THERE’S NOTHING LIKE A NEW TRUCK

May 9, 2007 Vol. 3, No. 9

For a hardware junkie like yours truly, a new truck – and I mean a really new truck – is a bit like a present under the Christmas tree. It’s just plain exciting. And for the people who design them and build them and ultimately sell them, I guess it’s like giving birth. So at the launch of the new Freightliner Cascadia in Charlotte, NC last week, we did the proper thing and drank champagne after the smoke from the fireworks had cleared. Literally.

There were actually some 640 Freightliner people involved in the creation of the new machine, which will replace the Century Class and Columbia. They weren’t all at the Launch, but by all accounts they worked harder on this one than anyone has ever worked in hatching a new Freightliner. And it shows.

A million-plus hours of design work, 150,000 hours of test engineering time, 2500 hours in the full-scale wind tunnel... you see the point. As well, doors were slammed 220,000 times, wipers were sent through 10 million cycles, and the truck was subjected to 25,000 miles on the ‘shaker’. That’s a frame that shakes the living you-know-what out of the poor test subject attached to it. And those 25,000 miles are equal to more than two million on real roads.

Of course, it’s only right that a truck on which your livelihood depends should get that kind of testing and development, but I’m not sure that it’s universally typical.

In fact Chris Patterson, the no-bull president and CEO of Freightliner LLC, told me that they could have staged the introduction more than a year ago and used Cascadia buyers as unwitting testers, but they didn’t want to play that game. Truthfully, the 10 or so trucks on hand at the launch -- a mix of day cabs and 72-inch sleeper models -- seemed better finished than many early-production trucks I’ve seen over the years. On the road there were no squeaks or rattles, and in looking at the details – how edges match up, for instance – I couldn’t find a flaw.

And I suppose that was my overall impression of the new beast: it seems well conceived and well finished.

Naturally, the acid test is in your hands, those of you who’ll buy it and work it and make your own judgements 100,000 miles later. I’m not a betting man, but this does seem like a well developed product.

THE CORE OF THE THING is the all new cab that’s claimed to sport a 20% reduction in aerodynamic drag compared to the Century Class. That’s a lot, and on its own it should deliver a 3% gain in fuel economy, Patterson says.

We talked informally about the truck’s aerodynamics, a second glass of champagne in our mitts, and I noted the spectacular door and fender mirrors that look very slippery while sitting on the most substantial mounts I’ve ever seen. He said they were given an inordinate amount of attention, and then he called over Dr. Jerome Guillen, the Cascadia project leader and the company’s general manager of new product development. Patterson said Guillen liked to hang – really – off those door-mirror mounts and so the young PhD went and did exactly that. To no ill effect.

Later, on the road, I confirmed that there’s no mirror shake to be found. They're heated, by the way, and remote-controlled. And get this, both the fender and door mirrors easily fold back to sit flush against the body.

Cutting to the chase, the most significant aspects of the Cascadia are, in Patterson’s words from a subsequent e-mail:

1) Improved aerodynamics, with consequent fuel consumption improvement.

2) Increased cab interior dimensions without significantly higher tare weight.

3) Reduced maintenance requirements and higher expected life from service items like alternator, starter, a/c compressor, etc.

4) Flexible electronic architecture, anticipating further demands in the future.

In his formal remarks, Patterson anticipated a question: Why introduce a new truck now, at a time when sales are slow and freight isn’t exactly plentiful? Because customers have been asking for reduced cost of operations, he said.

"Our customers are faced with the consequences of ever-tightening emissions standards, higher fuel prices, rapidly escalating wages and benefits, and a dire shortage of maintenance technicians," he said. The challenges of 2010 emissions standards “will only amplify the problem.”

Speaking of which, one of the keys to the Cascadia is that it’s mostly ready for 2010 engines. With that huge grille – in front of a new hood that’s no higher than on the Century Class, so forward vision remains fine – the truck will accommodate a 1750-sq-in. radiator that will be routine in ‘010. Given that the new Detroit Diesel engine coming later this year is an in-house product that will be the truck’s main – and perhaps only – offering in three years’ time, the engineering advantage is significant. It costs million of dollars to package an engine in a chassis, so that’s already taken care of.

