The Turkish
manufacturer Karsan has presented a battery-electric version of its 8-meter bus
of type Atak. As with a previous model, Karsan relies on batteries from BMW’
electric car i3. The Atak Electric uses a total of five batteries developed by
BMW, each with 44 kWh. The Turkish e-bus has a total capacity of 220 kWh, which
should enable a range of 300 kilometres. The engine has an output of 230 kW and
is designed for 2400 Nm torque.
Karsan specifies a
charging time of five hours for double AC charging and three hours for DC rapid
charging. Double AC charging corresponds to a charging capacity of 44 kW. With
a slower AC connection, charging takes correspondingly longer. The regenerative
braking system should be able to recharge up to a quarter of the battery while
driving.
The Atak Electric
is available in two seating configurations: 18 seats and four folding seats as
well as 21 seats and four folding seats. The bus has a total capacity of 52
passengers. Karsan has scheduled the electric bus for serial production for
this August.
BMW i3 battery
packs are sought after by commercial and utility vehicle manufacturers such as
Motiv Power Systems. In the case of Karsan. the manufacturer offers a four year
and 200,000 km warranty for its BMW batteries. Karsan has already BMW tech for
the 6-metre Jest Electric bus: The smaller e-bus not only uses BMW batteries
but also the 125 kW electric motor from the i3. The Turkish company says that
35 Jest Electric buses are already in use in France, Germany and Greece.
