Announced in 2016, the Tesla Semi will finally hit the roads. Its production has just begun, and we already know the first customer’s name.
It was in 2016 that the arrival of the Tesla Semi was first mentioned in the Master Plan unveiled by Elon Musk. The latter said the launch of the production of an electric truck, in addition to that of a pickup, will become the Cybertruck. But six years later, still nothing.
TESLA SEMi IS FINALLY IN PRODUCTION
Indeed, the long-awaited Tesla Semi launch is still pending and has been constantly postponed since its official revelation in November 2017. A few prototypes had already been seen on the roads, including in 2018, but still no production model on the horizon.
Initially, production was supposed to start in 2021 at the Austin, Texas plant, which already assembles the Model 3 and Model Y. In August, Elon Musk finally announced that “deliveries of the 500-mile Tesla Semi will begin this, and those of the Cybertruck next year.
So with quite a delay, the electric truck assembly has just begun, as announced by Elon Musk on Twitter. It is not in Texas but Nevada that the truck is finally manufactured. Indeed, last year, journalists announced that a building would be specially built to accommodate the car’s production.
It is now done. The production rate would be five units per week, but it is rumored that the production volume would soon be higher. As initially announced, a part of the truck would then be manufactured in Austin.
READ MORE: 3 New Tesla models coming in 2023 (Semi, Cybertruck, Roadster)
TESLA SEMI FIRST DELIVERIES IN DECEMBER
In his tweet, the boss of the American firm also announced that the first deliveries would take place on December 1st. Of course, not to private customers, but to Pepsico, which will be the first company to be able to make its deliveries thanks to the electric truck. Other companies, such as Walmart and FedEx, signed an order form, although the brand had to stop taking reservations because the vehicle was too successful.
Several configurations will be proposed, offering between 483 and 805 km of autonomy. As a reminder, the vehicle will be equipped with three electric motors installed on the rear axle. When empty, the truck should be able to travel 997 kilometers. The brand also announces a consumption of only 2 kWh for 1 mile (1.6 km) with 37 tons of load.
It could then take an incredible 1,400 kW of charging power, allowing it to recover 70 percent of its range in 30 minutes. To do this, the Tesla Semi will have to connect to a Megacharger, which could deliver a power of 1.5 mW. A prototype had already been tested at Tesla’s Nevada factory.
However, these improved Superchargers are not expected to appear on the roads immediately due to several difficulties related to implementing these infrastructures, as explained by Green Car Reports. The firm will have to solve some concerns associated with the specific charging standard to deliver so many Megawatts, not to mention the installation costs.