Every driver with experience operating heavy-duty diesel trucks knows that batteries have their limitations in cold weather-- they can’t maintain their cranking power when temperatures drop. Extreme cold is their enemy.
Kenworth says it has begun producing trucks with an available engine advanced starting and battery charging system.
Any work truck with a serious electric welder also has an auxiliary power unit, because the engine-driven device doubles as an APU to run smaller welders, heaters and power tools. And soon, purpose-built APUs will report for duty on work trucks.
WORK TRUCK SHOW -- Maxwell Technologies is expanding its ultracapacitor-based Engine Start Module product line to medium-duty Class 3-6 trucks. The ESM ULTRA 31/900 replaces traditional lead-acid starting batteries, virtually eliminating cranking problems that come from weak or discharged batteries.
Designed specifically for the day cab or work truck market, the Work Truck No Idle Heat System from Idle Free Systems provides up to eight hours of interior cab heat with the truck engine turned off, eliminating unnecessary workday idling.
Ultracapacitor engine starting systems represent a sea-change in how we view a truck's electrical systems. The only thing standing in the way of this apparently game-changing technology is our inherently conservative nature regarding new technology.