A tale of two electric 'Cruisers

Earlier this month, VivoPower International announced that it had entered into a binding Letter of Intent with Toyota Motor Corporation Australia Limited, to create a collaboration program for electrification of LandCruiser vehicles using conversion kits designed and manufactured by VivoPower's wholly-owned electric vehicle subsidiary, Tembo e-LV B.V.

Final terms are under negotiation, but upon completion, it is intended that VivoPower would become Toyota Australia's exclusive partner for LandCruiser 70 electrification for a period of five years, with a further two-year option.

Kevin Chin, executive chairman and CEO of VivoPower said: "We are extremely pleased to be collaborating with Toyota Motor Company Australia, on the electrification of their LandCruiser vehicles with our Tembo conversion kits.

“The LandCruiser is the vehicle of choice worldwide for mining and other ruggedised industries.

“This partnership is a testament to the outstanding potential of Tembo's technology to decarbonise transportation in some of the world's toughest and hardest to decarbonise industries.”

At Trucksales we’ve been following electric LandCruiser initiatives for several years.

In late 2017 we were made aware of the Dutch-designed Tembo 4x4 e-LV ‘Cruiser, then being distributed in Australia by Western Australian based Autoline. This model was launched in Europe in July 2016.

Before we could get more information on that vehicle we discovered that Autoline had linked up with NZ based electric heavy vehicle specialist maker, Zero Emission Vehicles (ZEV), to produce and market the Voltra electric LandCruiser.

The first Voltra battery-electric LandCruiser developed for Autoline was being trialled in the Australian mining industry, but our efforts to elicit results from Outline have been unsuccessful.

“This is a significant milestone for us,” said ZEV Chairman George Zander. “Our goal has always been the global market and this vehicle represents our first steps in the international arena.”

“The mining industry is a very stringent one in terms of process and regulations,” said Zander. “Electric drive provides huge health and safety benefits for the mines and its workers, as well as big reductions in the amount of maintenance a vehicle requires when it does not have a combustion engine.”

The Voltra was launched at the end of 2017 at EV World in Auckland. Kits were designed and manufactured in New Zealand and shipped to Australia, where ZEV staff assembled and fitted them in Adelaide.

We contacted Tembo 4x4 when we were confused about who was selling what in Australasia and Tembo 4x4’s then principal, Frank Damms, told us that in late February 2018 his company had launched its second-generation LandCruiser e-LV, with considerable updates on the 2016 model.

The Tembo 4x4 e-LV EVO2 was the second edition of worlds’ first zero emissions mining industry electric ute, featuring a completely new drivetrain and energy management system.

Frank Daams said: “Using all the data and feedback collected during the initial-model phase we can offer a vehicle that is even more robust, smoother to drive and better suited to the conditions in the mining industry.”

The new vehicle was unveiled at the headquarters of FD 4x4 Centre in Bergeijk, the Netherlands, in front of an international audience.

Representatives of the mining industry, clients and suppliers were able to drive the vehicle and to examine the technical aspects of the vehicle with the Tembo 4x4 people who designed and built it.

The new drivetrain of the Tembo 4x4 e-LV was designed using components certified for industrial use and readily available from reputable partners.

“Together with our French partner Actia we have selected an electric motor that is in use all over Europe,” said Frank Damms.

“The compact size allows for a high position between the chassis rails, and a custom full-time-4WD gearbox transfers the power to the wheels.”

The full-time-4WD system eliminates the driveline damage that occurs in existing part-time-4WD LandCruiser mine vehicles that are locked in 4WD and driven on high-friction surfaces.

Power comes from an industry grade 28-42kWh battery pack, certified to ECE R100 and contained in a metal box. Forsee Power is one of the few battery companies able to offer the combination of quality and flexibility needed for the Tembo 4x4 e-LV.

Typical mine site range is 60-80km, but more batteries can be added for increased range.

Battery life is calculated at 8000 cycles at 80-per cent depth of discharge (DOD) and 4500 cycles at 100-percent DOD.

An on-board charger allows the vehicle to be charged directly from the existing electrical infrastructure and engine braking also charges the batteries on downhill road sections.

The Tembo 4x4 e-LV was well received by the international audience present at the launch.

Brian McKenna from Boliden Tara Mines, Ireland, evaluated the first prototype and he was happy to see the development: “It is a huge improvement over the first prototype,” he said. “The engine power is more balanced and it is very quiet.

“I think our workshop will like the elevated drivetrain that puts everything out of harms’ way.”

“For me, reliability is most important in such a vehicle,” said Eve Tousignant of Access Canada. “Our clients can live with the charging time, but ideally it should be able to run 24/7.

“It drives beautifully and is a real solution to the problems we have in underground mining.”

Trucksales will continue keeping up to date with electric LandCruiser progress in Australia.