Leinfelden-Echterdingen/Wörth am Rhein – Mercedes-Benz Trucks is embarking on an extraordinary project together with content creator and professional truck driver Tobias Wagner. Known across various platforms as the ‘Elektrotrucker’ and followed by more than 160,000 people, Wagner aims to drive once around the world in a long-haul Mercedes‑Benz eActros 600. According to current knowledge, this would be the first circumnavigation of the globe completed with a purely battery-electric truck. The route is expected to cover around 45,000 kilometers across more than 35 countries and requires a maximum of 80 charging stops. The entire expedition is planned to take approximately one year.

The eActros 600 used for the project is a 4x2 flatbed vehicle that rolled off the production line at the Mercedes‑Benz plant in Wörth am Rhein in mid-April. After undergoing various modifications, such as a spare wheel carrier with an integrated mobile charging unit, single tires, and additional headlights at the front, the truck will be fitted with a specially developed motorhome-style body by the company Bliss Mobil, which will serve as the mobile base for the journey. The start of the trip is scheduled for autumn 2026. The finished expedition vehicle and additional project details are to be presented in early summer.

A production truck as an expedition vehicle

The Mercedes‑Benz eActros 600 was specifically developed for long-haul transport. It features a high battery capacity of over 600 kilowatt-hours and an especially efficient electric drive axle developed in-house, enabling a range of 500 kilometers^[1] without intermediate charging in fully loaded long-distance operation. As an expedition flatbed vehicle with a residential body, its lower weight will typically allow it to significantly exceed this range.

Christian Wilz, Chairman of the Management Board of Mercedes‑Benz Trucks Germany:
“Battery-electric long-haul transport is already a lived reality in many parts of Europe today. Our customers demonstrate in daily operations that electric long-distance logistics works -provided the infrastructure is available. Now we are excited to see what experiences Tobias will gather with the eActros 600 on his extraordinary global expedition - a journey that will show both that battery-electric long-haul transport can already work worldwide and that in many regions the necessary conditions still need to be created to make it broadly viable.”

Practical experience from daily operations

For Tobias Wagner, the project is not only an extraordinary journey but also an opportunity to showcase the potential of battery-electric trucks in long-distance transport today. For the past two years, the influencer has worked full time as a truck driver for Nanno Janssen Spedition GmbH, a logistics service provider based in Leer, Lower Saxony (Germany), which is consistently transitioning its fleet from diesel to electric power and has already built its own charging park. Wagner has been driving battery-electric trucks from various manufacturers for years - and since summer 2025 also the eActros 600 - and has so far covered 200,000 kilometers fully electrically in national and international long-haul transport.

Tobias Wagner: “After countless tours through 22 countries, I know one thing for sure: electric trucks in long-distance transport work without any problems. To convince even the last skeptics, I am following in the footsteps of Jules Verne - though I’m not traveling around the world in 80 days, but in 80 charging stations! For such an adventure, the eActros 600, with its enormous battery capacity, efficiency, and body options, is the perfect companion. That is why I wanted to use this vehicle specifically to show that electromobility in heavy transport has long since arrived in real-world operation.”

Wagner plans to regularly update his followers on his experiences and provide insights into battery-electric travel in heavy commercial vehicles. The route will take him through vastly different regions - from well-developed highways to long and demanding cross-country routes and remote areas. Since not all regions are equally prepared for battery-electric trucks, the journey requires particularly careful planning and preparation to meet the diverse climatic, topographical, and infrastructural challenges.

The expedition is less about records and more about a practical question: how far can a modern battery-electric long-haul truck really make it today, and what are the biggest challenges, hurdles, or even prejudices?

