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Ford botches Explorer launch, putting CEO back on hot seat Bloomberg / October 21, 2019 Ford Motor Co.’s Jim Hackett and Wall Street analysts started this year frustrated with one another. Sure, the automaker had been underperforming, but the CEO appealed for time to show he was fixing things. He assured them the redesigned Explorer rolling out months later would be a proof point. But rather than help the third-quarter earnings results Ford delivers this week, the Explorer will be a hindrance. Sales have plunged as a plant plagued by personnel problems has struggled to get the new crossover utility vehicle out the door. Thousands have been shipped 270 miles away to another Ford factory for rework. The botched Explorer launch puts Hackett back in the position he was early this year -- testing the patience of investors. A downbeat assessment of how long it will take to turn the automaker around already cost the company an investment-grade credit rating. By pointing to the CUV as one of the first products he influenced, the CEO staked his reputation on it. “From a design, styling and content standpoint, it hit the marks,” Jeff Schuster, a forecasting analyst for LMC Automotive, said of the Explorer. “But if you can’t get out of the gate, that certainly is going to put some question marks not only on his credibility, but from a consumer standpoint, on the vehicle itself.” The transformation of Ford’s Chicago assembly plant was one of the most complex in the company’s history, a spokeswoman said. The company is shipping the new Explorer -- the all-time best-selling utility vehicle nameplate in the U.S. -- to dealers now and performing additional quality inspections as needed, she said. 'Big negative' Ford probably will report on Wednesday that third-quarter profit slipped to 26 cents a share, according to analysts’ estimates compiled by Bloomberg, down from 29 cents a year ago. Automotive revenue is expected to dip to $34.3 billion, from $34.7 billion. “This Explorer issue is going to be a big negative for the quarter,” said David Whiston, an analyst for Morningstar who rates Ford the equivalent of a buy. “It’s a viciously competitive market and you don’t want to be missing one of your big hitters.” Ford shares have fallen 15 percent since Hackett, 64, took over in May 2017. The stock slumped 37 percent during the tenure of his predecessor, Mark Fields. When Ford reported early this month that Explorer deliveries collapsed by almost half during the quarter, Mark LaNeve, the automaker’s U.S. sales chief, said dealers had adequate inventory to sell. Explorer's U.S. deliveries plunged 31 percent to 135,777 vehicles during the first nine months of the year. “Availability has improved dramatically over the last 30 to 45 days,” LaNeve said in an interview. “We’ll be able to hit our stride with Explorer starting now.” Supply in showrooms may indeed be building up, but a batch of about 2,500 Explorers in need of repairs arrived recently at the company’s factory in Flat Rock, Mich., which for weeks has been fixing and finishing vehicles shipped from the Chicago plant where the CUV is built, according to people familiar with the matter. Buggy screens LaNeve told analysts on Oct. 2 that the Chicago plant had started shipping Explorers directly to dealers. But most of those models also have required repairs before they can be sold, said the people, who asked not to be identified describing internal issues the company is having. And not all problems with Chicago-built CUVs are being fixed before they reach customers’ driveways. Consumer Reports had problems with the Lincoln Aviator -- a mechanically similar model built alongside the Explorer -- that the magazine’s testers purchased last month for $63,400. The digital gauges that display speed, fuel consumption and other important information shake and flip, making them difficult to read. “Ford does tend to struggle with the new introductions, especially if they’re a larger departure from the previous design,” said Jake Fisher, the magazine’s director of auto testing. “It could take a few years to get the bugs worked out.” Ford is not experiencing similar setbacks as it begins building a redesigned version of its Escape compact crossover at its factory in Louisville, Ky. LaNeve told analysts the Escape “is a much more normal launch.” Problematic plant Days after the January debut of the new Explorer -- which hadn’t been redesigned in almost a decade -- Hackett described Ford’s product product development as “constipated,” and said his executive team was fixing what ailed the company. “The new Explorer and Ranger, which our administration kind of intercepted in process, are good examples of where we started to have influence,” said Hackett, who played football for Bo Schembechler in the 1970s at the University of Michigan. What the CEO wasn’t counting on was for a problematic plant to cause trouble again. The Chicago factory, fined twice in the last two decades by federal workplace-harassment regulators, is riven with dissension that’s hampering productivity and quality, according to people familiar with the situation. Roving groups of workers are intimidating other employees, creating a hostile environment, the people said. That’s driving up turnover and leaving some vehicle assembly unfinished, contributing to the company having to complete the work at the Michigan factory or at dealerships, the people said. Ford is unaware of any recent issues in which employees are intimidating one another, the spokeswoman said. The automaker is waiting its turn to negotiate a new labor contract with the UAW, which has been on strike against General Motors since mid-September. Explaining to do Ford spent a combined $1 billion upgrading its 95-year-old assembly plant and 63-year-old stamping factory in Chicago, outfitting them with advanced manufacturing technology to produce the Explorer, Aviator and Police Interceptor Utility. Those investments included $40 million to upgrade lighting and add security at the plants, where some employees have experienced sexual and racial harassment. In August 2017, the company agreed to pay as much as $10.1 million to settle claims following an investigation by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. Ford faced similar charges at the Chicago factories in 1999 that led to a $17.5 million settlement. When Hackett’s executive team discusses quarterly results with analysts this week, they’re likely to have to address how much further the plant has to go to overcome its troubled past. “You can’t afford to have these kinds of issues in this market environment. It shouldn’t have become the problem that it is,” LMC’s Schuster said. “They have some explaining to do.”

