Class 8 electric trucks

Behind Climate United’s historic $250M electric truck buy

Climate United’s plan to spend $250 million to purchase 500 Class 8 electric trucks makes a great headline. But beyond the benefit to owner-operators and small fleets, the impact involves the future of zero-tailpipe-emission freight hauling.

More than cleaning up the ports

Climate United is stewarding a $6.97 billion grant of Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) funds awarded by the Environmental Protection Agency. The immediate goal is to help clean up the nation’s ports, where older and dirtier trucks...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/behind-climate-uniteds-historic-250m-electric-truck-buy

Chinese Class 8 EV truck maker plans to build factory in Georgia

China-based electric truck startup Windrose Technology Inc. plans to build a manufacturing plant in Savannah, Georgia, for its line of semi-trucks, according to Reuters.

Officials for Windrose said they have 6,400 existing orders for Class 8 EV trucks, with the majority of orders coming from U.S. companies. 

“The U.S. market is friendly towards Chinese heavy electric trucks based on the fact that the tariffs on imported trucks are much lower than those on cars,” Han Wen, founder and CEO of...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/chinese-class-8-ev-truck-maker-announces-factory-in-georgia

Borderlands Mexico: Carrier makes history using electric truck to haul cross-border freight

A California-based carrier made history Thursday using a Class 8 electric truck to haul freight between the U.S. and Mexico, a first-ever border crossing for a heavy-duty EV vehicle, officials said.

The electric truck from San Diego-based Bali Express made its maiden voyage carrying an unspecified load of goods into Mexico through the Otay Mesa Port of Entry, which connects Southern California to the Mexican city of Tijuana. 

“By adding electric freight trucks, we are not only reducing our carbon...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/borderlands-mexico-carrier-makes-history-using-electric-truck-to-haul-cross-border-freight

Electric trucks should shake off setbacks in 2024

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Meaningful volume growth eluded heavy-duty electric trucks last year for several reasons: Charging...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/electric-trucks-should-shake-off-setbacks-in-2024

Forum Mobility adding electric truck charging depot to Long Beach port

A growing number of planned electric truck charging depots in and around the Port of Long Beach in California is barely scratching the surface of the expected need to keep battery-electric trucks moving to match the uptime efficiency of diesel trucks.

Forum Mobility on Thursday announced a 9-megawatt facility adjacent to the Long Beach Container Terminal. When energized in the third quarter of 2024, the facility will be able to charge more than 200 trucks a day. Forum is part of a $400 million...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/forum-mobility-adding-electric-truck-charging-depot-to-long-beach-port

Truck electrification is much more than picking a charger

You can buy a charger for an electric vehicle from any number of suppliers. But it’s an incomplete purchase without knowing when the charger is operating, how much juice it can put out at a given time and whether or not it’s occupied.

“The last conversation I’m having is ‘Let’s pick the right hardware, how to deploy it cost effectively, and let me help you operate it so you get the SLA (service life agreement) you want,” Rich Mohr, ChargePoint Holdings Inc. senior vice president for North...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/truck-electrification-is-much-more-than-picking-a-charger

Electric truck recalls begin to mount — albeit in small numbers

The number of affected vehicles is barely noticeable — until you count the number of recall campaigns. Electric trucks are having early life quality problems.

The latest of 10 electric truck recalls in the past three months was reported on the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration website Monday. It involves the loss of power to 82 Freightliner eCascadia Class 8 trucks. The electronic axles may have insufficiently welded planetary gear sets.

E-axles and planetary gear sets are components...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/electric-truck-recalls-begin-to-mount-albeit-in-small-numbers

Safety recalls hit Volvo, Nikola electric trucks

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The numbers are small because there are not many Class 8 electric trucks on the road yet. But new...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/safety-recalls-hit-volvo-nikola-electric-trucks

Volvo VNR Electric stakes early Class 8 leadership claim

Green Volvo VNR Electric

DUBLIN, Va. — The interior of the Class 8 Volvo VNR Electric truck won’t wow you with sleekness. It is utilitarian, practically unchanged from its 2016 introduction. But substituting batteries for an internal combustion engine provides a ride as quiet as any competitor and a single-charge driving range exceeding most.

My strongest takeaway from driving two laps around the private track at Volvo’s manufacturing complex was how energy from slowing down on curves returns to the battery. It is a...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/volvo-vnr-electric-takes-the-pole-among-zero-emission-class-8-trucks

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