Older equipment, smaller fleets, fewer miles and idled equipment were the theme in a quarterly snapshot survey of fleets.


In its Second Quarter 2009 Fleet Sentiment Report, CK Commercial Vehicle Research asked its group of fleets about the current chaotic environment. Of the 44 responding, 64 percent said the average age of their power equipment had increased in the last year or two, and 59 percent reported they had vehicles parked -- an average of 15 percent of their fleets.

In addition, 38 percent said they had reduced the overall number of power units in their fleet, by an average of 12 percent, and 36 percent said thee average annual miles per power unit had changed -- mostly less.

Slightly more than half the fleets said they were spending more on maintenance for their power units, due to aging equipment as well as new emissions and cost increases for technicians and parts. On the other hand, some respondents said they were spending less on maintenance, since they were putting fewer miles on the equipment.

When asked when they thought equipment purchases would get back to normal, about half felt it would be sometime next year. The other half, however, said not until at least 2011.

Half of the respondents said they were taking advantage of the current industry situation to make some positive changes. For instance, several were taking advantage of the situation to improve fuel efficiency with things such as reduced idling, aerodynamic add-ons, wide-base tires, etc.