We Got Up Close With the Tesla Semi in Nashville . Here's What It's Actually Like
CCJ editor Jason Cannon got hands-on with the Tesla Semi in Nashville, crawling through the cab, breaking down the tri-motor setup, and getting the latest on 66 planned Megacharger sites across 15 states. Here's the full breakdown.The Tesla Semi Is Finally Here and We Got Inside One
Tesla first debuted its Class 8 electric Semi back in 2017 with plans for production in 2019. That didn't happen. But after nearly nine years, the truck is finally making its way to market and CCJ editor Jason Cannon recently caught up with one in Nashville for the closest look yet. He couldn't drive it, but he crawled all over it. Here's what he found.
Getting Into the Tesla Semi Cab Is Unlike Any Truck You've Driven
Getting inside the Tesla Semi is more like walking into a house than climbing into a rig. The rear-hinged doors open wide, egress is a couple of easy steps, and there's no slingshotting yourself into the seat. If you've got bad knees or joint issues, there's probably no Class 8 truck in the world easier to enter.
Once inside, you're sitting in a center seat flanked by two 16-inch QHD touchscreens. Those screens display customizable views from the truck's 10 cameras alongside everything you'd expect from a driver information display truck status, routing, maps, climate control. Most functions in the Semi run through the displays. No knobs, no switches. Just glass.
The center driving position feels different at first but the visibility is panoramic. Think cabover, but with more side glass. There's about 6.5 feet of headroom, and the center seat puts the driver roughly an arm's length from each side window, making the cab feel significantly larger than it is. The view is, genuinely, pretty remarkable.
Tesla Semi Performance Tri-Motor Setup, 1,000 HP, Built for Freight
Under the chassis, the Semi is built for serious performance. It runs three independent motors on the rear axles, delivering up to 800 kW of drive power, the equivalent of 1,000 horsepower. The tri-motor configuration is smart: one motor is tuned for highway efficiency, the other two handle acceleration and torque. You get the economy when you need it and the pull when the load demands it.
Tesla Semi Range 325 Miles Standard, 500 Miles Long Range
Tesla offers two range configurations. The Standard Range covers 325 miles on a single charge. The Long Range stretches to 500 miles. Both models share the same efficiency rating of 1.7 kWh per mile roughly 19.8 MPGe. The Nashville truck was the Long Range model.
For real-world context on what those numbers look like in actual fleet operations, check out our
Full Tesla Semi SPECS pageTesla Semi Megacharger Network , 66 Sites Planned Across 15 States
Range is only half the equation. The other half is charging and Tesla's Megawatt Charging System is where things get interesting for fleet operators. The system delivers up to 1.2 MW of peak charging power, recovering 60% of range in 30 minutes. That's timed almost perfectly for a mandatory driver rest break the truck charges while the driver rests, and neither loses time.
The network is expanding faster than most people realize. Tesla has identified 66 planned Megacharger sites across 15 states, with a focus on high-traffic freight corridors including I-5 and I-10 . We're tracking every confirmed location open, permitted, and coming soon on our
Tesla Semi Megacharger mapTesla Semi Production Gigafactory Nevada Is Ready, Deliveries Coming in 2026
Despite years of delays and still no public pricing, Tesla remains committed to mass production in 2026. Series production is set to run out of the now-completed Gigafactory in Nevada. The factory is built, the trucks are rolling, and the Megacharger network is expanding to meet them.
The Semi that showed up in Nashville wasn't a prototype or a showpiece. It was the real thing and after nine years of waiting, that counts for something. 🚛⚡
Nashville Tesla Semi Video