Ford Trucks International Press Release / October 18, 2019 A new dealership has just opened and now ready for business in Lithuania! #SharingTheLoad #FordTrucks #Lithuania .

Ford Trucks International Press Release / October 17, 2019 We continue at full throttle in Eastern Europe! A new dealer has just opened for business at Ford Trucks Poland! #FordTrucks #Poland #SharingTheLoad .

Ford Trucks International Press Release / October 15, 2019 Ford Trucks Service is your partner for international long hauls, putting your mind at ease so that you can focus on the road ahead. #FordTrucks #SharingTheLoad .

Take a look. Warner Co. was a big #Autocar customer for decades, as this photo from around 1956 shows. This Autocar C87D-OH got a lot of work done with a gasoline engine and two axles. Always Up - Autocar Trucks .

"On the road again" - great song. When I hear it I think of an #Autocar working that lonesome highway. Just like this shot of Cliff Hicklin's 1963 Autocar DC75T. Now I just can't wait to get on that road again too. Always Up - Autocar Trucks .

Heavy Duty Trucking (HDT) / October 16, 2019 Allison Transmission’s Neutral at Stop feature will be standard equipment on the International MV Series, beginning in 2020, International Truck announced. With the Allison Transmission Neutral at Stop feature, the transmission is automatically shifted into neutral when the vehicle is stationary. This eliminates the load on the engine when the vehicle is stopped which trims fuel consumption and lowers emissions. Based on greenhouse gas emissions modeling, Allison reports that Neutral at Stop can reduce CO2 emissions by up to 6% in urban applications compared to 2018 base line. As an added feature, Neutral at Stop locks the output while stopped to prevent the vehicle from rolling backwards. “Making Neutral at Stop standard on the MV Series is an opportunity to leverage the latest technologies to lower total cost of ownership through improved fuel economy while maintaining the vehicle’s superior reliability and productivity,” said Steve Gilligan, vice president, product marketing, International Truck. The Allison 1000 HS automatic transmission comes standard on the MV Series, with FuelSense 2.0 with DynActive Shifting as an available option. FuelSense 2.0 with DynActive Shifting provides infinitively variable shift points based on a number of inputs from the vehicle. The result is a balance of fuel economy and performance based on vehicle operating conditions and the fleet’s pre-established bias for fuel economy or performance. .

