Mercedes eCitaro gets dedicated electric platform and LFP batteries in 2028

Daimler Buses pulled the wraps off a near-series study of the new eCitaro at its own event in Munich, positioning the bus as its flagship city model. The big structural break: generation two abandons the platform it shared with the combustion-engine Citaro and stands on dedicated battery-electric bones. The official world premiere lands at Busworld Europe in Brussels in October 2027. And from 2030, no more diesel Citaros will be sold in Europe.

Under the floor and on the roof sits the real change: LFP cell chemistry in a modular compact battery kit, with packs that are smaller but more numerous. The cells are bundled in units of roughly 50 kWh, and a solo bus can take an extra two, four, six or eight packs on the roof. Total energy lands at around 300 to 600 kWh for solo buses and 400 to 700 kWh for articulated ones — Daimler Buses doesn't say whether those are gross or net. For scale, today's NMC-4 eCitaro offers up to 666 kWh gross with 111 kWh packs, and the articulated eCitaro G up to 777 kWh, with ranges quoted at up to 600 km and 450 km respectively. No range figure was given for the new model in Munich.

The platform stretches from ten metres to just over 18, with a modular shell, roof and underfloor enabling seven variants: three low-floor city buses at 10.63, 12.13 and 18.13 metres, plus four low-entry versions at 10.63, 12.34, 13.08 and 14.68 metres. Those low-entry buses can handle both urban and intercity routes — a first for the eCitaro. All seven share identical front and rear modules, what Daimler Buses calls a newly created modular kit principle.

Charging gets a bump too: up to 400 kW DC through a CCS plug, while pantographs or charging rails push up to 450 kW. The low-floor versions run ZF's AxTrax 2 LF e-portal axle with wheel-hub motors and up to 360 kW of system power, well above the roughly 280 kW peak of the current e-portal axle. That lets the eCitaro G drop from two driven axles at 2x 250 kW peak to a single 360 kW unit, cutting weight. A new Modular Multi Torque Interface, or MMTI, controls recuperation and braking wheel by wheel in real time, which Daimler Buses expects to improve efficiency, reduce brake wear and steady the ride.

Low-entry variants skip the e-axle entirely, pairing a central motor with Mercedes-Benz's own RO 440 rear axle and reaching up to 100 km/h for intercity work, though no power rating was disclosed. Worth a glance sideways: the eIntouro, Mercedes' earlier electric intercity play, starts deliveries this month on a platform shared with the combustion Intouro. It uses a ZF CeTrax 2 dual CX332 with 320 kW continuous power and 24,700 Nm of torque, the same RO-440 rear axle, and two 207 kWh LFP packs from CATL good for roughly 500 km. Daimler Buses hasn't said whether that setup carries over to the new eCitaro LE.

Weight savings show up in the body as well. A new multi-layer sandwich roof measures about 42 millimetres thick against roughly 70 millimetres for the steel roof, trimming vehicle height and shedding around 100 kilograms on the 12-metre solo bus and about 150 kilograms on the 18-metre articulated model. The battery U-turn is notable given the current eCitaro's history: three battery generations in eight years, from NMC 1 to NMC 4, most recently this year, and a supplier switch from Akasol to BMZ Polen — with NMC chemistry kept throughout.