When all trucks are electric where does that leave the guys who park their truck at the back of a farm yard or on a bit of private land somewhere? How are they going to charge the truck?
And how are the firms who own small/medium sized outfits (10-50 trucks) going to absorb the cost of installing charging points for each truck?
Where does that leave European trucks and drivers? Where would they charge at the end of the day?
Will electric trucks kill all small firms leaving the field open to just a handful of enormous operators?
Firstly I think there will always be a variety of power formats used in trucks and secondly nothing you ask about is an insurmountable problem. We are at the start of a long road with electrification, lots of advances to come with lots of solutions to problems that may not even be seen as a problem yet. Think of where the world was a century ago, and what’s to come isnt near as radical as what has been. Basically- watch this space.
And now awaits Sir Carry of Fast to hijack the whole post because of course he’s the only one that knows anything
switchlogic:
Firstly I think there will always be a variety of power formats used in trucks and secondly nothing you ask about is an insurmountable problem. We are at the start of a long road with electrification, lots of advances to come with lots of solutions to problems that may not even be seen as a problem yet. Think of where the world was a century ago, and what’s to come isnt near as radical as what has been. Basically- watch this space.
And now awaits Sir Carry of Fast to hijack the whole post because of course he’s the only one that knows anything
Fast charging at an external point is a requirement for all scenarios whether tramping, running night and day, using a corner someone elses yard or numerous other scenarios.
No doubt they are “thinking” about this, although still think hydrogen would he a better option. Will see.
switchlogic:
Firstly I think there will always be a variety of power formats used in trucks and secondly nothing you ask about is an insurmountable problem. We are at the start of a long road with electrification, lots of advances to come with lots of solutions to problems that may not even be seen as a problem yet. Think of where the world was a century ago, and what’s to come isnt near as radical as what has been. Basically- watch this space.
And now awaits Sir Carry of Fast to hijack the whole post because of course he’s the only one that knows anything
Do you think it would kill tramping?
Tramping is already slowly being killed off for different reasons but I see no reason why it would. If electric does become the default power format for trucks, by no means certain, it’ll just mean the majority of parking spaces come with power to charge while on a break or rest. As I say technology is at such a early state re electrification there will likely be a day when charging enough for a days work could be done in similar time it takes to fill diesel tanks. Very exciting times to come (as you can tell this is a bit of a pet interest of mine!)
One of first things I’m hoping to do when my licence is reinstated is go for a spin in one of Volvos demos
I would say at the moment if buying an electric truck then you will have a charge point installed,which i would imagine will be included in the cost of the vehicle …My main concern about charging is .my mate had a renault zoe ,but warrranty only covered the car when charged at his home …so if a issue happened at a charging point anywhere else no warranty ,A bit like fuel issues at garages not the manufacturers fault ,
If parked at the back of a yard ,then commonsense would say charge it first if going to there a while…I can’t see it killing the small operator ,They will all be on some contract with the manufacturer ,few people will actually own one
How many charge point you would need is a good one .surely if you have 50 trucks you would need some spare ,in case some fail ,god forbid they all fail …And customers what if they need a recharge ■■
At the moment The fully electric truck is up to 18 tonnes i think .So operators will probably have them on local and once (god knows when ) the charging infrastructure improves along with the charge rate ,and better batteries ,then they can go longer …I will admit as of yet i do not know how they work the power steering or air system on full electric DAF at the moment are trialling Hybrid CF tractor units with Dutch supermarkets ,which seem to be going well… Not training i am looking forward too ,after doing the LF hybrid many moons ago lol
People have managed to survive the repair costs of Euro 6 ,so the electric vehicle may not be too bad cost wise …I am waiting for the defects ,My truck take 50 minutes to charge ,it should only take 40 …The Scania passed me …I have a lack of battery power …These batteries aren;t giving me a full days work .The list is endless ,I am already on to driver defects lol
At the end of the day business will continue for the big and small concerns ,we adapt and overcome
switchlogic:
Firstly I think there will always be a variety of power formats used in trucks and secondly nothing you ask about is an insurmountable problem. We are at the start of a long road with electrification, lots of advances to come with lots of solutions to problems that may not even be seen as a problem yet. Think of where the world was a century ago, and what’s to come isnt near as radical as what has been. Basically- watch this space.
