WATT Electric Vehicle Company has unveiled a working prototype of its electric eCV1 big rig that could spell trouble for Tesla’s competing Semi.

The eCV1, displayed on April 18 at Birmingham, England’s commercial vehicle show, shares the same unique central driver’s seat position as Tesla’s Semi — but that’s not all.

Watt Electric Vehicle CompanyWatt Electric Vehicle Company’s eCV1 uses a specially designed platform that’s cross-compatible with the manufacturer’s other electric commercial models[/caption]

Watt Electric Vehicle CompanThe eCV1’s cabin can carry up to three passengers, which is one more than Tesla’s Semi[/caption]

Watt Electric Vehicle Company’s (WEVC) eCV1 cabin supports up to a three-seat configuration.

Tesla’s Semi is limited to a two-seat configuration with its central driver’s chair and fold-down jump seat.

WEVC’s eCV1 also contains a platform with a cell-to-cell chassis system.

A cell-to-cell chassis system fits a battery directly to this model’s primary structure.

This placement optimizes stiffness and minimizes weight while maximizing payload during rides, according to the manufacturer.

WEVC’s new chassis will apply to several commercial vehicles, including chassis cabs, drop sides, panel vans, and Luton vans.

Tesla’s Semi platform is currently exclusive to the big rig.

WEVC’s eCV1 will debut in 2025, Parkers reports.

Commercial transport companies looking to get electric vehicles like the eCV1 will have to deal with a learning curve as unfamiliarity caused several truckers to complain about Tesla’s Semi.

Commercial truck driver Tomasz Oryński discussed the Semi’s central seating, saying that the chair placement “makes overtaking or looking ahead more difficult.”

He added: “But also makes it impossible to reach out of the window to pass the paperwork or to talk with the guy in the gatehouse when you enter a port or a factory or, say, a tollbooth.”

The Semi’s central seat position is supposed to increase driver visibility across its three front windows.

Oryński made himself clear that his Twitter thread was judging Tesla’s Semi from the practical viewpoint of someone who drives trucks professionally.

The professional trucker prefaced his criticisms: “I will just look at the cab from the practical point of view of someone who drives trucks for a living.

“Because it’s an opposite of being ‘built around the driver.’”

Watt Electric Vehicle CompanAn example of the eCV1 semi’s flexible platform being used on a box truck[/caption] Read More The US Sun