 2022 Tesla Semi Truck
It's impressive what the Tesla disciples get out of this presentation of the semi-truck. No, not in a positive sense, rather in a negative sense. It is praised that the beams bend. It hurts that modern combustion trucks are
treated like post-war vehicles.
So here's the attempt to be a little more objective. First of all, it must be said that trucks in the USA are a completely different species than trucks in Europe. Of course, completely different aerodynamic are possible with
trucks
there, since the length of semitrailer tractors is not restricted by law.
They also drive much faster there than the 89 km/h in e.g. Germany. The speeds of up to 75 m.p.h. (120 km/h) and the police warning mechanisms make them the fastest on the interstate. Tesla states almost 2 kWh/mile
with a total weight of 40 tons, which sounds quite believable as 125 kWh/100km.
But then you must have had batteries with about 1,000 kWh on board for the 500 miles without recharging from Fremont to San Diego. That would be an additional load of 6 to 7 tons. And the three Tesla drives are not that
much lighter than a diesel engine with transmission, especially since there are still a number of things in front of the control system.
Range in winter?
In the Midwest it can get as cold as -40°C. |
Perhaps with good reason, Tesla does not specify the dead weight of the semi-truck. In Europe, such a large battery would mean a significant reduction in payload. In addition, due to the complicated drive, a semitrailer
tractor would always have to have two rear axles.
But the Tesla friends jubilate, unfortunately without knowing the development on the truck market in Europe. As if there were no fully automatic transmissions here, neither ESP nor traction control or retarder respectively
third
brake. You also have to ask yourself whether three times the power, albeit measured as a peak, makes any sense for a truck.
| Why is it actually necessary to go from 0 to 100 km/h in just over 20 seconds when fully loaded? |
You just took what you already had and upgraded once again from Model 3 engines to those of the Model S. The drive on the last axle, which only works in highway mode, does not even have a differential. And how much
does it cost with all that equipment? The price competition in the USA is probably even tougher.
Allegedly, Elon Musk also wants to revolutionize the trailers, again almost unthinkable for Europe, where they are often changed and there are three major producers. One can guess how many smaller ones and how many
there are worldwide. Incidentally, only three of the ten largest truck manufacturers are from Europe.
Does Elon Musk actually need to state that charging is possible with a range of 400 miles in 30 minutes? With the 2 kWh/mile also specified by Tesla, that would be 800 kWh. Even with 1,000 kW you would need 48
minutes.
And, of course, each charging curve falls off significantly over time. Apparently you can tell Tesla fans anything . . .
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