Yes, Mack Makes Electric Trucks (And Here’s How Far They Can Go On A Single Charge)
Mack makes two different electric trucks, the medium-duty MD Electric and the heavy-duty LR Electric. There is quite a difference between Mack LR and MD trucks — they have been designed for different use cases and will serve different markets.
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The Mack MD Electric is a medium-duty truck with a conventional cab design. It is rated for Classes six and seven. The MD Electric offers buyers wheelbase options ranging from 205″ to 274″ and has been designed to accept dry van bodies from 18′ to 28′ in length. It has an electric motor that produces 260 peak horsepower/185 continuous horsepower, with maximum peak torque of 1,850 ft./lb. and 960 ft./lb. of continuous torque. The MD Electric has a maximum payload of 19,400 pounds. It also features heated LED headlights for better visibility to the front and the sides, cruise control, and the legendary Mack bulldog on the front, which is finished in copper to denote the truck’s 100% electric power source.
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The Mack LR Electric is a heavy-duty truck with a low-entry cab-over design. It is rated for Class eight. The LR Electric has been designed primarily for recycling and waste removal operations. Its two AC electric motors provide 536 peak horsepower and 448 continuous horsepower, while torque comes in at 4,051 ft./lb. of peak torque. The LR Electric’s power flows to the wheels through a two-speed Mack Powershift transmission. It also has the copper-finished bulldog and LED headlights used on the MD, along with tilt and telescopic steering wheel and hands-free smartphone integration.
How far can a Mack Electric truck go on a single charge?
The Mack MD Electric conventional cab truck has an estimated range of 140 to 230 miles on a charge, depending on whether two batteries or three batteries have been specified. Charging time for the all-electric MD Electric will vary based on the type and voltage of the charging system used. With an AC charging rate of 19.2 kW, it will take the two-battery unit seven hours, while the three-battery unit will take 11 hours. Faster DC charging at an 80 kW rate will require just 100 minutes for the two-battery unit and 160 minutes for the three-battery unit. The MD Electric features a three-mode regenerative braking system that uses the truck’s brakes to recharge its batteries.
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The Mack LR Electric cab-over truck has an estimated range of up to 100 on-the-job miles. It comes with four Lithium Nickel Manganese Cobalt Oxide batteries with 600V fast-charging capability. The time it takes for the LR Electric to charge at a rate of 150 kW, compliant with SAE J1772, is around 120 minutes. For improved energy recovery in stop-and-go driving, the LR Electric has two-stage regenerative braking that returns energy back to the battery with every stop. In addition to the electric motors that are found in these two trucks, there are many other engines that Mack trucks use. Some additional benefits of these electric Mack trucks over their internal-combustion counterparts are no oil changes, no diesel-related costs, and no emissions.
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