Well, it’s high summer, when the trucking industry’s news cycle tends to downshift into lower gears before revving back up in the Fall with a bevy of trade-show events. Which is not to say we didn’t track some pretty important stories here at HDT last month.

Here are the top stories that North American fleet executives need to be keeping an eye on, according to me. (And one “story” that is so unintentionally hilarious I just had to include it.)

Recall issued for 8,000 International and Paccar Trucks

The most important news story in trucking at the moment has to be the nearly 8,000 International and Paccar trucks recalled due to a faulty ball stud in tie rods and/or drag links.

A third party supplier accidently supplied experimental components to the two OEMs instead of production-quality parts.

The seriousness of the situation became apparent in June, when Paccar recalled 3,900 medium- and heavy-duty Kenworth and Peterbilt trucks. The OEM went one step further by issuing a rare “Do Not Drive” warning to fleets until the defect was repaired.

In late July, the recall was expanded to include medium- and heavy-duty International truck models as well.

A New Truck OEM is Coming to North America

At ACT Expo 2024, HDT spotted an interesting-looking truck taking hot laps in the massive parking lot at the Las Vegas Convention Center.

The truck looked a lot like a scaled-down Tesla Semi, but it turns out it was a Windrose Class 8 electric tractor.

The Chinese OEM is building a lineup of global electric truck models. And they plan to enter the North American market next year.

Nikola Turns Potential Disaster into PR Win

Sometimes it just feels like Nikola is snake-bit.

The company burst onto the North American trucking scene back in 2016, originally touting a sleek, futuristic-looking truck that was going to be turbine-hybrid electric, then hydrogen fuel cell, then teaming up with Iveco in 2020 to launch a battery-electric version using European cabover bodies.

Moreover, Nikola threw the gauntlet down and let “traditional” truck OEMs know that new ZEV powertrain technologies were providing an opening for new, cutting-edge OEMs to try and enter the North American truck market.

Since then, Nikola has endured all sorts of management and development woes. Then last year, a series of electric truck battery fires sparked a recall of 209 trucks and placed new truck sales on hold.

But it looks like Nikola has learned a thing or two about crisis management over the past few tumultuous years. The company has turned what could have been a massive PR mess into a customer-relations bonanza.

It was a savvy move, which I think proves that Nikola has overcome its bad luck and will be a player in the ZEV trucking market for years to come.

Volvo Predicts a “Wild” Roller-Coaster Ride for Trucking

In mid-June, I traveled up to Dublin, Virginia, for an in-depth look at the new Volvo VNL tractor. The event was held at the Volvo Customer Center, adjacent to the OEMs New River Valley truck manufacturing plant.

Among the briefings was one by Magnus Koeck, vice president, strategy, brand and marketing for Volvo Trucks North America.

Koeck is always great to talk to. He’s a straight shooter who lays things out the way he sees them.

And Koeck sees a whole lot of volatility coming hard and fast at the North American truck market. And that includes the much-anticipated 2027 truck prebuy, which he thinks could ignite before the end of this year.

Oh! I Got a New Boss!

This actually happened in late June. But it's still pretty important to us.

HDT now has a new publisher taking the HDT helm, following the retirement of David Monitz announced last year.

He’s George Brennan. And he’s got more than 30 years experience in print and digital media.

Unfortunately, he’s a Georgia Bulldogs fan. But no one is perfect, I guess.

And that’s better than a publisher who pulls for Ohio State, right?

I mean… At least it’s still a team in the SEC.

On the plus side of things, he hasn't dreamed up any extra work for me to do yet. So there's that.

And Finally – There’s Whatever This Is

What would happen if you took a writer who knows absolutely nothing about heavy-duty trucks and told them come up with a photo gallery outlining some maintenance tips to keep those rigs in top shape and on the job?

Now – to do this right, you’d need a writer who doesn’t know diesel fuel from engine coolant. And who can’t tell the difference between a transmission and a cylinder head. Or has a clue what an air filter, a fuel filter or an exhaust system look like.

And what the hell? Why not throw in some photos of dudes working on cars – and not trucks — to boot?

Well... You’d end up with something like this.

But Wait a Minute, What About Broker Fraud?

My editor, Deborah Lockridge, says I overlooked one: FMCSA Wants Authority to Enforce Freight Broker Violations Amid Rising Fraud.

I mean, she wrote it, so she should know, right?

She's been following the issue of double-brokering and broker fraud, and now finds the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration doesn't have the authority it needs to crack down on these scumbags.

Tell that to the folks at Armada Transport, who contacted Deb late last year, at their wits’ end trying to get paid more than $22,000 owed to them by third-party logistics provider Elite Transit Solutions, which looked like it was going under. Actually, she is going to tell them, and see if they ever got the money they were owed. Stay tuned.