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More than 44,000 drivers and their families as well as local residents visited the Iowa 80 Truck Stop in Walcott, Iowa, during the 35th Anniversary Walcott Truckers Jamboree last week. Guests enjoyed over 175 exhibits; a Super Truck Beauty Contest, an antique truck display, an Iowa pork chop cookout, games and free concerts.
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)
As part of an international media event showcasing Shell's new lubricants technology center in Shanghai, journalists got to visit a "truck park" in an industrial area outside the city where the Shell roadshow was being held.
Shell Lubricants opened up its newest technology center in Shanghai, China, last week to the first group of foreign journalists to tour the facility, which opened in March. The new facility will focus on Asia, the fastest-growing regional lubricants market in the world, but also will be part of a global R&D network that will impact North American lubes as well. (Read full story here.)
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.
At a ribbon-cutting ceremony in Colton, Calif., of its new 34-acre terminal, C.R. England welcomed the local community, providing tours of what is now the second largest facility in the company's network. C.R. England also announced the addition of 10 liquified natural gas trucks, which will operate out of the Colton terminal.
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.
A North Carolina fleet has been running a group of trucks on three different Shell Rotella oils -- a 15w-40, a 10w-30, and a 10w-30 that's been altered to provide a lower high-temp/high-shear number than is currently approved. A teardown of one of each after more than half a million miles shows virtually no difference in wear among the three engines. Learn more here. (By Deborah Lockridge, Editor in Chief.)
