MAN Truck & Bus
29 Apr 2024
Premiere of a special kind: In mid-April, two renowned journalists were allowed to drive the new eTGX for the first time - on the highway from Munich to Nuremberg and back again.
MAN will be delivering the first pre-series models of the eTGX to pilot customers in the summer. Prior to this, in mid-April, two members of the press were allowed behind the wheel of the electric lion for the first time and thus onto the highway: Gerhard Grünig, editor-in-chief of TRUCKER magazine and Verkehrsrundschau, and Gianenrico Griffini from the Italian transport trade magazine “Vie & Trasporti”. Griffini is also president of the jury for the “International Truck of the Year” award, which MAN has already won eight times.
Lion Team: Vlaskamp (right) and Grünig chauffeured the eTGX from Munich to Nuremberg.
Grünig kicked things off with a prominent companion on the journey from the Munich plant to the Nuremberg plant: Alexander Vlaskamp first took a seat in the passenger seat of the eTGX. Loaded with special load carriers for production in Nuremberg, they then set off on the 163-kilometer journey, which mainly took them along the A9. After 82 kilometers, it was time to change drivers at the Köschinger Forst freeway service station - and the first interim conclusion: “My expectations were met,” Grünig summed up. “We started with 94 percent battery charge and are now still at 80 percent. Driving is also totally pleasant and quiet.”
For the second half of the journey, Vlaskamp took a seat behind the wheel. “I've never been chauffeured by a CEO before,” Grünig said happily and used the time on the highway to discuss the key issues facing the transport industry with the MAN CEO. “This is the future we are currently on the road with,” emphasized Vlaskamp. “Today it is possible to drive electrically - because battery technology is available and guarantees daily ranges of 800 kilometers and more.” However, a nationwide charging infrastructure for eTrucks is still lacking. Around 50,000 megawatt charging points would be needed in Europe by 2030, and the government should support their construction with the additional toll revenue.
Quiet, clean and reliable: Gerhard Grünig and Alexander Vlaskamp show what the logistics of the future should look like.
Delivered: The eTGX was unloaded in Nuremberg - as an integral part of the MAN logistics chain.
Convinced: Gianenrico Griffini, President of the “International Truck of the Year” jury, clearly had fun in the eTGX.
After just over two hours of driving, Grünig and Vlaskamp arrived in Nuremberg with plenty of remaining range, where a forklift truck was able to unload the freight they had brought with them. “E-mobility works - even in trucks,” Grünig summarized his experience. He gained further insights into the topic and MAN's activities during a subsequent tour of the battery production facility in Nuremberg. A total of 350 new jobs and intelligently interlinked assembly and logistics facilities for up to 100,000 batteries “Made in Germany” per year are being created on a total area of 16,000 square meters.
For the eTGX, however, the working day did not end there: For the return journey from Nuremberg to Munich, IToY jury president Griffini got behind the wheel and drove back to the starting point together with Rainer Miksch, Head of Road Testing at MAN - quietly and in a climate-friendly manner. On the road with the future.
Text: Christian Buck
Photos: MAN
This website uses third-party content. In order to use the website and its full range of offers, please consent to the collection and processing of your personal data by the relevant third-party providers. To do so, please click on the red “Accept” button.
Further information can be found on our Data Protection & Cookies page.
This website uses third-party content. In order to use the website and its full range of offers, please consent to the collection and processing of your personal data by the relevant third-party providers. To do so, please click on the red “Accept” button.
Further information can be found on our Data Protection & Cookies page.