On Tim Giles’ first walk around the eActros, it has a familiar shape, using the narrower metro cab. The light blue flashes, contrasting with the white paintwork, are Daimler’s way of telling us this is an electric truck.
The other feature that needs to be noted is one that doesn’t stick out like a sore thumb, the MirrorCam system, which is now an optional replacement for the rear view mirrors. These did not get a particularly warm reception first time around, but have been redesigned, with shorter stalks and smarter cameras. In what can be seen as a bold move, these second generation MirrorCams are standard on the eActros with their two in-cab A-pillar mounted 15-inch monitors.
Climbing up into the cabin is a familiar process and the dash and layout have come straight out of the diesel powered model it is based on. However, there is one new very obvious feature and that is a orange coloured emergency battery-kill control near the driver’s left knee.
This is one of the safety systems which is essential in these electric trucks where the batteries and the 600V electric power system can create some safety concerns.
This emergency cut-off for the electric power is one of several safety devices specifically made for the eActros. Another of them is the smoke detection system along the top of the batteries, which includes smoke detectors which can sniff out any hint of smoke coming out of the cells.
It will immediately cut off the electricity supply to avoid problems with runaway fires. These have been known to occur with lithium batteries in vehicles, as was evidenced by the runaway truck fire on the approach to the West Gate Bridge in Melbourne earlier in 2024.
According to Mercedes Benz the truck in this configuration, currently, would have a range up to 200km, taking into account the fact that in this sort of work around half the mileage can be with an unladen truck.
On the model driven, during this test, the current GCM available is around 35 tonnes, giving the combination tested a payload ability of around 16.5 tonne. The axle mass on the steer was right up to 6.5 tonnes, with 10 tonnes on the drive.
The innovation which arrives in Australia for the first time in a prime mover is the e-axle which uses two integrated liquid cooled electric motors and an inbuilt two speed transmission. This axle is capable of putting out 536hp (400kW) as its peak performance or 443hp (330kW) of continuous output.
This model is fitted with three lithium-ion battery packs which adds up to 336kWh capacity. The e-axle used is exactly the same as the one on the rigid eActros, driven and reported on in the May/June 2024 edition of PowerTorque.
There is a five-stage retardation system included which charges the batteries as the trucks slow, using the electric motors as regenerative chargers reclaiming energy, as this power is fed into the batteries.
There is an additional function available – the truck has a high power brake resistor (HBR) system that allows the electric drive axle to retain its retardation capacity. HBR will take the energy created by the rolling wheels and dissipate it by converting it into heat, to retain the retardation capability, even when the batteries are fully charged.
In this way, the truck can always decelerate using a combination of the drive axle and either the battery or the HBR retardation system.
