Dana launches SPL 250 Lite driveshaft for heavy-duty trucks

ATLANTA. Dana Inc. announced several product enhancements on Sept. 26, including the launch of the SPL 250 Lite driveshaft for heavy-duty trucks.

The new driveshaft is about 20 pounds lighter than competitive products, Steve Slesinski, director of product planning for Dana, said at a press event during the National American Commercial Vehicle show. It has been engineered to reduce noise and vibration without impacting performance, he said.

It will be formally launched in November, although some OEMs have already begun installing the driveshaft, Slesinski said.

read more

Mack Cites Positive Trends And Sales Figures at NACV

Photo: Jack Roberts

ATLANTA — Fresh off the launch of its new Anthem highway tractor, Mack Trucks held an upbeat press conference kicking off day two of the North American Commerical Vehicle Show (NACV) in Atlanta with an overview of the year to date and hints as to the company's future objectives.

Jonathan Randall, senior vice president, sales for Mack, began by noting that the North American truck market has stabilized in the past couple of months to the point that the company is upgrading its Class 8 sales forecast. Initially, Randall said, Mack was predicting Class 8 sales of around 215,000 units by year's end. Now, he feels 225,000 is possible, with even higher sales likely.

Overall, Randall said, times are good for Mack with strong construction and vocational marketshare numbers holding steady along with a firm mid-20% marketshare for straight trucks. The company continues to invest heavily in the future, as well, Randall said, with approximately $84 million spent on new products and upgrades, while Mack dealers have invested over $600 million in new and upgraded facilities.

Mack marketing manager John Walsh added that the company has a long, proud, history in the North American long-haul market segment, and is looking to reclaim some of that glory with the new Anthem tractor launched last week at the company's home in Macungie, Penn.

Roy Horton, director of product strategy for Mack, spoke about the company's focus on improving fuel efficiency, driver recruitment, and uptime for its customers today. He noted that the last round of aerodynamic upgrades boosted fuel economy by up to 3%. When combined with a Mack MP8 diesel engine and integrated Econodyne powertrain, fuel economy numbers rise 8% compared to previous Mack models. Horton said the Mack mDrive automated manual transmission was a big enabler for that boost in ...Read the rest of this story

Mercedes-Benz Gives Glimpse of Next Sprinter Van

Sketch of the next-generation Mercedes-Benz Sprinter courtesy of Daimler.

Mercedes-Benz Vans showed an early look at its next-generation Sprinter full-size van that it will launch in Europe by July 1 and roll out to the U.S. and other markets later in 2018.

The first details about the new Sprinter came at the North American Commercial Vehicle Show that's debuting in Atlanta this week. Mercedes-Benz Vans released a sketch of the van, and pledged to release more details "in the coming months."

The sketch shows a Sprinter with a more "athletic front" that will offer a "full spectrum" of mobility solutions for various industries. It will incorporate the Daimler van unit's adVANce connected vehicle initiative unveiled in 2016 that emphasizes digitalization and urbanization in vehicle design.

Since its launch in 1995, the Sprinter has sold more than 3.3 million units in 130 countries. Sales grew 10% from January to March compared to the same period in 2016. For the first half of 2017, sales increased to 96,200 units — a 1.1% increase from the 95,100 in the first half of 2016.

Related: Sprinter Charges Ahead

Follow @HDTrucking on Twitter

Navistar OnCommand to Offer Parts Failure Prediction Feature

ATLANTA — Navistar has announced a number of updates to its OnCommand Connection platform, showing a new feature called Live Action Plans, which predicts when a part is going to fail before it does.

To predict part failure, Live Action Plans uses prognostic models that were developed using Navistar's field service intelligence and algorithms based on big data analytics. The result is that when certain adverse conditions are identified on a vehicle, OnCommand Connection can provide the customer with alerts about potential corrective actions, potential repair, the parts needed, and the training required to make the repair.

If the repair is performed as instructed and the vehicle is under warranty, Navistar will pay for the repair. The company expects to pilot this new feature over the next three months, with an official launch next year.

"The innovative solutions we offer via OnCommand Connection help fleet owners and operators achieve optimum vehicle uptime while protecting their bottom line,” said Persio Lisboa, chief operating officer. "We expect to be able to tell customers that we will proactively identify problems before they happen, recommend a fix and pay for warrantable fixes…before anything fails on the truck and they experience downtime."

Other features added to OnCommand Connection include Automated Driver Vehicle Inspection Reporting capabilities that are intended to automate government-required vehicle inspection reporting and record-keeping for enhanced safety and productivity. The solution is fully integrated with other OnCommand Connection tools and services, including OnCommand Connection Telematics, Remote Diagnostics, and Electronic Driver Log.

Navistar has also integrated trailer tracking into OnCommand Connection intended to provide detailed analytics and reporting for trailer management. GPS fleet trailer tracking helps companies keep tabs on their trailers and their cargo, so they can make better use of these assets to reach their customers and clients effectively. It also helps improve asset utilization, maintenance ...Read the rest of this story

Make it fun — Gamify it!

I just attended the press conference for the NACFE Run On Less effort. It had seven different tractors, from 7 different fleets running for 17 days in real world conditions. In fact, some of the time they were running in the UN-real conditions of Hurricane Harvey and Hurricane Irma. All told, this “virtual fleet” achieved 10.1 average mpg. Compared to the industry average today of 6.4 mpg, that's fabulous. NACFE, consistent with its mission of providing anonymous information from its member fleets, won't reveal what truck and what driver did the best.

read more

Trump Nominates Martinez to Head FMCSA

Raymond Martinez Photo: NJ.gov

New Jersey Motor Vehicle Commission chief administrator Raymond Martinez has been nominated by the Trump Administration to lead the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration.

He previously served as the New York State Commissioner of Motor Vehicles and Chairman of the Governor's Traffic Safety Committee as well as Deputy Chief of Staff and Special Counsel to the New York State Attorney General.

American Trucking Associations supports the President's pick for FMCSA head, expressing congratulations for Martinez who has long been a part of the transportation industry. The president's pick for FMCSA head is subject to Senate confirmation.

“Mr. Martinez is well-known to our industry from his work in New Jersey and New York, and exudes the kind of professionalism, integrity and focus on safety that FMCSA needs,” said Chris Spear, ATA president and CEO. “On behalf of ATA, I congratulate him on his nomination, and urge the Senate to quickly confirm him so we can begin working together on important highway safety issues.”

Martinez has twice served on the board of directors of the American Association of Motor Vehicle Administrators. He has also served as Deputy United States Chief of Protocol at the Department of State, Deputy Director of Scheduling and Advance for the First Lady, and as a Special Assistant at the Department of Housing and Urban Development.

“As the NYSDMV Commissioner, Ray Martinez proved to be a fair regulator, working to continually improve the safety of the trucking industry without implementing unnecessary or burdensome regulations,” said Kendra Hems, president of the Trucking Association of New York. “He always made the safety of the motoring public his top priority, and I am confident that he will continue that focus as the FMCSA Administrator. I encourage the Senate to confirm his nomination and look forward to working with him in ...Read the rest of this story

North American Commercial Vehicle Show in Photos

The inaugural North American Commercial Vehicle Show in Atlanta, Georgia, Sept. 25-30, 2017, was designed to be an international event with a focus on the latest technology.

Follow @HDTrucking on Twitter