Electric drivetrain beats the traditional combustion engine concept?

Abstract

This report compares the efficiency of a diesel–hydrostatic drivetrain used in the AORO autonomous off-road platform with the fully electric drivetrain of the Volvo L25 Electric. Efficiency maps show that AORO’s hydrostatic system achieves peak wheel-end efficiencies of about 20%, with overall system efficiency often below 15% due to diesel engine losses and hydraulic conversion inefficiencies. In contrast, the electric drivetrain reaches up to 87.6% traction efficiency and enables regenerative braking of around 81%. While electric drivetrains offer major efficiency advantages, the study highlights that electrification of heavy forestry machinery must be evaluated at system level, considering battery mass, charging logistics, remote operation, and overall work-site energy efficiency.