And now awaits Sir Carry of Fast to hijack the whole post because of course he’s the only one that knows anything
Do you think it would kill tramping?
Tramping is already slowly being killed off for different reasons but I see no reason why it would. If electric does become the default power format for trucks, by no means certain, it’ll just mean the majority of parking spaces come with power to charge while on a break or rest. As I say technology is at such a early state re electrification there will likely be a day when charging enough for a days work could be done in similar time it takes to fill diesel tanks. Very exciting times to come (as you can tell this is a bit of a pet interest of mine!)
One of first things I’m hoping to do when my licence is reinstated is go for a spin in one of Volvos demos
Me too!
Friend of mine bought a Tesla and I think it’s an amazing vehicle and really interesting. We’ll be in the market for a new car next year and we’re seriously looking at the electric cars. This is what got me thinking about electric trucks. We’re lucky enough to have a drive so charging the car off road won’t be a problem but I’ll still have to get an electrician to install the charging gubbins to the mains.
The ‘idea’ of electric trucks is great. In a perfect world where the truck was on a set route of known mileage, route and time I can see it working brilliant. However, in the ‘real’ world where everything changes almost minute by minute I can see problems.
If they can’t provide enough spaces for trucks at services now I don’t see how they’re going to accommodate all those trucks that use lay by’s and industrial areas in the evening.
The cost to install a charging point for every parking bay is going to be astronomical. That cost has to be passed on to the user.
If it was just down to operators to choose whether they went electric or stayed with diesel I think it would be a good idea then the operator could choose the best fuel choice for the type of work. Unfortunately, like anything to do with the government it’s going to do a blanket ban and mess it up. A bit like the ULEZ that makes it impossible to use anything other than a skateboard without paying hundreds and hundred of pounds.
Build5:
When all trucks are electric where does that leave the guys who park their truck at the back of a farm yard or on a bit of private land somewhere? How are they going to charge the truck?
And how are the firms who own small/medium sized outfits (10-50 trucks) going to absorb the cost of installing charging points for each truck?
Where does that leave European trucks and drivers? Where would they charge at the end of the day?
Will electric trucks kill all small firms leaving the field open to just a handful of enormous operators?
How will they be able to get the time in to charge them if they are double shifted depending on the charge time,also Hydrogen is a long
way off plus it’s a extremely volatile gas,I see LNG being the next step for long haul trucks especially as Asda have bought a fleet of them.
All new trucks to be fossil free by 2040, Europe’s leading truck manufacturers Scania, Daimler Truck, Volvo Group, CNH Industrial, MAN Truck & Bus, DAF Trucks and Ford Trucks have just pledged to no longer produce diesel trucks from 2040. electrive.com/2020/12/15/ma … n-by-2040/
The ban date for fossil fuel private cars has been brought forward 10 years from 2040 to 2030, I can see the thing happening to some extent for freight vehicles.
@Build5
Friend of mine bought a Tesla and I think it’s an amazing vehicle and really interesting. We’ll be in the market for a new car next year and we’re seriously looking at the electric cars. This is what got me thinking about electric trucks. We’re lucky enough to have a drive so charging the car off road won’t be a problem but I’ll still have to get an electrician to install the charging gubbins to the mains.
I’m taking the plunge for a BEV in January, I’ve ordered a MG ZS EV & I’m just going through the in’s & outs for the OLEV charger grant with BP Pulse, one of the criteria (besides off road parking or garage which I have both) for getting the OLEV grant is the household needs modern electrics, This old house we own in isn’t up to today’s electrical code standards so I need to get some things sorted out before they will entertain installing the 7kw wall box charger.
Imagine if all of those parked up trucks near Dover were electric, the drivers sitting in them with heating on and some “entertainment”. How would you get them moving after a few days never mind a week.
