Tesla Semi Changes the Game
PepsiCo recently released a video showcasing exactly how helpful their Tesla Semi fleet has been for operations at their depot in Sacramento, California.
The video released on August 2nd has some of the first real-world data we’ve ever seen for the Semi - mostly because PepsiCo is one of the first adopters of the vehicle. The company received their first batch of the vehicles at a Delivery event in December of 2022, and have since grown their fleet to 21 trucks.
As it turns out, the battery-electric semi trucks are ideal for the bulk of work that goes on at the Sacramento depot - with most deliveries being inside a 100 mile radius, allowing the Tesla Semi deliveries to basically run around the clock.
The company reports that charging at the company Megacharge stations - or at one of the many Tesla stations dotted along the normal delivery routes - takes at most 25 to 30 minutes to bring a vehicle at 10% charge back up to about 95%. Which also would give their drivers a good time to take a break - something many industry employees don’t tend to get with diesel-powered trucks.
And for the three Semis reserved for longer haul routes - anywhere from 250 miles to 450 miles - PepsiCo reports that the Regenerative Braking systems end up extending the range of the trucks significantly. Regenerative Braking charges the vehicle’s batteries with the energy created when releasing the accelerator - the engine applies magnetic resistance, and this effectively turns the vehicles engines into little electric generators. This happens so often on routes like the one through Donnar’s Pass between Sacramento and Nevada that the trucks actually end up gaining charge on the way back.
So between the easy charging, the mostly local trips, the accessibility of charging stations, and the Regenerative Braking, Pepsico reports that they’ve been able to more or less maintain an average of 1 point 7 kilowatt-hours per mile for their Tesla Semi fleet - which is just an incredible level of efficiency.
A big part of that is from the Sacramento depot’s charging system.
PepsiCo opted to install their own system when they took delivery of their Semis because it gave them a level of control over where they fed the power from. The facility is almost entirely run on solar power from panels on the location’s roof - but while this is enough to cover the daily chagrin needs of their electric forklifts and smaller vans, the company was forced to hook up to the local substation grid for the extra 3 megawatts of new service to the facility.
And while that’s certainly not ideal, it allowed PepsiCo to maintain their own chargers and take advantage of fleet rates for energy use, as well as government credits to offset the cost. All in all, a win for the company - and local managers report that the next couple of facilities will have extra on-site generation built with this in mind, so they can bring even more of their power needs under their own control.
And that’s just the numbers. The drivers are thrilled with these trucks.
We’ve already talked about the charge rate creating great opportunities for some much-needed downtime for drivers - but they also reported a better turn radius than most cars, and a quieter, smoother ride.
The design of the interior is reportedly a huge perk as well. Aside from just being comfortable, the central location of the throne allows for an easier driving experience - and that’s before taking in the multiple information displays.
In conventional semi-trucks, the operators need to keep an eye on a series of gauges and switches. On a Tesla, those have more or less all been replaced with displays and touch screens - and while one driver reported having some difficulties at first, she was able to get a handle on the layout quickly, and found the vehicle much easier to manage once she did.
“[...] within a half-hour I was comfortable, [...] if you know how to use a smart phone, then you can easily operate one of these trucks.”
All of this data goes a long way to showing why the company is planning on investing more of their infrastructure on the switch to electric Semis. PepsiCo’s long term plans are to reduce their emissions by 75% by 2030 - and 100% by 2040 - but at Sacramento they are pleased to report that the facility is already 50% electric with the addition of the Tesla rigs.
What we’re really seeing here is a huge company with a major stake in the transportation industry testing out a new type of rig, and finding that it has huge benefits - regardless of the upfront costs to make the switch.
Similarly to when Ford decided to partner with Tesla to use their superior NACS chargers - this video from PepsiCo will likely start a major shift in other large companies who previously were unconvinced with the utility of these electric Semis.