In early December it became knownthat PepsiCo was the first among Tesla customers to begin receiving mass-produced semi-electric trucks assembled at a new facility in Nevada. The logistics division of the food industry giant will obtain a hundred Semi-tractors in a version with an 800 km range. PepsiCo representatives explained that when transporting branded sodas, the travel distance will not exceed 160 km.
Image source: Tesla
Tesla, on the occasion of the presentation of the production version of the Semi earlier this month, repeatedly stressed that a fully loaded road train, with a total mass of over 37 tons, is capable of traveling 805 km without recharging, and part of the route on the test drive that the video captured was through mountainous terrain. At the same time, it was silent what the payload of the machine could be, and what part of the total mass would be the tractor itself with the battery. Only from indirect data it was possible to establish that the capacity of the latter is approaching 900 kWh, Tesla itself cited only indicators of the average consumption of electricity per mile (1.7 kWh). Nothing was reported about the cost of the first cars in a modification with a power reserve of 800 km.
As he explains Reuters, in an interview with the agency, PepsiCo Vice President Mike O’Connell (Mike O’Connell) spoke about the features of the operation of the first Tesla Semi trucks received by the company. Of the 36 vehicles available, all will be distributed between two PepsiCo fulfillment centers in California. By the end of next year alone, the number of Tesla Semi trucks in operation will grow to 100 units. The operating specifications will be as follows: trucks with chips will travel 684 km, while their residual charge will be 20%, and trucks with drinks in a semi-trailer will transport them for a distance of approximately 160 km. What caused the latest restriction, the company representative did not explain, nor did he say what residual charge the car would have, which would carry a load of soda for a distance of 160km.
Of course, a batch of chips will be limited by the trailer’s cargo volume, not its weight. The carrier also said nothing about the price of the cars, explaining that the cars would pay for themselves in seven years of operation. PepsiCo will build four 750 kW fast-charging stations at Tesla Semi Truck endpoints in California. State grants of $15.4 million will help defray these costs, and each vehicle will be provided with a $40,000 federal grant. Oriental Coast.
A PepsiCo spokesperson said it would take 35 to 45 minutes to recharge the traction battery from 20% at the high-speed terminal. When Tesla starts shipping a Semi version with a rated range of 300 miles, PepsiCo intends to purchase the corresponding machines for its own needs. O’Connell declined to disclose the mass of the empty Tesla Semi truck, so not as much was known about the new car’s true capabilities as we’d like.
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