MAN Polarexpress travelling from Lapland to Munich on battery-electric power
MAN Polarexpress embarks on a 3,000 km Arctic Circle to Munich journey, proving the feasibility of long-distance electric truck transport using public charging and showcasing the MAN Charge&Go solution.
www.man.eu
The MAN Polarexpress, a battery-powered eTGX semitrailer truck, has set off on a 3000 kilometre tour from the Arctic Circle to Munich. It is not only demonstrating its impressive range, even in icy temperatures. At the same time, it proves that fully electric trans-European long-distance lorry transport with exclusive use of public charging infrastructure is already possible today. Also in the spotlight: the MAN Charge&Go charging card, which makes public charging at charging stations from various infrastructure providers effortless.
‘With this tour, we want to show once again that with the new MAN eTruck, the drive transition in international long-distance transport is already possible today and can be implemented in practice. We offer numerous helpful solutions around the eTruck, such as MAN Charge&Go, which make it easier for our customers to switch from diesel to electric. And the fact that we can already drive purely electrically from the Arctic Circle to Munich and rely exclusively on publicly accessible charging infrastructure is a positive sign. However, there is still a lot to be done here throughout Europe! In order to make a comprehensive drive turnaround in long-distance transport with millions of trucks a reality, major efforts and investments in the expansion of the necessary high-performance charging infrastructure are still needed,’ says Friedrich Baumann, Executive Board Member for Sales & Customer Solutions at MAN Truck & Bus.
The tour companions
The tour, which runs from 20 to 26 March, will be accompanied by influencers such as André Brockschmidt (Baufo-rum 24) and Christina Scheib (Trucker Babes), who are well-known in the truck scene. They will receive expert driving guidance from MAN ProfiDrive trainers. With the market launch of the MAN eTrucks, MAN's driver training department has expanded its many years of electric expertise from the bus sector to include electric trucks and is providing practical support for companies and drivers in the transition to the new drive technology.
The tour details
The 3000-kilometre tour comprises a total of seven stages: from the Arctic Circle along the Swedish east coast to Stockholm, from there through the interior of the country to Malmö in southern Sweden, on to Copenhagen and through Denmark to Hamburg and from there via Schweinfurt once through Germany to the destination in Munich. On average, the MAN eTGX covers between 400 and 600 kilometres a day, depending on the route conditions and available charging infrastructure. It will also make a longer stop at the MAN site in Copenhagen to visit the service and sales team there.
The tour on social media
The Arctic KickOff team will report on their experiences and encounters on the all-electric journey from the polar circle to Munich in five video episodes, which will be shown on the MAN channels on YouTube and Instagram on 21 and from 24 to 27 March to accompany the tour. At the same time, the influencers will be posting impressions of the tour on their own channels.
A football in the colours of FC Bayern, which will accompany the 3,000-kilometre journey in the MAN eTGX, will provide the teams with special excitement during the stages. What it's all about will be revealed on the last stage to Munich!
The MAN eTruck: all-rounder for every application
The long-distance version of the MAN eTGX has a range of around 500 kilometres and is a pioneer in its class in terms of battery modularity and variety of configuration options: Up to one million different combination variants are possible, offering the right all-electric truck for every common application. As an ultra-low liner with a 950 mm low coupling height and a very short wheelbase of 3.75 metres, yet with maximum battery capacity, it is perfectly suited for use in automotive logistics, where maximum loading volume of up to three metres internal height is crucial.
However, with a choice of four, five or six battery packs and power levels of 449 and 544 hp, it can also be optimally adapted for any other transport task. In addition to the standard CCS charging technology (up to 375 kW), it can also be ordered with the new MCS standard with up to one megawatt of charging power, which enables even faster intermediate charging during the driver's break from driving.
Transport companies also benefit from MAN's 360-degree eMobility Consulting when switching to electromobility: the advice on switching to electromobility includes customer-specific analyses of vehicle deployment and charging infrastructure requirements. The provision of charging infrastructure itself is also part of MAN's offering through cooperations with charging infrastructure suppliers. In addition, as with conventionally powered trucks, service contracts and financing solutions specially tailored to electromobility as well as numerous digital services are available for the use of the new electric lions.
These include the MAN eReadyCheck, which customers can use to check how their delivery routes can be driven purely electrically, as well as the MAN Charge & Go charging service including charging card, which enables simple, consolidated charging planning and billing for international routes.
www.man.com
