It works! Three days and over 2,000 kilometers with the e-truck

By e-truck from North Rhine-Westphalia to Hungary - did you hesitate?

To be honest, my first thought was: will it work? Because it's a long journey - you do have a bit of respect. But my co-driver supported me in my planning and encouraged me that we could manage it together. So the decision was quickly made.

How did you prepare for the trip?

The biggest challenge was to find charging stations with sufficient charging capacity for the route that could also be accessed by trucks. We used various apps for this. We planned the route and charging options precisely in advance. The charging stations had to be located directly on the highway to avoid wasting time unnecessarily. And, of course, we also had to familiarize ourselves with the vehicle in advance and find out exactly what the range and charging time of the batteries were.

Based on the information we then had, i.e. the charging time, the batteries, the range and the technology of the vehicle - combined with the charging options along the route - I no longer had any concerns at all. Only a good amount of respect.

Has your confidence been confirmed? How did the e-truck perform?

There were no problems on the outward journey. The Renault reeled off the kilometers and drove the whole way to Hungary without any problems. On the return journey, we then had an error message from the on-board computer, but this resolved itself after about ten minutes. But even during this time, the truck ran perfectly and always at full power. It was great fun to be on the road electrically.

An did the plan with the charging stations work?

Not quite. Unfortunately, we had to put up with some changes to the route because the information about the charging stations that we obtained in advance was sometimes incorrect. We had to recharge a total of nine times along the way, and the biggest challenge was actually getting to the charging stations. Many charging stations described as suitable for trucks were not really suitable at all. It was usually very cramped at the charging point and we often had to block car parking spots in order to be able to charge at all. Of course, this is not ideal at all.

Sounds like quite a challange.

Once it got really tight. We had selected a charging point with a charging capacity of 330kW in advance. But on site, only 45kW of charging current was available. This completely disrupted our schedule. We stopped the charging process and looked for another charging point. Once there, the truck was too high for this charging point - we had to leave with 10% charge remaining. Eventually we found another charging point. There was still 2% left in the batteries - and we both panicked slightly. But it all worked out, and this situation also had something good: because now we know that you can also manage 354 kilometers with the Renault when it really counts.

What is your overall conclusion? Will you be going on a long-distance electric ride again?

Our journey has shown: The electric truck is reliable on the road - but the charging situation on the highways is still very much in need of improvement. Despite the complicated charging and parking situation, I would drive this tour - or any other tour - with an electric truck at any time. I now know the little things and details that you have to pay attention to. And I'm convinced that the charging situation will improve over time.