Introducing the eCanter
The eCanter is one of the trucks produced by Mitsubishi Fuso Truck and Bus Corporation (MFTBC), which is part of Daimler Truck. From its headquarters based in Kawasaki, Japan, MFTBC manufactures trucks, buses, and industrial engines for over 170 markets around the world, offering products ranging from the iconic light-duty Canter truck to the heavy-duty Super Great. In recent years, MFTBC has served as a development centre for electric and autonomous drive technologies within the larger Daimler Truck network – and it has blazed a trail with the eCanter (read more about this vehicle below).
The eCanter that we drove was produced at the Tramagal plant in Portugal. Never heard of the town of Tramagal? It isn’t exactly the centre of the world (according to Wikipedia, the population in 2011 was a mere 3 500). Accordingly, most people haven’t heard of it (including our bus driver, who battled to find the village). But today the town, located around 150 kilometres north-east of Lisbon, is very important within the Fuso world. It’s somewhat important to Portugal too, because the Fuso plant located there is the largest employer in the region.
The plant has produced Mitsubishi Fuso vehicles since 1980. It was a factory long before that date; it was established back in 1964 and was previously building Berliet military vehicles. But, today, in an area of 158,546m2 – with 40,696m2 undercover – 600 people from seven different nations manufacture up to 15 000 Canters and eCanters each year.
The truck in a nutshell
The very first Canter was launched in Japan in 1963 – with an internal combustion engine, of course. Since then, more than 4.5 million of these trucks have been produced worldwide – and it is sold in 70 markets.
While the Canter is an undisputed success story, the eCanter has an important claim to fame: it is the world's first series-produced, fully electric light truck. The first eCanter made its (rather silent) debut almost six years ago (the global market launch took place in New York City on September 14, 2017). Since then, more than 450 eCanters have been sold in Europe, Japan, the United States, Australia and New Zealand. At the IAA Transportation exhibition in Germany in September last year, the company revealed that the total distance covered by the global eCanter fleet was over six million kilometres – equivalent to about 150 circumnavigations of the globe.
Exterior
The exterior looks just like a regular diesel-engined Canter. There’s just one very noticeable difference: the battery packs on the side.
Interior
There is some eCanter signage inside the cab – which differentiates the interior from that of the diesel-engined truck. There’s also a dash-mounted touchscreen system that displays instant battery data including range, charge level, regeneration status and energy gain. Apart from that touchscreen system, there’s a charge indicator alongside the 160kph speedo and an LCD display that imparts various pieces of driving information at a glance.
Drivetrain
The eCanter has a gross vehicle weight of 7.49 tonnes and – depending on the body and area of application – a load capacity of up to 4.5 tonnes (our test unit was unloaded, so we cannot comment on how it operates at load). The vehicle's electric drive system comprises six high-voltage lithium-ion batteries with 420 V and 13.8 kWh respectively. With a permanent-magnet motor, it delivers 135kW/390Nm to the rear axle. Acceleration is fast and ultra-smooth; it’s no different to a passenger car in this regard.
One battery charge facilitates a range of around 100 kilometres, which was more than adequate on our short test drive. We didn’t need to recharge, but with quick-charging stations, the vehicle takes approximately 1.5 hours to fully recharge. As is the case with so many electric vehicles, the eCanter features regenerative braking.
Transmission
There’s one of those typical P-R-N-D gear selectors. Once popped into drive, a reduction gear connected directly to the transmission shaft allows the eCanter to speed up without shifting.
Safety
The eCanter comes with an Advanced Emergency Braking System (which detects both vehicles and people), an Electronic Stability Program and a Lane Departure Warning System. All transport operators know these systems extremely well – and so we won’t elaborate further on how they work. Suffice to say it’s good to have them there.
Verdict
We cannot comment on the price or warranty because the vehicle has yet to be launched in South Africa (and, when it does, maybe it won’t be sold outright but rather leased). Maybe, when the eCanter IS launched, Daimler could even skip this one and offer the very latest eCanter – the so-called Next Generation vehicle (which is a whole lot more flexible).
But, for now, we will focus on the nippy and manoeuvrable city truck that we drove in Portugal. Driving it in and around Tramagal, we didn’t have to bother about getting it in and out of tight spaces. However, this would typically be the case with a city truck – and the eCanter delights in this regard; it fits into underground car parks while the electric drive is obviously ideal in busy cities. Its compact footprint, coupled with an excellent turning circle, make it perfect for inner-city deliveries. It gets a definite thumbs up from us.
Now let’s just wait and see if we have the electricity in South Africa to charge it.
Photography: Dave McCoid, Gavin Myers, Charleen Clarke and supplied
