Mitsubishi Fuso Truck and Bus Corporation (MFTBC) has now delivered over 300 units of the all-electric light-duty eCanter trucks worldwide. The eCanter, which falls under the 7.5-ton gross vehicle weight class, ensures a range of about 100 kilometers per charge. The electric drive system carries a motor (maximum output: 135 kW; maximum torque: 390 Nm) and six high-voltage (370 V, 13.5 kWh) lithium-ion battery packs. With quick-charging stations, the vehicle only takes approximately up to 1.5 hours to fully recharge.
MFTBC launched the eCanter in 2017 as the first series-produced all-electric light-duty truck in the Japanese market. Since then, customers in countries around the world, including the US, Europe, Japan, have been operating the pioneering vehicle. In Europe, over 190 units of the locally emission-free eCanter are running across 13 countries, in climates ranging from the winters of Helsinki to the summers of Spain. In Japan, over 70 eCanter trucks are contributing to customer businesses in the Kanto, Kansai, Hokuriku, Sanin, Tokai, and Shikoku regions. Earlier in 2021, the all-electric truck was introduced to Australia and New Zealand.
The eCanter serves a variety of industry verticals and logistics needs, from waste management to urban parcel deliveries. Routes that require frequent stopping and starting, and early-morning or late-night operations, are particularly suited to the quiet eCanter.
The delivery needs and progressive sustainability targets of first-mover customers – including logistics provider DB Schenker, which currently runs the largest eCanter fleet, and IKEA Japan, which operates two eCanter trucks to replenish their retail locations in the Yokohama-Tokyo metropolitan areas and another for customer deliveries through their logistics partner in Kanto area — have been ideal matches for these use cases. Voices from drivers speak to the reduced vibrations and easy acceleration that provide a smoother, less fatiguing driving experience. Additionally, feedback from customers have also shown reduced maintenance costs in comparison to conventional diesel counterparts. Currently, the eCanter has covered a cumulative driving distance of over 4 million kilometers worldwide and continues to gather valuable data from real-life operations.
The all-electric eCanter is an important hallmark of MFTBC’s commitment to the electrification of its commercial vehicle lineup. As a pioneer of zero-emissions transportation, MFTBC has announced its ambitions of achieving a sustainable future by making all new vehicles in the Japanese market ‘tank-to-wheel’ CO2-neutral by 2039. Valuable input from customers such as DB Schenker and IKEA have been integrated into the development process for future improvements to the eCanter, and will further be reflected into the electrification of other product segments. Having already launched a new model with advanced safety features in August 2020, MFTBC is currently preparing the next generation of the eCanter with further upgrades and a wider range of variations.