The Nikola One Hydrogen hydrogen truck is also ready for the road

Electric cars are very much in the spotlight, although in recent months the vehicles attracting the most attention seem to be large electric trucks. Only recently we read that Volvo is almost ready to hit the road in 2019, ahead of the better-known and much-announced Semi from Tesla. Now its rival is Nikola (a name that plays on the popular inventor who also gave his name to Elon Musk’s company), which has revealed more details about its Nikola One Hydrogen model.

Two models are on the way, the Semi One and the Two, which are continuing their development to reach the markets in 2021. The Nikola One is the one that appears most advanced in its development to reach the roads as soon as possible. In 2019 the first of these prototypes will be seen running tests in real traffic environments, so we won’t have to wait long for reliable data on its performance. For now, the company itself says its truck “outperforms any other truck on the market in “weight, acceleration, braking, safety and equipment“.

For the moment, we know it uses a hydrogen fuel cell, combined with electric motors producing around 1,000 CV and a 320 kWh lithium-ion battery. It has a range of between 800 and 1,600 kilometres. It also promises acceleration from 0 to 100 km/h in 30 seconds, a fairly impressive figure for a vehicle of this kind.

To make this zero-emissions truck more popular, the company will offer free hydrogen supply under its leasing programmes. That is, it will be included in the monthly payment of between 5,000 and 7,000 euros over a period of 72 months. The Nikola One can be replaced at the end of this period with a new one, or sooner if it reaches 1.6 million kilometres. This video shows one of the brand’s test vehicles on the road, which still has many kilometres to cover and hours of laboratory and workshop work ahead before it is truly effective.

https://youtu.be/IAToxJ9CGb8