Montra Rhino 5538 Electric Trailer Truck Launched, With Battery Swapping Technology

In typical truck naming convention, 55 in 5538 stands for 55 tons, and 38 for 380 hp. Key details from our @CarToq reporter, live from ICAT Manesar, On-A-Sunday.

Prices start from 1.15 crore for the fast charging version. Charging happens through a 240 kW gun. 20 to 100 % in 60 minutes.

More importantly, the swappable battery version is priced at Rs. 1.18 crore, and is perhaps what the future of e-Trucking could look like.

Both trucks run an electric motor that makes 380 Bhp, and a ginormous (double of conventional diesel trailer rigs) 2,000 Nm of torque right off idle. The motor powers a 4X2 driveline.

In the swappable version of the Montra 5538, the battery stack is a 1+7 unit (1 unit is fixed while 7 can be swapped in about 6 minutes).

Each swapping unit is designed to be like a toll plaza, with trucks being able to drive in and out seamlessly, and can handle 160 swaps per day. While we did ask Montra for a tour of the swapping process, we'll have for wait for some other day for that.

An idea whose time has come!

The idea is for the Montra 5528 to be like a diesel truck - where a refuel typically takes about 5-10 minutes - rather than forcing the truckie to sit around at a fast charger for an hour or more.

Murugappa group-owned Montra hopes that the 'battery swap' functionality will makes the 5538 a viable alternate to diesel trucks.

Claimed range is 198 Kms, which means that real world range would be about 130 Kms. Just adequate!

Why am I saying just-adequate? Well, a comparable trailer truck from Tata - the Prima 5530 - comes with a 557 liter diesel tank. Let's say it delivers 2.5 Kmpl per liter at full load, a tank range is a whopping 1,300 Kms!

With two drivers (and a cleaner) aboard, such trucks can be kept on the road for about 20 hours a day. 40 Kph average speed can technically net an 800 Km run. Theoretically!

In practice, a typical trailer truck - even on fast improving highways does about 300-400 Kms per day. So, if Montra can manage to have a swapping station every 50 Kms (like a toll plaza) with enough bays to handle the load, the swapping mechanism has a fair shot at success. I'm quite eager to see something like this being replicated for long distance bus-ing.

As for the upsides, low running costs (critical for commercial transport) and near-zero emission should make the Montra 5538 a very viable alternative to smoke belching diesel trucks, at least on routes where battery swap infra can be rolled out as quickly as setting up a petrol bunk.

I like this approach. And in my opinion, this is the direction the EV evolution/revolution must take. Battery swapping instead of fast charging.

Imagine if batteries were standardized and modularized across all vehicles. While this is tough to pull-off across the spectrum given the sheer complexity of vehicles involved, at least applications such as trucking and bus-ing can manage this given the sheer space trucks and buses have for large battery packs.

Mr. Arun Murugappan, Chairman, Montra Electric (TI Clean Mobility Pvt. Ltd.) said,

At Montra Electric, we are building products and services that directly address the biggest hurdles in commercial EV adoption. With innovations like battery swapping for heavy-duty trucks and purpose-built platforms across segments, we are making clean mobility seamless, reliable, and economically viable for fleet operators. This approach strengthens our vision of building a full-spectrum sustainable mobility ecosystem. Each step we take is designed to accelerate India’s shift towards cleaner logistics, ensuring that sustainable mobility becomes the norm rather than the exception.

Mr. Jalaj Gupta, Managing Director, Montra Electric (TI Clean Mobility), said:

It is a milestone in Montra Electric’s journey of putting India firmly on the global map of sustainable mobility with the introduction of battery swapping technology. Launch of the Rhino 5538 EV 4x2 TT, in one of the largest industry segments, demonstrates our commitment to innovation, localization, and sustainability.

All the new additions to our manufacturing facility, automated battery plant, battery swap technology and the conveyor line integrated with Automated Guided Vehicles (AGVs), will collectively unlock greater efficiency, reliability, and localization. These advancements position India to take significant strides in driving innovative, technology-led, clean freight solutions. With the government’s thrust through initiatives like the PM E-DRIVE scheme, the adoption of e-trucks is set to accelerate rapidly.