Elon Musk and Tesla unveiled a lot more details on their new Tesla Electric Semi the other day.  As the owner of a third party logistics agency, I’ve been watching the development of this new breed of tractor trailer pretty closely.  As you’ll see in the video below, it all sounds great.
Here’s my biggest question: What is the weight of the truck without cargo, including what I can only assume will have to be a massive battery?  A class 8 truck is legally allowed (without permits) to have a gross overall weight of 80,000 pounds.  Since in the video, they’re showing what I will assume is comparable to a 53′ dry van, that truck as a diesel today will generally be able to scale a cargo load of 42,000 – 46,000 depending on tractor weight, fuel, trailer frame type, etc.  A full tank of diesel fuel, which we’ll take an average of a 300 gallon tank, means fuel weight is about 2,000 pounds, give or take.
I have a feeling that between the design of the truck and the battery needed to fulfill it’s touted 500 mile range, the cargo capacity may be severely limited.  So does that mean the plan won’t be a success?  Absolutely not.  There are definitely markets that these trucks can be very effective in.  At last glance, Walmart, as well as a few other big named carrier companies, had pre-ordered units for the expected 2019 production run.
One thing is for sure.  When Elon Musk has a vision, he makes it a reality.  Enjoy the video.
Dan DePasquale
President of Business Development
The Logistics Firm LLC