Iran Khodro Diesel’s electric bus named E-Atros was unveiled on March 13.
Operating on batteries and without the use of Overhead Catenary System, this fully electric vehicle is based on the platform and chassis of Iran Khodro Diesel’s Atros diesel-powered bus, but with a new design.
E-Atros is a 12-meter electric bus suitable for inner-city use, which was unveiled by Iran Khodro Diesel as the first electric bus using Iranian batteries.
Powered by a 350-kWh battery, E-Atros has an electric motor that is capable of producing 470 horsepower and 3500 Nm of instantaneous torque, Khodronevis reported.
Electric motors provide torque and power to the driver instantly, which give the electric bus a better initial acceleration than the diesel model. The bus also easy goes uphill because of the higher power of the electric motor than gasoline-powered vehicles.
These batteries comply with IP68 standards, with six of them in the engine compartment and four others on the roof of the bus.
The bus has the ability to climb 20% of the slope while carrying the maximum number of passengers and does not overturn on the 30-degree transverse slope.
The bus’s top speed is 90km/h, which is a desirable speed for an intercity bus.
One of the positive features of this bus is having the Regenerative Braking System that transfers the kinetic energy of an object in motion into potential or stored energy to slow the vehicle down and as a result increases fuel efficiency.
The length, width and height of the bus are 12,100 mm, 2,500 mm and 3,450 mm, respectively, and the height inside the cabin is 2,53 2mm, so that passengers do not face any constriction while standing.
The front and rear axles of the bus are capable of withstanding a maximum weight of 7 and 13 tons, and the maximum gross weight of this electric bus, considering its own weight, is around 19.5 tons.
This electric bus is able to travel a distance of about 380 km on full charge mode and with a maximum gross weight.
If the ventilation system is on and with the bus moving at full capacity, the distance traveled by this electric bus will be reduced by about 250-300 km.
The same traveling distance is longer than the distance traveled by intercity passenger buses in one day. Thus, it should be noted that this electric bus has no problems in terms of mileage for use in the city bus fleet and is completely higher than the standards set by Tehran Municipality and other metropolises.
EV Conversion Cost-Effective
Experts believe the conversion of domestic gasoline-powered cars to electric vehicles is more economical than producing a new one.
Earlier, the production of electric cars was touted by several domestic automakers, while some imported electric cars in the form of Complete Knocked-Down kits and tested them.
In the past few years, several electric cars were imported and a number of domestic cars were also electrified, but at the end, nothing substantial came out of it and the production of these cars remained in limbo, the news portal of Donyaye Khodro reported.
Due to the high price of electric vehicles, lack of government subsidies and absence of charging infrastructure, the production of EVs in Iran will not gain momentum anytime soon.
Under the circumstances, the conversion of domestic gasoline-powered cars to electric vehicles is the most cost-effective option for promoting the use of EVs in Iran.
"You replace the engine and gearbox of domestic gasoline cars with batteries and electric motors,” an automotive expert said.
Javad Nafari added that the body and other equipment of these cars are produced domestically.
“Although electric car batteries must be imported at present, Iran has the technology to produce the engine domestically,” he said.
Hybrid Cars, a Good Option?
Hybrid cars have relatively lower energy consumption compared to gasoline cars, but the maintenance cost of these cars is very high, the expert said.
Nafari said because their battery is being charged and discharged regularly, its battery life decline.
The expert noted that these batteries are also very expensive and uneconomical, because of which the cost of depreciation and maintenance of hybrid vehicles is much higher than that of electric vehicles.
Noting that hybrid cars’ structures are more complex than those of EVs, Nafari said, “If a hybrid car is self-charging, it is charged by the gasoline engine, but if it is a plug-in hybrid, part of the battery is charged by the engine and another part by an external power source.”
The number of charges and discharges in hybrid cars is much more than in an EV, which increases the wear and tear of batteries, clutches and couplings of hybrid vehicles.
Therefore, hybrid cars are not a good alternative to gasoline cars or EVs, as they are expensive and their maintenance costs are high.
