Kenworth, Peterbilt electric trucks qualify for California rebates

HVIP uses fines that big polluters pay in credits they buy from companies that produce fewer greenhouse gas emissions, 

Kenworth’s battery-electric K270E and K370E can be ordered from U.S. and Canadian dealers. Ditto for the Peterbilt Model 220EV.

Daimler’s Mercedes-Benz unit shows future battery and fuel cell trucks

Daimler Trucks is showing the fruits of its hydrogen fuel cell trucking effort. This week’s reveals follow an April joint venture ell with rival Volvo AB to work together on fuel cell systems in heavy-duty vehicles by the second half of the decade. 

Daimler’s Mercedes-Benz European truck unit showed a prototype heavy-duty fuel cell truck. It has a range of 621 miles on a single tank of liquid hydrogen.

The truck is part of the German automaker’s plan to reach carbon neutrality in its major markets by 2039. Customer trials of the GenH2 Truck begin in 2023. Series production is planned in the second half of the decade. Daimler expects performance to rival comparable diesel-fueled trucks.

Startup Nikola Corp. (NASDAQ: NKLA) is targeting 2023 to produce its compressed hydrogen gas fuel cell-powered Class 8 trucks at a plant in Coolidge, Arizona.

The GenH2 truck debuted Wednesday at an event in Stuttgart, Germany. The battery-powered Mercedes-Benz eActros LongHaul also was revealed. The regional use LongHaul gets about 300 miles on a single charge. Series production is scheduled for 2024. The eActros in customer testing begins series production in 2021.

Daimler is planning a similar fuel cell truck for its market-leading Freightliner brand in North America. The GenH2 and eActros use a new global modular platform called the ePowertrain. 

Bosch gets FMCSA waiver for camera-based mirror system

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) is liking what it sees in digital mirrors.

The agency on Thursday granted automotive supplier Robert Bosch and its partner Mekra Lang North America a renewable five-year exemption to test its digital mirror system on commercial trucks.

It is the third agency exemption for the technology that could eventually replace the hood-mounted mirrors used to check for rear traffic. The FMCSA granted a similar exemption to Stoneridge Inc. (NYSE: SRI) for its MirrorEye Camera Monitor System in February 2019.

It granted a similar five-year exemption on Jan. 15 to Vision Systems North America for its Smart-Vision high-definition camera monitoring system. 

The camera system is mounted on the left and right A pillars of the truck. The images projected are as safe or safer than the mirrors alone, the agency said.

Substituting the video system eliminates blind spots created by rear-vision mirrors. The multi-camera system expands the field of view by an estimated 25% compared to rear-vision mirrors. And the system uses high-definition cameras and monitors with color night vision, low light sensitivity, and light and glare reduction.

The system uses multiple digital cameras firmly mounted high on the exterior of the vehicle. They are enclosed in an aerodynamic package that protects against the environment. The system pans the camera’s view to ensure the trailer’s end remains in view while it is in motion.

If the Digital Mirror System breaks, the truck on which it is installed must be parked until the system is fixed, the agency said.

Related articles:

Volvo, Kenworth and Hyliion spark transition to electric trucks

Daimler Trucks pledges carbon neutrality by 2039 – with caveats

Future vision: Camera monitor system could make bulky truck mirrors obsolete

Click for more FreightWaves articles by Alan Adler.