Electric HGV proves point with Mercedes-AMG F1

W16 race cars were taken to the Dutch Grand Prix in a Mercedes eActros 600 - for the first time in Europe

By Matt Bird / Friday, 19 September 2025 / Loading comments

To those who are Le Mans or Nurburgring regulars, the thought of driving from Brackley to Zandvoort won’t pose much challenge at all. It’s 418 miles, easily doable in a day. Some of you may even have done it for the Dutch Grand Prix. It would be rather more challenging in an HGV perhaps, what with hours and maximum speeds. But an electric truck? Carrying F1 cars? Sounds almost like science fiction still. Not for Mercedes-Benz, though, which reportedly employed a trio of eActross 600 electric trucks to take all the cars and supporting kit needed by the F1 team from England to Holland at the end of last month. And is only now boasting about it.

Alright, so it’s hardly the Cannonball Run or Peking to Paris, but Mercedes reckons they’re the first team in F1 to use an electric HGV during the European season. It follows the use of biofuel since 2022 for its old diesels, then a test electric run around the block to Silverstone for the British GP. And they seem likely to continue doing so as well, at least when F1 returns to Europe next year, given the eActros - going off its consumption stats - would have done the entire 418 miles without charging. When it does plug in, the 600kWh (!) lithium-ion phosphate battery can be charged from 20 per cent to 80 per cent in 25 minutes. But that does require something called the Megawatt Charging System (MCS), and we haven’t seen many of those around. So for this journey, a Milence truck hub was used, which can currently offer up to 400kW CCS charging; once MCS is up and running, it should offer up to 1,000kW…

Alice Ashpitel is Head of Sustainability for the F1 team. She said: “As a team, our commitment to sustainability means that we rethink how we move, not just how we race. While we are driven by performance on track, we are incredibly proud that our innovations travel beyond the grid. The use of the Mercedes-Benz eActros 600 trucks, initially piloted at our home race in July, and then used to transport our race cars to Zandvoort, is another important step in our decarbonisation journey.” The overall aim is to be ‘one of the most sustainable global professional sports teams’ - nothing if not ambitious at Mercedes-AMG.

The eActros was International Truck of the Year 2025, and in the world of trucking a minimum range is quoted rather than a maximum. It’s 372 miles, so little surprise that it would have achieved 418 without charge. Apparently, the Merc ‘stood out at the Dutch Grand Prix from all the diesel-powered transportation used by other competitors.’ And it takes a lot to raise eyebrows in a Grand Prix paddock. F1 being F1, it surely won’t be long before the rest of the teams follow this lead…