Battery electric as a concept in trucking has many detractors, but when a diesel truckin' monarch like Peterbilt throws its hat into the ring you know it's going to be the real deal... probably... eventually.
Peterbilt parent Paccar is all in-on electrification, having installed eight 350 kilowatt high-speed chargers at its Technical Center in Mount Vernon, Washington, that pull more power collectively than the entire 375 acre campus. It's like a small electric truck stop – one that consumes the electrical equivalency of a small town.
Announced in 2018, the battery electric Peterbilt Model 579EV is one of three electric Petes, joining the Model 220EV cabover and the Model 520EV refuse truck. About 100 Model 579EVs are in customer hands.
Rated for 82,000 pounds thanks to a one-ton electric weight exception, the 579EV targets regional haul and drayage applications, in part because frequent starts and stops in those segments engage the regenerative brake, transferring energy back into the battery backs, reducing brake pad wear and extending operating range.
The truck uses Accelera's (formerly Meritor's) 14Xe Powertrain. Accelera is Cummins' zero-emissions power brand, and Cummins in 2022 acquired Meritor.
A continuous power rating of 536 horsepower and peak power rating of 670 hp gives the plug-in Peterbilt plenty of punch. An energy storage capacity of 400 kWh enables an estimated daily range of up to 150 miles, and the batteries can be recharged in about three hours.
2024 has been a banner year for Peterbilt's electric efforts. The company in May booked its largest-ever order for the 579EV (150 units to autonomous startup Einride), about a month after a Model 579EV became the first Class 8 heavy-duty electric freight semi to pass through the Otay Mesa Port of Entry, which connects Southern California to Tijuana, Mexico.
About 1,300 miles up Interstate 5 from Tijuana, I took a Model 579EV daycab for a very quick trot around Paccar's test track in Mount Vernon.
The throttle response was instantaneous, even loaded to 75,000 pounds. You don't even really feel the trailer. There's ample power.
Two electric motors, one on each axle, are matched to a two-speed transmission. The motors are designed to shift sequentially so there's no loss of torque when the shift is made.
"Not like an automated manual (transmission), where it's taking all your power away," noted Peterbilt Marketing Manager Patrick Wallace.
You can tell the shift is happening but it's fairly quick and smooth with very little break in momentum.
Regenerative braking puts energy back into the battery packs and reduces the amount of brake pedal pressure required. The regen brake is one of my favorite features of electric vehicles. It takes some finesse, and the inability to coast freely with it engaged can be frustrating at times, but if you don't mind cycling through the stages and turning it off when appropriate, there's no easier way to put range back into the truck. The regren brake on its highest setting is strong enough to substantially slow the tractor (it's basically a supped up engine brake), saving wear and tear on the service brakes as well.
The heavy truck EV space is crowded with numerous upstart companies that just a decade ago didn't even exist, and that's good for an infusion of ingenuity and innovation. However, legacy OEMs like Paccar and Cummins (and Meritor by proxy) are not conceding and the Model 579EV is a strong zero emission entry for applications that need a lot of power but not a lot of range.