About Tobias Wagner

Tobias Wagner is a truck driver, content creator, and ambassador for battery-electric logistics. The 32-year-old startup entrepreneur from Mühldorf am Inn, who spent the past few years building passenger-car charging infrastructure, has dedicated himself fully to electric logistics since 2024. He has since been working as a full-time professional truck driver for the Lower Saxony-based logistics company Nanno Janssen in numerous European countries and shares his experiences on YouTube. With the first global circumnavigation in an electric truck, Wagner aims to demonstrate to the commercial vehicle industry that the true limits of the technology - if they exist at all - lie far beyond Europe. With this lighthouse project, he wants to inspire logisticians and truck drivers across Europe and encourage confidence in a sustainable, quiet, and economically viable transport future.

About the eActros 600

Mercedes-Benz Trucks celebrated the start of series launch of the eActros 600 at the Mercedes-Benz Wörth plant at the end of 2024, and the vehicle has since been in daily operation on roads in more than 15 European countries.

The electric flagship from Mercedes-Benz Trucks has already proven its capabilities several times under real-life conditions prior to the series launch: In customer use and as part of the “eActros 600 European Testing Tour 2024”, a 15,000-kilometer all-electric development trip through a total of 22 countries and the “European Testing Tour Winter 2025” on around 6,500 kilometers through Northern Europe, each with a gross combination mass of 40 tons. In addition, the e-truck was voted “International Truck of the Year 2025”. The award is the most important prize in the industry and is presented annually by the International Truck of the Year (IToY) organization, consisting of 24 commercial vehicle journalists from Europe.

The high battery capacity of over 600 kilowatt hours - hence the model designation 600 – and a new, particularly efficient electric drive axle developed in-house enable the eActros 600 to achieve a range of 500 kilometers^[1] without intermediate charging. This range is accomplished under very realistic and practical conditions with a gross combination mass of 40 tons, which can also be significantly exceeded depending on the driving style and the route. The eActros 600 will even be able to cover well over 1,000 kilometers per day. Intermediate charging during statutory driver breaks makes this possible, provided that charging options are available.

The eActros 600 has three battery packs, each with 207 kWh^[2]. These offer an installed total capacity of 621 kWh. The batteries are based on lithium iron phosphate cell technology (LFP) and are characterized by a long service life. The development engineers at Mercedes-Benz Trucks designed the eActros 600 to meet the same requirements for the durability of vehicles and components as a comparable conventional heavy-duty long-haul Actros. This means up to 1.2 million kilometers in ten years of operation. After this period of use, the battery state of health should still be above 80 percent. In contrast to other battery cell technologies, more than 95 percent of the installed capacity can also be used with LFP technology. This facilitates a higher range with the same installed battery capacity. The vehicle is technically designed for a gross combination mass of up to 44 tons. With a standard semitrailer, the eActros 600 has a payload of around 22 tons in the EU. There might be cases in which national law allows higher payloads.

In order to meet even more customer requirements, Mercedes-Benz Trucks recently expanded its battery-electric truck portfolio with additional variants based on the Mercedes-Benz eActros 600. Depending on their requirements in terms of range, payload, and comfort, customers will be able to choose between two cab variants, two or three battery packs, numerous wheelbases, and new axle configurations. The second model generation of the eActros thus offers over 40 variants of the base vehicle. The new vehicle versions feature the key characteristics of the eActros 600, such as LFP battery technology and the specially developed eAxle.

Sustainability at Mercedes‑Benz Trucks

Sustainability is a key element of Mercedes-Benz Trucks’ strategy. As part of Daimler Truck AG, the company aims to contribute to the decarbonization of road freight transport and the transformation of the transport industry. With battery-electric and hydrogen-based drive solutions as well as digital services, Mercedes-Benz Trucks is working to enable transport solutions with lower local CO₂e emissions. In addition, the company is implementing measures aimed at gradually improving the energy and resource efficiency of its production and supply processes. In this way, Mercedes-Benz Trucks supports the sustainability ambitions of Daimler Truck AG.

_{[1] Range determined under specific test conditions after preconditioning with a 4x2 tractor unit at 40 tons gross combination weight, 20°C ambient temperature, and long-haul operation; values may differ from those determined in accordance with Regulation (EU) 2017/2400.
[2] Nominal capacity of a new battery based on internally defined conditions; capacity may vary depending on application and environmental conditions.}