After 10 years of experimentation under actual operating conditions with its customer-partners, Renault Trucks unveiled its second generation of all-electric vehicles, the Renault Master Z.E.
Renault Trucks D Z.E. and Renault Trucks D Wide Z.E., a complete range from 3.5 to 26 tonnes, are said to be ideally suited for use in the city.
The Renault Trucks D and Renault Trucks D Wide Z.E. will be manufactured in the Renault Trucks plant at Blainville-sur-Orne and will arrive on the market in 2019, while the Renault Master Z.E. will be available in 2018.
According to the official statement, the company has been field testing electric trucks for the past 10 years, with its customer-partners in order to garner crucial information about usage, battery behaviour, charging facilities, and specific maintenance requirements. These real-world tests have said to enable Renault Trucks customer-partners to help their own customers come to an acceptance of electric technology. Renault Trucks has over a decade of experience with all-electric trucks thanks to the Renault Maxity.
Ten years ago, we were the pioneers, promoting electric trucks to improve city air quality, explains Renault Trucks president, Bruno Blin. Today we can offer a range of electric vehicles with proven performance and the experts in our network are ready to help our customers transition to electro-mobility. Ten years ago we were pioneers, today we are experts.
The latest technological advances have made electric trucks an economically viable alternative for hauliers, leading Renault Trucks to launch a complete Z.E. range. However strict the regulations may be in urban zones, the vehicles in the Renault Trucks Z.E. are said to operate seamlessly in compliance. They are the perfect solution to safeguard air quality and reduce congestion as they allow noise-free out-of-hours deliveries and emit neither local pollutants nor CO2.
Some prominent names in freight haulage have already opted for electro-mobility. One such company is XPO Logistics. Luis Gomez, managing director-transport, XPO Logistics Europe, said: At XPO, we have led by example as the transport industry becomes increasingly aware of the need for alternative power. We commend our supplier Renault Trucks for investing in the development of electric vehicles that offer a practical way to achieve zero emissions. Renault Trucks is shaping the future of commercial transport in an evolving regulatory environment.
Suez is also following the release of the Renault Trucks Z.E range with interest. Edouard Hénaut, executive director local authorities services at Suez, said: We are delighted to see a competitive new industrial solution arrive on the market and to be able to partner with Renault Trucks. This new electric truck offering will allow Suez to help its customers reduce their carbon footprint thanks to a zero-emission environmentally-friendly and silent refuse collection solution.
The Renault Trucks Master Z.E., which will be released in September 2018, is ideal for last-mile deliveries and provides access to inner-city areas even those with strict traffic restrictions. The battery of this all-electric utility vehicle takes six hours to charge. Its loading volume is the same as a conventional diesel Renault Master as the batteries are mounted under the front seats. The Master Z.E. range comes in six variants (four panel vans and two platform cabs) designed to meet all the requirements of professionals working in urban environments. Lastly, to protect the driver and the load and keep city-dwellers safe, the Master Z.E. is outfitted with a reversing camera, reversing radar system and wide-view mirror as standard features.
Meanwhile the Renault Trucks D and Renault Trucks D Wide Z.E. are said to be apt for urban deliveries and refuse collection. The specially designed 16t version of the Renault Trucks D Z.E. is ideal for urban and controlled temperature deliveries. The Renault Trucks D Wide Z.E. will come in a 26 t version for efficient refuse collection. Both models will be manufactured at the Renault Trucks plant in Blainville-sur-Orne, Normandy, France in the second half of 2019.
A medium-duty Renault Trucks Z.E. vehicle has an operating range of up to 300 km depending on usage and battery configuration. The battery pack is the most expensive item when buying an electric truck. For Renault Trucks, there is no question of compromising on payload or cost-effectiveness, so different operating ranges will be available tailored to customers exact needs.
Thanks to rapid DC charging, the Renault Trucks D Z.E. and Renault Trucks D Wide Z.E. lithium-ion batteries can be fully charged in as little as one to two hours via the 150 kW Combo CCS connector. For overnight AC charging, the time to fully charge a 300-kWh battery is 12 hours. In this case, a three-phase 380V 32A industrial power socket is perfectly sufficient.
For maximum flexibility in terms of usage and bodywork, the Renault Trucks D Z.E. and Renault Trucks D Wide Z.E. are equipped with a power take-off and a standard mechanical interface.