Otokar showcased its new electric bus range at Busworld Türkiye 2022

Otokar, the leader of the Turkish bus market for 13 years, debuted its electric bus range, featuring models from 6mt to 19mt, at Busworld Türkiye 2022. Otokar also unveiled its 6mt bus series CENTRO during the exhibition.

Türkiye’s pioneering and leading bus brand Otokar debuted its electric bus range, featuring models from 6mt to 19mt, at Busworld Türkiye 2022 on 26-28 May 2022. The 6mt bus e-CENTRO and the 19mt articulated bus e-KENT became the highlights of the exhibition. Otokar provides comfortable and safe travel for millions of passengers with tens of thousands of buses operating in 50 countries across the world and primarily in Europe. In the tenth edition of the event in Istanbul, the company’s lineup included five different bus models.

“WE WILL STEP UP EXPORTS WITH OUR ELECTRIC BUS RANGE”
“Otokar is a pioneer in Türkiye, having already introduced the country’s first hybrid bus, electric bus, and smart bus. And now, we are making our mark in electric buses,” said Kerem Erman, Commercial Vehicles Deputy General Manager, Otokar. “Tens of thousands of buses we designed with nearly 60 years of industry experience for various purposes such as public transportation, tourism, and personnel shuttles currently operate in more than 50 countries worldwide. We have already introduced many firsts with our groundbreaking work in alternative fuel vehicles. And now we are ready to write a new success story with our electric bus family, which is expanding with two new vehicles: a 19mt articulated bus and a 6mt bus.”

“Otokar has maintained its position as the leader of the Turkish bus market for 13 years in a row with solutions tailored to user needs. Following the launch of our 12mt electric bus, we developed the articulated e-KENT bus and e-CENTRO buses in the 6-meter segment especially for Europe, our primary market. Otokar’s electric buses will soon be traveling on the streets of Europe,” added Kerem Erman, noting that zero emission zones are growing in Europe. “Municipalities and bus operators are increasingly preferring electric buses, especially in the cities for a cleaner environment and silence in traffic. In addition to seeking silent vehicles with zero emissions, our users also look for higher passenger capacity and lower total cost of ownership (TCO). When developing Otokar’s electric bus range, we considered these needs and requirements. We aimed to lower total ownership and operating costs by offering vehicles with different capacities for diverse routes. Thanks to our long years of experience in public transportation buses, know-how in alternative fuel vehicles, and our engineering capabilities, we created the ideal product range to meet future expectations.”

A compact electric bus: e-CENTRO
During the exhibition, Otokar exhibited e-CENTRO as the electric version of its new product range, CENTRO. With its compact size, e-CENTRO offers an environment-friendly and accessible solution for historical districts and touristic areas of cities with narrow streets, and zero emission zones.

e-CENTRO is available in two lengths: 6 and 6.6 meters. Its compact dimensions provides high maneuverability. With an electric motor with a maximum power of 200 kW and a maximum torque of 1200 Nm, the 6.6mt e-CENTRO does not compromise performance even on the steepest hills. The bus stands out with its lightness and lower operating costs, providing reduced total cost of ownership (TCO) and better range for public transport operators. The 110 kW Li-ion NMC batteries of e-Centro can be fully charged in as short as 1.5 hours, offering a range of 200 km on a single charge. Onboard charging is also available. Furthermore, the regenerative braking feature enables up to 25 percent energy recovery from braking and deceleration in urban traffic.

Positioning the batteries under the floor creates wide and spacious interior and enables the bus to carry up to 32 passengers. Featuring a low-floor design, e-CENTRO delivers comfortable rides for all passengers, including people with disabilities or those with strollers.

The compact design of e-CENTRO is a nod to the Otokar’s iconic minibuses of Türkiye in the 70s.

Electric Articulated Bus: e-KENT
Otokar also debuted its new 19mt all-electric articulated bus e-KENT at Busworld Türkiye 2022. The articulated version of e-KENT stands out with its high maneuverability despite its 19mt length. In addition to offering high passenger capacity and large interior volume, the articulated bus also features four wide and metro-style electric sliding doors for easy and quick access. With a 100% electric-powered AC, the bus promises comfortable rides every season.

The articulated e-KENT is offered with different battery capacity options such as 350, 490, and 560 kWh so that the cities can select the best solution depending on their charging infrastructure. The Li-ion NMC batteries enhance the agility of the bus with fast and slow charging options. The articulated e-KENT can be charged from the mains in the garage or on the road with its pantograph charger. The modern digital instrument cluster of e-KENT, which offers efficient and smart solutions for the cities of the future, displays various data, including real-time energy consumption.

Otokar developed e-KENT series as environment-friendly, zero-emission, silent buses for metropolises with high passenger traffic. Otokar’s 12mt electric bus e-KENT recently visited several European countries, including Italy, Spain, Germany, and Romania, where it was tested by operators and municipalities, and earned great interest.

CENTRO bus range
Otokar also showcased a diesel version of the CENTRO range for the first time at Busworld Türkiye 2022. The product range, intended for public transportation with different length and layout options, remains loyal to Otokar’s bus design language. With the addition of the CENTRO range, Otokar’s bus lineup now includes vehicles from 6 meters to 21 meters.

The 6.6mt diesel version of Otokar CENTRO features 11 fixed and 6 folding seats and also has a standing capacity for 14 passengers. With an environment- friendly engine, conforming with Euro 6 emission levels, the bus climbs the steep hills of the cities with ease and superior performance, while offering low operating costs for the operators. In addition to a low-floor design and a disabled ramp for easy access for all passengers.