Daimler's all-electric eCanter box truck is ready for work
It'll first arrive in the US wearing UPS livery.
Electric trucks are slowly gaining ground around the world, and one of the world's largest truck manufacturers is getting in on the action.
Mitsubishi Fuso Truck, a subsidiary of Daimler Trucks, has unveiled the Fuso eCanter, which it calls the world's first series production electric box truck. While it won't enter large-scale production until 2019, the automaker will deliver 500 examples of the eCanter over the next two years.
You'll never hear your delivery coming.
Under the body lies six lithium-ion battery packs, each with a capacity of 13.8 kWh. The eCanter's range is expected to be about 100 kilometers (62 miles), and it can carry up to 3.5 metric tonnes (7,716 pounds), depending on what body is attached to the frame. Daimler claims it'll save drivers up to 1,000 euros ($1,195, converted directly) in operating costs per 10,000 km (6,210 miles).
The first batch of eCanters will be sold in the US, Europe and Japan. Here in the US, the trucks will head to UPS, along with four New York nonprofits -- the Wildlife Conservation Society, the New York Botanical Garden, Habitat for Humanity and Big Reuse Brooklyn.
The trucks will hopefully help curb urban emissions and noise levels, two things big cities struggle with as their roads are overloaded with all manner of gas and diesel trucks.
"Our new Fuso eCanter now addresses the increasing global demand for products to meet and exceed high CO2 emission standards," said Marc Llistosella, CEO of Mitsubishi Fuso Truck, in a statement. "It offers an attractive and cost-effective alternative to combustion engines and makes electric trucks key to the future of inner city distribution."
Manhattan is impressively loud, so any attempt to reduce its audio footprint is fine by me.
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