Class 8 Orders Increase in Healthy, Growing Market

Early numbers indicate a positive month for September's North American Class 8 truck orders as the market continues to gain momentum heading into the fall order season, according to preliminary reports from FTR and ACT Research.

Order volume for September met FTR's expectations, hitting 22,100 units for the month – an increase of 7% from August and 62% better than Sept. 2017. Orders from Canada were particularly strong, benefiting from a strong economy. ACT Research expects Class 8 orders to hit 22,600 units by their own projections, which represents the fourth straight month of order improvement since a dip in orders in May.

“The recovery in the Class 8 market is building, and we saw that with the orders through the summer,” said Don Ake, vice president of commercial vehicles at FTR. “Order totals never got that low and followed cyclical trends. This is a healthy, growing truck market, which is in excellent position for greater expansion in 2018. Class 8 order rates are expected to jump in Q4.”

“Stronger freight growth generated by a more vibrant U.S. economy will spur demand for additional trucks next year,” said Ake. “Factor in the loss of productivity from the ELDs, and fleets will have to expand capacity to haul the available freight.”

ACT Research also released its preliminary Class 5-7 medium-duty numbers, totaling 20,900 units for the month, hitting a three-month high. Combined medium- and heavy-duty order numbers are expected to hit a 27-month high when seasonally adjusted, according to ACT.

“September orders were positive month over month, improving 11% from August, and eked out a small 2.1% gain year over year,” said Kenny Vieth, president and senior analyst at ACT Research. “Seasonal adjustment generates a drag on MD orders in September, reducing the month's volume by 600 units to 20,300 units.”

Related: Hino ...Read the rest of this story

Volvo Launches Natural Gas Trucks in Europe

The new Volvo FH. Photo: Volvo Trucks

Sweden's Volvo Trucks has introduced two natural gas heavy-duty trucks to the European market that the OEM claims can cut CO2 emissions by 20% to 100%.

The new trucks, the Volvo FH LNG and Volvo FM LNG, can run on either biogas or natural gas and are compliant with Euro 6 engine-emissions regulations.

Volvo claims that the biogas version can cut CO2 emissions by 100% compared to the regular natural gas version that reduces CO2 emissions by 20%. This relates to emissions from the vehicle during usage, known as tank-to-wheel, according to the company.

“We regard LNG, liquefied natural gas, as a long-term first choice alternative to diesel, both for regional and long-haul truck operations where fuel efficiency, payload, and productivity are crucial. With a higher proportion of biogas, climate impact can be reduced far more,” said Lars Mårtensson, director environment and innovation at Volvo Trucks.

“For transport operations in urban environments, where range is not as critical, electrified vehicles will play a greater role in the future," he added. "Our vision is that trucks from Volvo will eventually have zero emissions, although the way of achieving that is not by one single solution, but through several solutions in parallel.”

The trucks will use 15% to 20% less fuel than current gas-powered trucks, according to Volvo. Using LNG will give the vehicles the greatest possible operating range.

Volvo Trucks noted that it is currently working with gas suppliers and customers to develop the expansion of LNG infrastructure in Europe. This effort is being supported politically in many countries and by the European Union. A strategy for expanding LNG infrastructure is also included in the European Commission and member states' action packages for securing Europe's long-term energy supply.

“Our new trucks running on liquefied natural gas or biogas produce a far smaller ...Read the rest of this story

DOT Seeks Public Comment on Cutting Red Tape

In keeping with the Trump Administration's stated intention to slice through red tape to benefit businesses, the Department of Transportation issued a notification of regulatory review on Oct. 2.

In its notice of the action, published in the Federal Register, DOT stated that it is “reviewing its existing regulations and other agency actions to evaluate their continued necessity, determine whether they are crafted effectively to solve current problems, and evaluate whether they potentially burden the development or use of domestically produced energy resources.”

As part of that process, the department is seeking public input on existing rules and other agency actions that are “good candidates for repeal, replacement, suspension, or modification.”

DOT also said that it may hold a public meeting to discuss and consider comments from members of the public.

Comments related to this regulatory review should be submitted on or before Nov. 1. Any comments should be identified by docket number DOT– OST–2017–0069 and submitted by any of the following methods:

DOT stated that the review is predicated on the department's position that there “should be no more regulations than necessary, and those regulations should be straightforward, clear, and designed to minimize burdens. Further, DOT regulations and other agency actions should not unnecessarily obstruct, delay, curtail, or otherwise impose significant costs on the siting, permitting, production, utilization, transmission, or delivery of energy resources.”

Related: DOT's Chao Wants Public to ...Read the rest of this story

U.S. secretaries and trucking legends among ATA’s conference speakers

The American Trucking Assns. will welcome two members of President Trump's cabinet, a Google autonomous vehicle consultant, and many more industry leaders and legends at this year's ATA Management Conference and Exhibition, which is Oct. 21-25, in Orlando.

The ATA announced its featured speakers, listed below, on Tuesday.

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U.S. secretaries and trucking legends among ATA’s conference speakers

The American Trucking Assns. will welcome two members of President Trump's cabinet, a Google autonomous vehicle consultant, and many more industry leaders and legends at this year's ATA Management Conference and Exhibition, which is Oct. 21-25, in Orlando.

The ATA announced its featured speakers, listed below, on Tuesday.

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Possible Photo of Tesla’s Electric Truck Leaks on Reddit

Photo via Reddit

A post on the Tesla "subreddit" of Reddit.com shows a concept vehicle that appears to be Tesla's unannounced electric road tractor.

In the photo, an unidentified silver tractor or at least a cab is visible sitting on a flatbed trailer in a dirt lot. In an article on The Verge, Tesla neither confirmed nor denied whether it was its electric big rig, only saying that its policy was to “always decline to comment on speculation.”

There is no badging on the truck to indicate that it is from Tesla, but commenters on the post pointed out some similarities in the design when compared to the teaser image that Tesla released in May.

Interestingly, the original post in the Tesla subreddit has since been deleted and the Reddit user who posted the original photo has deleted their profile. The photo was later reposted by a second user who managed to save the photo before it was deleted.

We may not have to wait long to find out if this is indeed Tesla's electric truck. The company plans to unveil the Tesla Semi on Oct. 26, at an event in Hawthorne, Calif.

Related: Could Tesla Solve EV Range Issues With Battery Swapping System?

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Four reasons your drivers trust their devices even when they lie

It's happened yet again.

A trucker in mid-September drove his 18-wheeler on a pedestrian-only New Jersey boardwalk for nearly three miles before being stopped by a police officer. The driver, whose truck damaged 100 ft. of railing and the boardwalk during its removal, told police that he was just following his GPS. This was the second time in two months that a truck took the boardwalk route.

Following a GPS-suggested route is commonplace, but why wouldn't drivers stop immediately when they realized they were no longer on a road?

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