Hello everyone and nice of you to stop by our blog (again). What a weekend! About this blog post I write not only reason “Mantorp, Oh man!” because it was a nice event at the race track. I was also thinking “Oh man!” a lot because the weather was so lousy here in Sweden. But despite the rain and the really cool temperatures, about 15,000 visitors came to the Trailer Trucking Festival, according to the organizers. In addition, there are about 400 great trucks from 14 European countries to see. Many have great (and expensive) special paint finishes in airbrush technique. So there is already a similar feeling like at the ADAC Truck Grand-Prix at the Nürburgring in Germany. Only smaller. And quieter – the drivers don’t honk as often and celebrate more discreetly. Oh yes – and more wet. And colder.

But hey – the weather isn’t a request performance and we’re not made of sugar. Together with my colleagues Freddie from Designwerk and Christian from Continental, we try to bring good humor and lots of information across in our deck chairs and the beach tent. That works out quite well! In addition to the five tire top worlds on the trailer, many people also took a very interested look at the eTruck. And of course Scania, as the Swedish manufacturer, is represented here with a large booth. My favorite traction machine with the blatantly tuned engine, which I already liked so much at the Nürburgring, is also back…

Plan well, and you’ll be able to charge the eTruck too

On the picture gallery from Mantorp at the end of this blog post you can get an impression yourself. But what I want to tell you is how Freddie from Designwerk and I drove to the Trailer Trucking Festival with the two trucks.

Freddie drives the eTruck, I drive the diesel tractor with the trailer. From Norway we went via Gothenburg first to Boras – and then on to the race track in Mantorp. In between we had to charge the eTruck, but at the first gas station the plug of the charging station did not fit. We then just drove optimistically further into the night and also found quite quickly a gas station where we could stand with both trucks. At the fast charging station, the battery was full again in a good three hours – and Freddie and I just used the time for a nap.

Overall, I already have the impression that it can work quite well here in southern Sweden with the range of the eTruck and the charging network. But you have to plan the tour differently. For example, if you want to combine the charging time with a break, then you have to schedule it that way beforehand. Refueling with diesel is just faster…

I’m curious to see what other experiences with e-mobility we gather on the roadshow.

Until then – see you on the road,
your Ronny

How do you assess this – are battery-electric trucks the future or would you rely on other drive systems? Write it in the comments…