Electric commercial rigs are coming
A fully loaded Tesla rig and trailer sprints from zero to 100 km/h in just 20 awesome seconds
Isurprise myself some days. I’m no longer set in my ways and beliefs. I’ve opened the door to change, and that even includes how I motor down the road.
Not long ago I was Mr. Negative when it came to the concept of electric big rigs. Hey, I didn’t even like electric powered cars, even after a friend took me for a spin in his Tesla.
So what changed John, you ask? I read — another — story about the Tesla commercial tractor-trailer.
It got me thinking about you, dear 4-wheeler, and how when you come upon a big rig on the road, you immediately think about passing that big hindrance. It’s blocking your view. It is kicking up too much road mist. You can’t see. So you look around for cops, then you gun it. Well, sorry to burst your speed bubble but if you come across one of those Tesla rigs, and even if he is fully loaded, the chances of you passing it — especially if I’m behind the wheel of the rig — are slim and none.
Yep. The facts and figures are now in printed black and white. A fully loaded Tesla rig and trailer (to the tune of 36,289 kilos), sprints from zero to 100 km/h in 20 seconds. That is totally awesome.
The sole downside? The rig driver will have to stop quite often to redistribute his load, because it will have all shifted to the back half of the container or van. But I’d be more than happy to do that, just for the sheer pleasure of blowing the doors off some 4-wheelers, especially those who make it obvious just how much they despise us truck drivers. It just makes me smile with the thought of it. I’d even go out looking for Bimmers and V-Dubs, just to shut me down. They’re the worst offenders in my experience.
There’s nothing boring about driving a loaded rig, and if it’s a Tesla, then the sky’s the limit. Yeah again. Baby boomers can still dream, and we are full of life and desires, too.
Of course, some folks think such acceleration is unnecessary. Not me. And equally impressive, well almost as impressive, is the reported range the Tesla rig can travel between recharging. Anywhere between 483 to 805 kilometres. The competition is only offering about a 160-km range with half the payload.
So, with so few charging stations currently set up on the highways, the Tesla would be better put to use within a city area. Metro Vancouver would be ideal. Using the Tesla rig, a driver would be able to run the Lower Mainland three days before recharging. I currently do just over 200 km per day, and that’s a 10 to 12 hour day. Finish day three … plug it in, and ready to roll before the sun comes up on day four.
Another option would be to have an electric rig run from one hub to another, then the diesel power rigs do the LTL (less than load) drop-off and pickup tasks.
The electric can be a straight shot unit, hub-to-hub or suburb-to-suburb. Lots of possibilities, and lots of savings on fuel costs.
Tree huggers will love it, too, because of no emissions, and no blocking traffic as the electric rig can keep up with the 4 wheelers, or maybe even pass a few of them.
For a forward thinking employer, the only serious question would be how to marry the electric rig to the diesel units and make it work for his company’s greater financial benefit. It will be a few more years before even Tesla can come up with batteries that will give the rig the range of a diesel powered unit, but it will happen.
Unless you’ve been living in a cave for the last few years, the electric commercial rig, the Tesla in particular, is coming to a roadway near you. Saying it will “never happen in my lifetime” is not an expression you can utter with conviction anymore. Take it from me.