Elon Musk to Unveil Tesla Big-Rig Truck in October
Elon Musk, Chief Executive of Tesla, said that the company is about to reveal its own electric semi-truck in October. The carmaker will be revealing their new vehicle and taking it for a spin in the last week of October, as Musk shared on social media.
Musk posted a tweet on Wednesday, Sep. 13, announcing the estimated date of the reveal. "Tesla Semi truck unveil & test ride tentatively scheduled for Oct 26th in Hawthorne," he said in his short, picture-less Twitter message.
"Worth seeing this beast in person. It's unreal," he added. The tentative date is about a month later than the initial reveal date he hinted earlier for September, as Reuters notes.
The new semi-truck from Tesla is viewed with interest by the trucking industry, as the new vehicle could prove to be a cost-effective alternative to the conventional diesel engine. While a typical diesel semi can cover distances of up to 1,000 miles in one refuel, the 300-mile range estimated for the new trucks could cover shorter deliveries more efficiently.
These trucks could reach full-scale production by 2019, and could possibly roll out as early as 2020, according to estimates from the Business Insider. It could have battery swapping or rapid charging features to turn around the trucks faster, and Tesla is also expected to include autonomous driving features that guide the trucks in platoons.
Pricing for the commercial truck, currently known as the Tesla Semi, could start at $100,000, with possible options for leasing additional batteries for quick swapping, according to an estimate by Morgan Stanley. The truck was first announced last year.
Meanwhile, Cummins has already come up with their own version of the electric big rig, which they unveiled on Aug. 29. The new rig, called AEOS, can carry an estimated 44,000 pounds of freight and can fully charge in about an hour.
