U.S. moves closer to speed limiters

Trucking News
26 Aug by

U.S. moves closer to speed limiters

WASHINGTON, DC — U.S. regulators have taken one step closer to mandating speed limiters on heavy trucks, with an Aug. 26 proposal from the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Association (FMCSA) and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). The 118-page document outlines the history of the speed limiter issue in the U.S. While it cites experience in Ontario, Quebec, Japan, Australia and the European Union, the proposal does not yet include any specific speed limits. ...Read the rest of this story
Trucking News
Trucking News
26 Aug by

Land Line Now online: D.C. Report – Virtual GATS federal issue primer

Every year, OOIDA's Washington, D.C., staff goes to Louisville and the Mid-America Trucking Show to brief OOIDA members and other truckers on the vital issues affecting the industry in our national government. Those D.C. folks won't be at the Great American Trucking Show in Dallas this week, so Mark Reddig gets a virtual GATS federal issue primer from Laura O'Neill-Kaumo. ...Read the rest of this story
Trucking News
26 Aug by

U.S. revisits speed limiters in new proposal

WASHINGTON, DC — U.S. regulators have taken one step closer to mandating speed limiters on heavy trucks, with an Aug. 26 proposal from the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Association (FMCSA) and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). The 118-page document outlines the history of the speed limiter issue in the U.S. While it cites experience in Ontario, Quebec, Japan, Australia and the European Union, the proposal does not yet include any specific speed limits. ...Read the rest of this story
Trucking News
26 Aug by Vitaliy Dadalyan

Volvo’s Iron Knight Truck Sets New Speed Record



Volvo is again using high-profile stunts and viral video to highlight its engineering skills, and the latest is The Iron Knight, the world's fastest truck, breaking the record set by a previous special Volvo truck.

The record-breaker, which has the DNA of Volvo's FH on steroids, is custom-built in every respect – except for a modified Volvo D13 engine and the series-manufactured I-Shift Dual Clutch transmission. The engine has 2,400 hp and the truck can accelerate from zero to 100 km/h in 4.6 seconds.

Nigel Atterbury, Volvo Trucks Senior Designer, explains in the video, “We've pretty much taken a standard gearbox and packaged it into this fantastic beast behind us.”

On a closed-off airfield in Falifors, Sweden, the Iron Knight set two FIA world land speed records. Its two one-kilometer runs averaged 21.290 seconds or 169.083 km/hour (or about 105 mph), and the half-kilometer average was 13.710 seconds and 131.291 km/hour (about 82 mph).

The truck was piloted by Boije Ovebrink, who has more than 30 years' experience of both car and truck racing. He has previously beaten five speed records and in 1994 was European Truck Racing Champion.

“Volvo Trucks' The Iron Knight can be summarized in one single word: perfection,” said Ovebrink. “It's beautiful to look at and is an unparalleled powerhouse when you floor the accelerator. This is the third record-breaking truck I've driven, and I can't think of a better follow-up to Wild Viking and Mean Green,” says Ovebrink.

The last time we reported on Ovebrink, back in 2012, he was driving Mean Green, said to be the world's fastest hybrid truck. Nigel Atterbury, Volvo Trucks Senior Designer, explains that compared to Mean Green, the Iron Knight is 1,000 kilos lighter and puts out 600 horsepower more.

Of course, the point was to demonstrate the I-Shift Dual Clutch, which allowed the ...Read the rest of this story

Trucking News
Trucking News