eActros undergoes German tests

A battery-electric Mercedes-Benz eActros is being put to the test in daily operations by a German transport company. The 25-t vehicle, operated by Logistik Schmitt, travels between a warehouse in Ötigheim, southern Germany, and Mercedes-Benz’s Gaggenau plant in Rastatt, a distance of about seven kilometres.

The vehicle is used in place of a conventionally powered truck to transport transmission housings, covering about 168 km daily as part of a demanding, three-shift operation. The truck is said to have a range of 200 km on a single charge.

Stefan Buchner, head of Mercedes-Benz Trucks, says the eActros has now been integrated in daily operations by test customers not only in Germany, but in Switzerland, too, where an eActros has covered thousands of test kilometres. “Even fully loaded and regardless of hot or cold temperatures, it successfully completes its daily duties. This spurs us on in our aim to enable local emission-free distribution with heavy-duty, series-produced trucks from 2021 onwards,” he says.

Rainer Schmitt, spokesman for Logistik Schmitt, says the company’s tests show that the eActros is well suited for the distribution operation. “The truck is reliable, always ready for duty and its range easily meets our route requirements.”