Tesla Unveils Electric Class 8 Commercial Truck

Tesla Inc. says its Semi electric Class 8 truck will be able to accelerate to 60 mph in five seconds (20 seconds when pulling an 80,000-lb trailer) and drive 500 miles per charge at highway speed.

CEO Elon Musk unveiled the prototype tractor last night in California. He didn’t reveal pricing but says Tesla plans to begin production in 2019. Would-be buyers can reserve a Semi with a $5,000 deposit.

Skeptics say Tesla, which also unveiled a prototype of its next-generation Roadster sports car, may be committing itself to too many new projects. The company continues to struggle with production glitches for its just-introduced Model 3 electric sedan. The $35,000 car is Tesla’s first mainstream model, and its success is considered crucial to the company’s financial viability.

In the meantime, Tesla posted its largest quarterly loss ever—$671 million in red ink— for July-September. Analysts say the company will need more funds to complete the launch of the Model 3, let alone put the Semi and Roadster into production.

The Semi will be propelled by four Model 3 electric motors. Each motor powers one wheel on the truck’s two rear axles. The array is controlled automatically by an electronic module that can adjust torque on a wheel-by-wheel basis to maximize traction. The system also is designed to help prevent the truck and its trailer from jackknifing.

A large lithium-ion battery sits below the truck’s floor between the front and first rear axles. The unit consists of special “industrial” cells rather than the devices used in Tesla’s passenger vehicles and will be warranted for 1 million miles, according to Musk. He claims the battery can be charged in 30 minutes with enough energy to drive a loaded truck 400 miles.

The Semi will be equipped with Tesla’s semi-autonomous Autopilot control system. Musk says the vehicle will be capable of traveling in automated convoys behind a lead Semi.

Musk boasts that the highly aerodynamic Semi has a drag coefficient of only 0.36, compared with about 0.65 for a conventional diesel highway truck—and 0.38 for a Bugatti Chiron supercar.