With the implementation of the EU's carbon neutrality targets, urban passenger transport in Europe is rapidly transitioning to electrification. In addition to solaris, a European brand that is launching electric city bus products, BYD, Yutong and other companies from China have also occupied a European market with the first-mover advantage in the electric field.
How can established manufacturers give away this piece of market in vain? That's why MAN introduced Lion's City E series electric city buses. Mercedes-Benz launched the eCitaro series of electric buses at the 2018 IAA Motor Show. After intensive testing and polishing, today's eCitaro is finally starting mass production and batch delivery. In today's article, Tigal Commercial Vehicle Network will take you to see how powerful the eCitaro electric city bus is.
At present, the eCitaro series of electric city buses are divided into two types: single buses and articulated buses. Both versions of the bus share the same modern front face design: the large black front face hides the contours of many vehicles, making the vehicle look more futuristic. The large windshield provides excellent field of view. Underneath the windshield, Mercedes-Benz added chrome trim strips, like a stroke of genius, retaining the exterior features of traditional buses while making them more futuristic.
The vehicle adopts a new split LED headlight system, which improves the lighting performance while reducing its use and maintenance replacement costs. The bumper slightly protrudes the body to avoid damage to the vehicle frame caused by a front impact. In addition, the front cover has been changed to a monolithic open type, which makes it easier to maintain internal equipment.
The roof of the vehicle has a large size of electric plates, and LED lights are integrated above it to enhance the hints and lighting effects. It can be seen that the front of the vehicle is slightly tilted backwards, giving the vehicle better visibility and wind resistance performance. This special design led to the rear arrangement of the A-pillar, mercedes-Benz hollowed out the area between the A-pillar and the outer outline of the vehicle, and installed glass to enhance the field of vision and take into account the visual performance.
As mentioned above, the single bus is divided into two-door versions and three-door versions, both of which are 12.14 meters long. Depending on the configuration of the door, the number of passengers carried inside and the layout will vary. The main European model is the three-door version in the picture above. The side design of the vehicle is mainly modern and sleek. Mercedes-Benz uses a fairing to wrap the battery on the roof, heat pump air conditioning and other components, and the transition between the roof and the front face of the vehicle adopts a soft and powerful curve, which is very smooth. Mercedes-Benz also uses black side painting to blend the windows with the body, which looks very visually good.
The articulated version of the eCitaro G reaches a length of 18.13 meters and is available in three and four versions for transport routes with larger passenger volumes.
The vehicle's charging port is located above the front axle, adopts a fast charging interface, has a maximum charging power of 150 kilowatts, and can also be used with the roof charging catenary system, reducing the charging time of the vehicle. Mercedes-Benz's Sideguard Assist side-monitoring radar system was added to the rear of the front axle to enhance vehicle safety in complex urban environments.
The vehicle's central door is equipped with a folding ramp to facilitate access for wheelchair users and strollers.
eCitaro adopts a partial battery top layout, part of which is placed in the left rear of the vehicle, and the other part is placed on the roof, and the vehicle's heat pump air conditioning and inverter are also placed on the roof, with a high degree of integration.
With this top perspective, we can see the arrangement of the top of the vehicle more directly. Mercedes offers a variety of battery specification options, combining up to dozens of them. The optional maximum capacity is 7 sets of 63 kWh solid-state batteries with an operating voltage of 400 volts and a total charge of up to 441 kWh.
On the single version of the eCitaro, the vehicle's front axle was axle of the ZF 82 RL EC and integrated with independent suspension, intelligent electronically controlled hydraulic steering. The rear axle of the vehicle uses ZF AxTrax AVE130 electric drive axle, which integrates advanced technologies such as air suspension, wheel motor, and adopts a gantry bridge structure to reduce the floor height inside the bus. The combination of various means ensures the driving comfort of the vehicle. The AVE130 electric drive axle has a maximum power of 125 kW and a torque of 970 Nm, which is enough to cope with the needs of urban traffic.
The articulated version of the eCitaro G bus features both rear axles of ZF AxTrax AVE130 electric drive axles, providing enhanced traction and power performance, which is useful for some Nordic countries with more rain and snow.
The design on the left side of the vehicle is basically the same as that on the right side. Since no doors are installed, the visual integrity on the left side is better than on the right side. Supplemented by the same blackened design, the overall visual effect is very high-end.
The rear of the vehicle is not sealed with windows, the left is the electrical cabin, and the right is the window glass, which enhances the lighting performance in the car. The transition from the roof to the rear is very sleek, and black decorative strips are added to the left and right, blending in with the blackened rear window glass area to further enhance visual performance. The vehicle's taillights follow the classic Citaro styling, and without further ado.
The rear of the vehicle was given up where the internal combustion engine was originally installed. In order not to affect the structure and driving characteristics of the vehicle too much, Mercedes-Benz used this space to install a part of the power battery to simulate the weight of the diesel engine and enhance the utilization of the vehicle space.
Let's get into the car. Due to the different interior configurations, we will introduce the three-door single eCitaro, which is mainly promoted in the European market. Starting with the vehicle's helm pad, thanks to the unique glass design, the helm has a very wide field of view, enhancing the safety of the driving process.
The vehicle's control components have been replaced by a steering wheel from the fourth generation of Actros, with multi-function buttons, and the interior of the dashboard has been more modernized. The vehicle uses button shifts, and the shift buttons are placed above the control area. The dashboard has a follow-up function and is linked to the steering wheel angle to maintain excellent handling regardless of driving position.
The cue light of the blind spot monitoring system is placed on the front column, which lights up when it detects an obstacle on the side, reminding the driver to pay attention to safety.
The net height inside the vehicle is very good, reducing the sense of depression in the car. On the three-door version of the eCitaro, the vehicle can choose from two different layouts, with 26 seats and 33 seats, as well as other standing spaces. Depending on the number of interior seats and battery packs, the maximum passenger capacity of a vehicle varies from 63 to 77.
The interior of the vehicle leaves room for wheelchairs and strollers, and folding seats are designed with armrests to suit different needs. Multiple USB ports are also installed inside the vehicle for easy charging.
At present, the monolithic version of eCitaro has been delivered to a number of enterprises, and the articulated version of eCitaro G is also undergoing final testing and will be delivered soon. While it's slightly behind schedule from The Lion's City E, it's also competitive in a more diverse configuration. Thank you for reading this article! If you want to see more interesting and informative commercial vehicle content, don't forget to follow us!
Text: Heseaotter