I enquired of my local council of the cost and likelihood of a charging point for an electric car I may buy in the future and was told to forget it.I live at the end of a short close where noone has a drive.So it’s carry on with my diesel then.
norb:
I would say at the moment if buying an electric truck then you will have a charge point installed,which i would imagine will be included in the cost of the vehicle …My main concern about charging is .my mate had a renault zoe ,but warrranty only covered the car when charged at his home …so if a issue happened at a charging point anywhere else no warranty ,A bit like fuel issues at garages not the manufacturers fault ,
If parked at the back of a yard ,then commonsense would say charge it first if going to there a while…I can’t see it killing the small operator ,They will all be on some contract with the manufacturer ,few people will actually own one
How many charge point you would need is a good one .surely if you have 50 trucks you would need some spare ,in case some fail ,god forbid they all fail …And customers what if they need a recharge ■■
At the moment The fully electric truck is up to 18 tonnes i think .So operators will probably have them on local and once (god knows when ) the charging infrastructure improves along with the charge rate ,and better batteries ,then they can go longer …I will admit as of yet i do not know how they work the power steering or air system on full electric DAF at the moment are trialling Hybrid CF tractor units with Dutch supermarkets ,which seem to be going well… Not training i am looking forward too ,after doing the LF hybrid many moons ago lol
People have managed to survive the repair costs of Euro 6 ,so the electric vehicle may not be too bad cost wise …I am waiting for the defects ,My truck take 50 minutes to charge ,it should only take 40 …The Scania passed me …I have a lack of battery power …These batteries aren;t giving me a full days work .The list is endless ,I am already on to driver defects lol
At the end of the day business will continue for the big and small concerns ,we adapt and overcome
No gearbox/clutch, differential, exhaust scrubber , fuel system, alternator, etc.
Given a few years (no, I wouldnt want to be the first buyer!) wouldnt elec be more reliable, I wonder?
alamcculloch:
Imagine if all of those parked up trucks near Dover were electric, the drivers sitting in them with heating on and some “entertainment”. How would you get them moving after a few days never mind a week.
My thoughts exactly, but you’re not supposed to suggest anything other than the perfect fluffy bunny scenario will accompany this brave new utopia they have planned for us.
Meanwhile back in the real world, those second (pick a number with at least 4 digits) rate politicians, and those making a nice little earner for doing little out of this climate scam, promising jam tomorrow will be out of office and enjoying their 30 pieces of silver rewards as most of the type do for services rendered as they milk the dinner speech circuit.
Not a hope in hell the charging infrastructure or reliable fossil fuel free generating capacity will be in place for the great shift from 2030 onwards for cars let alone commercial usage, but never let practicalities get in the way of a good soundbite and the pages of unquestioning media worship that follows, it won’t be Johnson or any of the present unfit for purpose ministers having to quietly extend the 2030 date back to a more realistic timescale.
These people never tell the truth and never get a single estimate right, everything they plan either turns out to be a white elephant and/or it ends up costing twice or three times the original plan’s cost and is often unfit for purpose once up and running, not to worry some good mates will have earned £billions of our (taxpayers) money as they always do via lucrative dodgy ■■■■■■■ contracts
alamcculloch:
Imagine if all of those parked up trucks near Dover were electric, the drivers sitting in them with heating on and some “entertainment”. How would you get them moving after a few days never mind a week.
You know we haven’t stopped all Development of the system don’t you? So far all I’ve seen are now problems, now problems because it assumes nothing will advance or change. I imagine a lot of the same stuff was said at the advent of fossil fuel powered vehicles.
norb:
No gearbox/clutch, differential, exhaust scrubber , fuel system, alternator, etc.
Given a few years (no, I wouldnt want to be the first buyer!) wouldnt elec be more reliable, I wonder?
They do have a gearbox, diff, alternator, and clutch of sorts. Obviously very different to diesel vehicles but they still have power control mechanisms.
The big one I’m aware of is the battery pack. The battery packs can wear out, individual cells within the pack can die, cells can have a ‘memory’ so if they’re under charged, overcharged or drained too low can seriously affect battery life and performance, and it’s not like changing a couple of AA’s in a torch! It’s seriously expensive changing the battery pack it’s right up there with getting a new engine fitted!
There’s a guy on YouTube who breaks smashed Tesla’s and rebuilds them. It’s really interesting stuff and the big killer is those battery packs.
Elon Musk has already said there needs to be a breakthrough technology in battery packs but they’re constrained by the laws of physics. All very interesting stuff.
I seldom do much distance in my car so am toying with the idea of an electric. However the sticking point is this. I think that £3,000 is plenty to spend on a car. My last three cost about that amount.
