Lion Electric announces partnerships with upfitters

Lion Electric is now working with several body suppliers for its electric trucks. (Photo: Lion Electric)

The Lion Electric Co., a manufacturer of all-electric medium and heavy-duty vehicles, announced several partnerships with truck upfitters to provide new fully electrified refrigerated, dry freight and aluminum stake body options for its Lion6 zero-emission urban truck. The partnerships include equipment upfit options from Morgan Truck Body, Thermo King, Knapheide and CM Truck Beds.

Lion Electric truck on display during Work Truck Week in Indianapolis. (Photo: Chad Elmore)

Several Lion6 vehicles were on display at Work Truck Week 2022, taking place March 8-11 in Indianapolis, including:

• Lion6 Electrified Refrigerated Concept in partnership with Morgan Truck Body and Thermo King (Morgan booth No. 4949)
• Lion6 Aluminum Platform Body 18-foot with Storage Pack in partnership with Knapheide (Lion booth No. 2625)
• Lion6 Aluminum Platform Body (26-foot) in partnership with CM Truck Beds (CM booth No. 5159)

“The wide variety of upfit components we are debuting at this year’s Work Truck Week is proof that electrification has arrived for a broad range of truck fleet customers, from dry cargo fleets to those with temperature-sensitive requirements. We are pleased to be working in close collaboration with four industry leaders as we continue to move toward a zero-emission future in trucking, and look forward to continuing to introduce new applications to our highly flexible class 5 to class 8 chassis vehicles,” said Brian Piern, chief commercial officer of Lion Electric.

Urban truck chassis

The Lion6 is a Class 6 zero-emission urban truck built on the experience Lion has gained from putting over 550 heavy-duty all-electric vehicles on the road, which have reportedly covered over 9 million miles to date. Offering 200 miles of range on a single charge, the Lion6 is designed and built to be 100% electric from the ground up.

The Lion6 uses Lion’s proprietary battery thermal management system (BTMS), which keeps battery temperatures in the ideal operating range. The result is optimal performance in extremely hot and cold environments with minimal impact on range, as has been proven by Lion truck customers currently operating in harsh conditions in some of the coldest regions of both the US and Canada.

The battery technology can be leveraged not only for propulsion, but to simultaneously power a vehicle refrigeration unit as well – as demonstrated by the electrified refrigerated concept truck body at Work Truck Week by Morgan Truck Body. Mounted on a Lion6 chassis and utilizing a Thermo King all-electric refrigerated unit, the concept has a 24 ft. truck body that is integrated with Lion Electric’s vehicle systems and powered by the vehicle’s onboard batteries – eliminating emissions and noise pollution caused by diesel refrigeration units.

With new stake bed upfit options in addition to dry freight bodies, the technology of the Lion6 can be leveraged for a wide variety of vocations. Lion’s partnership with Knapheide brings work fleets the option of an electrified lightweight aluminum 18 ft. platform stake body, which also features an enclosed storage pack behind the truck cab to secure work equipment. Lion also debuted a larger stake upfit option for the Lion6 with a new 26 ft. aluminum platform body in partnership with CM Truck Beds.

A Lion6 truck equipped with an aluminum platform body made by CM Truck Beds. The truck was shown during Work Truck Week in March. (Photo: Chad Elmore)

“CM Truck Beds is committed to the ever-changing dynamics of the work truck space,” said Joe Lewis, vice president of ATW Truck Equipment, the business unit of ATW that includes CM Truck Beds. “As North America’s number one manufacturer of aluminum bodies, our products are positioned well in the EV segment as we focus on added payload and increased towing capacity. Our business is focused to environmentally safe manufacturing processes and designing products for the zero-emissions transportation segment. As our industry continues to change, we will stand prepared to meet the needs of final destination fleets who desire to maximize distance in their fleet operations while transporting goods.”

Additionally, a dry freight body from Morgan Truck Body was shown at Work Truck Week, leveraging lightweight materials for improved payload and innovative aerodynamic features such as side skirts to maximize range.