Beer Runs In Sydney Suburbs Go Electric With Fuso eCanter

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Linfox subsidiary BevChain’s Fuso eCanter draws a lot of attention on its routes delivering kegs of Toohey beer to pubs in the Sydney suburbs. (Photo courtesy of Mercedes-Benz.)

Lance Valentine, a driver for Linfox subsidiary BevChain, gets a lot of attention on his delivery routes and it’s not just for the Toohey kegs he’s hauling to pubs around Sydney. Valentine is among the first in the area to drive a Fuso eCanter. The battery-electric light-duty truck was launched globally in 2017 and made its Australian debut last year. The eCanter is decked out in a special paint scheme that identifies it as electric.

“I have a lot of people come up to me and ask about it,” says Valentine. “They mainly want to know whether it really is an electric truck. When I drive off hardly making a sound, it just blows them away.”

Valentine makes three or four trips a day from BevChain’s Lidcombe base to pubs within a 40-kilometre (25-mile) radius, plugging in a fast charger on each return to top up the batteries before the next route. Depending on the day’s route and traffic, the eCanter racks up as much as 150 km (93 mi) on its deliveries.

“When I get back to the yard after the first run, the battery still has decent range thanks to some regenerative braking,” Valentine says. “With the fast charger, I easily top it up in a very short time and that gives me enough to get out and back without having to worry about range.”

About The eCanter

The zero-emission, low-noise eCanter is powered by six liquid-cooled lithium-ion batteries that collectively hold 82.8 kilowatt-hours of electricity for the permanent magnet synchronous motor. The truck has a power output of 135 kW and 390 newton-metres (288 pounds-foot) of torque. The eCanter has a maximum range of 100 km (62 mi) on a single charge when fully loaded and can quick charge in under 90 minutes.

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Driver Lance Valentine makes three or four delivery runs each day, leaving BevChain’s Lidcombe base with a full load and returning to plug in the eCanter and top up its batteries before heading out again. (Photo courtesy of Mercedes-Benz.)

The eCanter is equipped with safety features such as the Advanced Emergency Braking System, which uses radar data to detect potential collisions and will automatically brake hard if the driver fails to react, as well as the Lane Departure Warning System, Electronic Stability Control, Hill Start Assist, a reverse camera, and driver and passenger airbags.

Making A Good Impression

“It is smoother, more comfortable and there is hardly any noise,” Valentine says. “It is also really easy to drive. I had never driven an electric car, so I didn’t know that they have really good performance and are quite zippy.”

Valentine is also impressed with the performance of the regenerative braking system, which recharges the battery during operation. “The regenerative braking is so good that I hardly have to use the brakes,” he says. “I tend to look ahead and see what I can do to harvest energy with the regenerative braking, like lifting off to charge going down a hill or using the regenerative braking to pull up rather than use the brakes.”

Find Fuso Trucks

You’ll find a large selection of new and used Fuso trucks, including Canter models, for sale on TruckWorld.com.au.

Source: Mercedes-Benz