedes-Benz Truck. In 2023, the company held a similar one, only it was shorter and involved electric trucks for regional transport - eActros 300/400. Each of the three trucks traveled about 5,000 km on the roads of Germany, Austria, Italy, the Netherlands and Belgium.