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SAN DIEGO -- The 2014 American Trucking Associations Management Conference & Exhibition wrapped up Tuesday in San Diego, following a number of special gatherings and meetings, along with exhibits. Photos by Evan Lockridge
Daimler Trucks rolled back the curtain a little further on the autonomous commercial vehicle it revealed for the first time in July. The truck, and the self-driving concept, is being developed as part of Daimler Trucks' "Shaping Future Transportation" initiative to conserve resources, reduce emissions and to ensure traffic safety through vehicle-to-infrastructure and vehicle-to-vehicle communications.
Market research conducted by Western Star showed that even the die-hard classic truck aficionados acknowledge that fuel economy should be an important part of a truck spec. So Western Star has a delivered a truly classic styled truck with aerodynamic performance they say goes toe-to-toe with any truck on the road today. Here's a closer look at the 5700XE. Read more about it here.
This series of photos reveals most of the secrets behind the effectiveness of the SuperTruck, particularly its aerodynamic enhancements. No stone was left unturned by engineers who were looking for every possible aero advantage. Some of what you see here will soon make its way onto production vehicles, while other enhancement may still be a few years off. (Photos: Jim Park)
Kenworth has updated its K370 Class 7 cabover truck with several new features including a fresh exterior, new dash and gauge cluster, front air disc brakes, electronic braking module, Allison six-speed transmission, push-button control shifter, and Dana rear axles. Read the full story here.
Last month, Volkswagen, which already controlled more than 89% of the voting rights in the Swedish truck maker Scania, made a 6.7 billion euro ($9.2 billion) takeover bid. VW's goal is to combine Scania with its Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles business and the German truck maker MAN. VW gained full control of MAN last year after taking a majority stake in 2011. This is a big step in the German automaker's plan to create a massive trucks alliance to compete in global markets against rivals Volvo and Daimler – both of which have U.S. truck operations as well. Read more about Scania here.
Introduced last year, Volvo’s VNX heavy haul tractor combines the frame and high stance of the vocational VHD with the highway comfort of the VNL. The cab is outfitted like a VN, so drivers are well housed for runs longer than what the VHD might be dispatched on. The VNX is rated at up to 200,000 pounds GCW, but the one recently driven by Senior Editor Tom Berg was capped at 125,000 because of its transmission, the I-Shift automated mechanical, with which application engineers are being careful in approving. The full road test article will appear in the June issue of Heavy Duty Trucking and will be posted on TruckingInfo.com shortly after.
Meritor is original equipment supplier to many of the biggest truck makers and sponsors of the FIA European Truck Racing series. Many of the race trucks over the last few seasons have featured the Meritor 145 race axle, which is made at the plant here in Cameri, Italy. Because the first FIA race of the season takes place at the Misano World Circuit on Italy’s Adriatic coast, just a short drive from Cameri, Meritor held a family day at the plant for the workers and their families to come out and see the race trucks and meet the drivers.
Bill Rethwisch of Tomah, Wis. captured Best of Show honors with his green and white 2013 Peterbilt 389 at the 32nd Annual Shell SuperRig competition held May 15-17 at zMAX Dragway in Concord, N.C. See pictures of his truck and other winners, along with photos of the truck parade and nighttime truck light show.
