Video from Elon Musk’s Tesla shows Semi driving 500 miles with 82,000 pounds on one charge

Tesla released a timelapse video of one of its all-electric Semi trucks driving 500 miles while carrying 82,000 pounds – a full load – on a single charge. 

The video shows the massive truck making an overnight trip and safely navigating multiple highways. There is a driver present throughout.

Elon Musk’s company delivered its first Semi truck to PepsiCo on Thursday – five years after the vehicle was first shown to the public. The food and beverage company ordered 100 of the vehicles in 2017. 

‘If you’re a truck driver and you want the most bad-ass rig on the road, this is it,’ Musk said at Thursday’s celebratory Semi Delivery Event.

‘We completed our first cargo run with a very enormous amount of [PepsiCo’s] Frito-Lays,’ he added.

Back in 2020, tech mogul Bill Gates argued in a blog post that electric semi trucks would ‘probably never’ work because the batteries would be so heavy. 

When Musk was asked about it on Twitter, he said Gates had ‘no clue.’ 

According to Tesla’s website, the Semi comes standard with safety features that pair with advanced motor and brake controls for stability and traction in all conditions.

The company also claims the Semi’s batteries could be recharged up to 70% in just 30 minutes.  

The driver has a central seating position to give them better visibility, while the company says its all-electric architecture reduces both rollover risk and cabin intrusion in case of an accident. 

Pepsi, and companies such as UPS, FedEx, Walmart and Anheuser-Busch that have signed contracts for preorders, will use the Semi to cut down on their greenhouse gas emissions at a time when many countries are struggling to reach carbon emissions targets set by international agencies. 

A Tesla Semi was last seen carrying pre-assembled Superchargers at Laguna Seca raceway in Salinas, California. 

Tesla released a timelapse video (above) of one of its all-electric Semi trucks driving 500 miles while carrying 82,000 pounds – a full load – on a single charge

Pepsi, and companies such as UPS, FedEx, Walmart and Anheuser-Busch that have signed contracts for preorders, will use the Semi to cut down on their greenhouse gas emissions

The sleek truck will cost about $150,000 and will travel 300 miles in a charge; the 500-mile range model will sell for $180,000. It costs $20,000 to reserve a Semi. 

Since it is Tesla, the truck comes with bells and whistles not typically seen.

Those include an ‘explosion proof’ windshield, a removable jump seat for passengers, updated technology found in touchscreen displays on both sides of the steering wheel that replace standard instrument panels, and standard Enhanced Autopilot with semi-autonomous capability, reports Hotcars.com.

Semi can reach 60 miles per hour with an 82,000-pound load and is intended for highway drivers covering long distances.

According to Tesla, it has an impressive acceleration, going from 0-60 mph in 20 seconds.

In the past, Tesla has also released videos of the Semi delivering Model X cars to customers. 

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