A bad view of the road, lack of mirrors and an excessive number of monitors - that's just part of the claims that arise in truck drivers after getting to know the futuristic electrofury Tesla Semi. In the column of the Engadget edition, former long-distance truck driver Jonathan Ramsey estimated the new development of Tesla from a professional point of view and remained displeased with it. The author of the column in Engadget Jonathan Ramzi spent 9 months on the road in 2017: 6 months he was behind the wheel of the Freightliner Cascadia with a refrigerated trailer, and 3 months in the Kenworth T680 with a flatbed platform. In his article Ramzi immediately stated that the electric truck Tesla Semi will impress only those who have no idea about the trucker's work. At the same time, the former driver admitted that Tesla is developing a wagon not for long-distance intercity trips, but for transporting goods between terminals within the same region. For example, to deliver Wal-Mart products from one warehouse to another. "The first Semi model will not replace the tens of thousands of trucks that make long trips from east to west, winding up 2000-5000 miles (3200-8000 km) per week," explained Ramzi. But, according to the author of the column, any driver, no matter what distance he traveled, will face problems when driving a Tesla truck. The first drawback is the seat installed in the center of the cabin. According to Tesla, this arrangement of the driver's seat provides maximum visibility. But an ordinary truck gives an overview no worse, since the driver is located at a height of 1.8 m above the road.
Another problem is the lack of mirrors.
The Kenworth T680 truck, on which Ramzi traveled in 2017, was equipped with seven mirrors. This was necessary to avoid both major collisions and minor damage. "I understand that mirrors would have a bad effect on the aerodynamics of Tesla Semi. But a mirror for only $ 8 can save thousands of dollars, which will go to repair and losses due to idle time. So I just do not know how you can manage without them. ".
Original article: Former trucker criticized Tesla Semi.