Bridgestone to supply tyres to Volta Trucks’ electric truck pilot fleet

The Volta Zero launch vehicle will roll on Bridgestone truck tyres when it launches in an online event on Thursday 3 September 2020

Scandinavian start-up full-electric vehicle manufacturer Volta Trucks has signed a new tyre partnership with Bridgestone. The world’s largest tyre manufacturer will fit its tyres to the first launch vehicle, which will be revealed at an online event on Thursday 3 September. The agreement also covers the supply of tyres to Volta’s pilot vehicles, due to start evaluation with fleet operators in early 2021. Large logistics fleet operators have already signed-up to trial the Volta Zero, including DPD Group in the UK and Bring and Posten in Scandinavia, with orders also already being taken for the vehicle in both markets.

Bridgestone have supplied the Volta Zero with its 285/70R19.5 146/144M R-Steer 002 tyre for both front and rear axles. The tyre’s steer pattern delivers an optimum performance for high-torque full-electric vehicles and thanks to its ribbed design tread pattern, the R-Steer tyre also offers significant tyre noise reduction. This is an important attribute for the Volta Zero that is designed predominantly for inner city usage, with its silent full-electric powertrain enabling it to operate in urban areas 24 hours a day, even with the most stringent noise pollution regulations.

Confirming the partnership, Andrea Manenti, vice president, North Region of Bridgestone, said: “The transportation industry is in rapid transformation and vehicles are becoming more and more CASE – connected, autonomous, shared and electric. We are proud to partner with Volta Trucks, an exciting new manufacturer of electric vehicles, as their demonstrator fleet of the Volta Zero hits the road for the first time.

“As a business, Bridgestone is committed to working with key partners in contributing to the future of mobility and creating new value for society.  The work that we’re doing alongside Volta Trucks is exactly that.”

Rob Fowler, chief executive officer of Volta Trucks, concluded; “I’m delighted that Volta Trucks is partnering with Bridgestone for the supply of tyres to our launch and demonstrator  fleet vehicles. As the manufacturer of the world’s first purpose-built full-electric large commercial vehicle, we are pioneering in the electrification of commercial vehicles and I am pleased to work with an innovative and world-renowned tyre company like Bridgestone who can help support our early ambitions.”

Volta Zero details

The Volta Zero is the world’s first purpose-built full-electric 16-tonne vehicle designed for inner-city freight deliveries, reducing the environmental impact of freight deliveries in city centres. Designed from the ground up with an operating pure-electric range of 150-200km (95-125 miles), the company estimates the Volta Zero could eliminate 180,000 tonnes of CO2 by 2025.

Safety is also at the heart of Volta Trucks, with its ambition of being the safest large commercial vehicle manufacturer. The Volta Zero was designed for electric from the outset, which facilitates a step-change in vehicle and pedestrian safety. Thanks to the removal of the internal combustion engine, the operator of a Volta Zero sits in a central driving position, with a much lower seat height than a conventional truck. This combination, plus a glass house-style cab design, gives the driver a wide 220-degrees of visibility, minimising dangerous blind spots.

The first prototype Volta Zero is currently being built, and will be launched later in 2020, with the first pilot test vehicles due to start evaluation with customers in Q1-2021.

Volta Trucks is a start-up full-electric goods vehicle manufacturer and services company. Volta Trucks has offices in the UK and Sweden and has partnered with a number of industry-leading design and engineering companies to develop the Zero, including Prodrive, Astheimer and Magtec.