Volta Trucks, the leading and disruptive full-electric commercial vehicle manufacturer and services provider, has revealed the forthcoming 7.5- and 12-tonne Volta Zero variants – the second product family in its full-electric vehicle range.
The 7.5- and 12-tonne Volta Zeros have been designed by Volta Trucks’ partner, Astheimer Design in Warwick, UK alongside Volta Trucks’ own engineering teams. The new full-electric vehicles bear a close but evolutionary visual relationship to the larger 16-tonne vehicle which is now undergoing extensive engineering development and testing ahead of customer evaluation during 2022. The 7.5- and 12-tonne vehicles will be visually identical at the front, with the 12-tonne vehicle having a longer chassis and body, and a second set of rear wheels and tyres, to accommodate the increased vehicle payload.
Volta Trucks Innovative Design
The 7.5-and 12-tonne models carry over the principles of the innovative cab and premium working environment for drivers. The vehicle’s ground-up design is enabling designers and engineers to completely rethink truck design in this segment. The driver of a Volta Zero has a wide 220-degrees of direct vision around the vehicle. This panoramic view of the surroundings through a glasshouse-style cab delivers a Transport for London five-star Direct Vision Standard rating for optimum visibility and the reduction of blind spots. The protection of vulnerable road users is also enhanced. For example, the use of rear-view cameras that replace traditional mirrors. It’s a 360-degree birds-eye camera showing the driver their complete surroundings. Plus, blind-sport warning systems that detect objects down the sides of the vehicle.
Without the legacy internal combustion engine, the driver of a Volta Zero sits far lower than in a conventional truck. Their eye-line at around 1.8 meters. This mirrors the height of pedestrians and other road users nearby for easy visual communication. Thanks to the Volta Zero’s innovative central driving position, the driver can enter and exit the vehicle on either side. That means always onto the pavements for their own safety. Also, through sliding rather than swinging doors to also ensure the safety of passing cyclists.
Premium Experience
The new 7.5- and 12-tonne Volta Zero will also change the experience and workspace for drivers. They have near-silent operations and minimized cognitive overload. That’s all thanks to an intuitive dashboard and interfaces. The driving experience is more akin to a premium car than today’s traditional commercial vehicle.
The company is delivering the 7.5- and 12-tonne vehicles at the same industry-leading pace as other vehicle developments. Moreover, a Pilot Fleet of vehicles will launch for customer trials in 2024. That’s with series production due to commence in early 2025. The forthcoming 7.5- and 12-tonne vehicles will make a significant contribution to the company’s objective. The objective is to sell over 27,000 per year by 2025 and increase in the years beyond.
A message from the CEO:
Revealing the new 7.5- and 12-tonne vehicle range, Essa Al-Saleh, Chief Executive Officer of Volta Trucks, said; “The forthcoming 7.5- and 12-tonne models complete the full-electric Volta Zero product family. They’ll sit alongside our 16-tonne vehicle, that’s currently engaged in extensive testing ahead of the first customer use later this year, and the 18-tonne vehicle that will start production in mid-2023. Our customers tell us that they really appreciate the safety and zero-emission attributes of the 16-tonne Volta Zero, but also need smaller 7.5- and 12-tonne vehicles in their operations. Our engineering teams are now scaling rapidly to be able to deliver all four vehicles at pace, as our customers ask of us.”