And speaking of the underpinnings, the Cascadia actually sits on the ‘P3’ chassis that’s also beneath the Century Class, Columbia, and bigger Sterlings. It got new cab and engine mounts, so the ride is smoother, but the chassis wasn’t broke so they didn’t fix it.

Another key is the multiplexed electrical system that “leverages the best of DaimlerChrysler,” and will allow buyers to program a gazillion parameters. Guillen told me that if it’s controlled electronically, it can be programmed. For example, if you want cruise control disabled when the outside temperature falls below freezing, you can do it.

FROM A DRIVER'S PERSPECTIVE, the much larger cab is good news. The door openings are 29% bigger, there’s 24 in. between the seats even though the seats are bigger, and there’s more space in general. For those of you who don’t like fluorescent lights, you’ll be glad to know that only incandescent bulbs are used inside, and they’re common types that don’t demand a three-week hunt and a hundred bucks to replace.

Outward vision is excellent, and things are pretty quiet inside. No wind noise, hardly any road noise, and it’s probably as good as the best in those terms.

Next year you’ll have the option of spec’ing an optional battery-powered HVAC system. It will mean no idling of the big engine or a smaller APU motor at rest stops, the whole thing operated electrically. In fact, I’ve written about a few other variations on this theme in the items below. Seems to be the coming thing.

The bottom line for me is this: the new Cascadia is probably the best Freightliner yet. Perhaps not startling to look at, though certainly handsome enough, but very smoothly done with many subtle points of excellence that don’t make themselves apparent right away. The bottom line for you may start with the fact that the Cascadia will be somewhat more expensive than the Century Class, specifics unknown at this point.

I’ll stop now but look for a bit more detail in the June issue of Today’s Trucking, plus a full road test in the July issue of highwaySTAR magazine and in a subsequent issue of Today’s Trucking.

And P.S., I’m a little closer to resolving the biodiesel sourcing issue that I mentioned in my previous Product Watch newsletter. For all intents and purposes, you can almost forget about using it in Canada at present, though there is some biodiesel being produced here. A plant in Montreal is running at a commercial rate using animal tallow and recycled restaurant grease – see www.rothsaybiodiesel.com. There’s also an industry association -- the Canadian Renewable Fuels Association – at www.greenfuels.org. Thanks to Alan Rickard of Rothsay Biodiesel (owned by Maple Leaf Foods) for that information.

Until next time...

This newsletter is published every two weeks. It's a heads-up notice about what's going on with trucking technology as well as what you can see at www.todaystrucking.com where you'll find in-detail coverage of nearly everything that's new. Plus interesting products that may not have had the 'air play' they deserved within the last few months. Subscribe today!

And while you’re there at www.todaystrucking.com, check out the Decision Centers. They’re essentially libraries on specific subjects like Engines or Braking Systems. We’ve gathered all manner of information from maintenance manuals to research reports – and we’re always finding more – to help you make decisions about spec’ing, operating, and maintaining trucks and truck systems.

If you have comments of whatever sort about Product Watch, or maybe a gizmo I should know about, please contact me at rlockwood@newcom.ca.

THE CASCADIA

(May 09, 2007) -- Freightliner launches an all-new highway tractor that’s ready for 2010

THE ULTIMATE WINCH

(May 09, 2007) -- Ancra International and Traction Technologies unite to deliver the Cinch

NO-FUEL CAB COOLER

(May 09, 2007) -- Environmentally friendly NiteCool system from Webasto cools by evaporation

ELECTRIC HVAC SYSTEM

(May 09, 2007) -- Kenworth and Peterbilt offer cab heating/cooling and 110-volt power without idling

ENGINE-OFF AC

(May 09, 2007) -- An electric answer from Vancouver’s DC Power Solutions