Volta trucks has completed a rigorous hot weather testing programme on its full-electric 16-tonne Volta Zero.
The hot weather testing programme, which lasted six weeks at the purpose-built Nardo Technical Centre in Southern Italy, was designed to ensure that the Volta Zero will deliver exceptional levels of reliability and durability when series production of customer specification vehicles begins early next year.
Volta Trucks’ Vehicle Development team conducted over 2,500km of customer-focused driving cycles at highway, town, and city speeds. The Volta Zero’s air conditioning system and thermal management of the battery and powertrain have been completely examined and pushed to the limits in temperatures as high as 39 degrees Celsius during the day and 28 degrees Celsius at night.
Despite it being unlikely to be encountered in its natural urban environment, testing on coarse dustier surfaces provided an even tougher challenge for the Volta Zero’s chassis, pushing the vehicle’s suspension, steering, traction control, and braking system beyond the expected limit of normal customer usage. Furthermore, dust collection for cabin and load box intrusion was investigated, as well as how it rests on components such as lights, wipers, and panels.
“The completion of our hot weather testing programme marks another important milestone in the development and delivery of the Volta Zero. The testing allows our engineers to incorporate their latest findings in the series production of customer specification vehicles, ensuring the Volta Zero will deliver a reliable and durable experience for future customers.” said Ian Collins, Chief Product Officer of Volta Trucks.
Volta Trucks, the leading full-electric commercial vehicle manufacturer and services provider, has announced the completion of the first Volta Zero vehicle at the company’s contract manufacturing site in Steyr, Austria.