As Mack Trucks strike hits fifth day, keeping production in the Lehigh Valley emerges as key issue Jon Harris, The Morning Call / October 16, 2019 This week, Mack Trucks’ 1 million-square-foot assembly plant in Lower Macungie Township sits quietly — a place that has been a truck manufacturing hub for nearly 44 years suddenly idled. The usually jam-packed parking lot is as dead as a vacant Kmart. But many of the plant’s more than 2,000 workers are still filtering in nearby — not for work, but for four-hour shifts at high-trafficked outposts around the plant as part of the first strike to hit Mack in 35 years. There, United Auto Workers Local 677 members are equipped with signs, red shirts reading “We Are One” and boxes of doughnuts or pizza stacked upon folding tables or opened tailgates. The workers revel in the occasional morale-boosting honk from a passing vehicle, including one at 2 p.m. Tuesday from a truck they surely built: a white Mack Anthem day cab. From the picket line to the union hall: The UAW has listed more than 15 issues that remain unsettled in its discussions with Mack, negotiations that won’t continue until Monday. While a lengthy list of topics remain open, local union officials on Tuesday said their top concern is ensuring the proper commitments are in place to make sure the Lower Macungie plant — and the Lehigh Valley, in general — remains the place where all heavy-duty Macks for the North American market are assembled. “There was a letter in our contract that says you can’t take our Class 8 truck out of Macungie, and that’s the letter we’re looking to keep," Kevin Fronheiser, the local’s shop chairman and a 20-year Mack employee, told The Morning Call. “Again, we want to make sure we’re building the truck here in the Lehigh Valley.” Fronheiser said Mack has not said anything about moving production out of the Lehigh Valley, but the union is looking for protections that were included in previous contracts. “We just want to cover it, though,” said Dave Durgin, a 31-year Mack employee and the local’s chairman of the office and engineering units. “We just want to make sure.” In a statement over the weekend about the strike, which began at 11:59 p.m. Saturday and involves about 3,500 Mack employees across Pennsylvania, Maryland and Florida, Mack President Martin Weissburg said the company has no plans to shutter any U.S. manufacturing operations even as it competes against products made in lower-cost countries. “On the contrary, we’ve invested more than $400 million in our plants and logistics network over the last ten years, and since 2015 have insourced work that has created more than 500 jobs in our U.S. factories,” Weissburg said. “We have significant new investments in both facilities and products on the way.” While the previous investments Weissburg mentioned include about $84 million that went into the Lower Macungie plant, it could be those projects “on the way” that are causing some of the concern. While Weissburg’s statement said Mack has no plans to close any U.S. plants, Fronheiser noted that he didn’t explicitly say that all heavy-duty truck production would stay in the Lehigh Valley. And Mack’s parent company, the Sweden-based Volvo Group, has a history of shifting operations between its U.S. facilities. For example, about two years after acquiring Mack, Volvo in 2002 closed the manufacturer’s Winnsboro, South Carolina plant, an operation that opened in 1987 and replaced the 60-year-old 5C plant in Allentown just a couple years after Mack’s last strike in 1984. With the South Carolina plant closed, Volvo moved Mack production that was done in South Carolina to its Volvo New River Valley plant in Dublin, Virginia. That Mack highway model production continued at the Volvo New River Valley plant until 2009, when Volvo moved the work to the Lower Macungie plant. That move also corresponded with the relocation of Mack’s corporate headquarters from Allentown to the Greensboro, N.C., Volvo campus, which cost the Lehigh Valley hundreds of white-collar jobs but helped streamline certain functions between Mack and Volvo Trucks North America. Durgin mentioned Tuesday that his job was once in the Mack Boulevard headquarters before it was moved to the Mack Customer Center in Allentown and now the Lower Macungie plant. A similar issue appears to have been raised during negotiations ahead of a three-year contract that was reached in October 2016, a deal that expired Oct. 1. A Jan. 3, 2017, article on the UAW’s website stated that Mack wanted to delete a provision in the contract that required the company to get the union’s approval before it could open a new plant. An information request, the union says, revealed Mack was looking to eventually build a West Coast plant, something the union believed could threaten job security in Lower Macungie. In regards to this provision, Mack spokesman Christopher Heffner said the company prefers “not to discuss any provisions of our contract at this time.” During a question-and-answer session in Allentown in August 2018, Weissburg said the Lower Macungie plant had been making impressive improvements and that Mack would continue to invest in the site as needed. When asked specifically about whether Mack could need another plant down the road, he responded, “It’s hard to forecast the future, but there’s ample room in the (Lehigh Valley Operations) factory right now.” Another Mack facility does appear, however, to be in the works, though not necessarily one that will shift production from Lower Macungie. Earlier this year, The Morning Call reported that Mack was advertising engineering positions in the Salem, Virginia, area, believed to be the spot where Mack will author its re-entrance into the medium-duty truck market. Volvo Group North America spokesman John Mies in February declined to talk about the project but noted it would not result in any shifting of production from Mack’s Lower Macungie plant, which focuses on Class 8 highway, construction and garbage trucks. Still, Durgin said, the Virginia project did come up during negotiations. “We know about it,” he said. “We’re not against it. We understand the company needs to keep making products and keep making money. We just want to have a part in that. But we know about it. We don’t have too many details on it yet.” Also of note is an announcement in late June that Volvo will invest nearly $400 million over six years to upgrade its 1.6-million-square-foot New River Valley plant, a facility that employs more than 3,000 workers and produces all Volvo trucks sold in North America. The project, in which Volvo has said it will create 777 new jobs over the next six years, includes a new 350,000-square-foot building that will house truck cab welding operations and an expansion of the existing structure to improve the facility’s paint operations and production flow. “NRV is painting some Mack cabs, so the enhancements to the plant’s paint operations will also benefit Mack,” Mies said in an email Tuesday. More specifically, Mack purchases its sleeper cab from a third-party firm before the cab makes it way to Volvo’s New River Valley plant to be painted. The cab is then shipped more than 400 miles from New River Valley — a plant where Mack highway models were once produced — to the Lower Macungie plant, where assembly occurs. .

Matt Cole, Commercial Carrier Journal (CCJ) / October 15, 2019 Six United Automotive Workers chapters representing more than 3,500 Mack Trucks employees at five of the company’s plants went on strike Saturday night to push for better pay, benefits and more in their next contract. Mack brand President Martin Weissburg said in a statement that Volvo Group is surprised UAW decided to strike. “We are surprised and disappointed that the UAW decided to strike, rather than to allow our employees to keep building trucks and engines while the parties continued to negotiate,” Weissburg said. “The positive working relationship between local UAW leadership and management at our facilities was clearly in evidence throughout the negotiations, and progress was being made.” A press release from United Auto Workers states the workers are striking for wage increases, job security, cost-of-living adjustments, wage progression, skilled trades, shift premium, holiday schedules, work schedules, health and safety, seniority, pension, 401(k), healthcare and prescription drug coverage, overtime, subcontracting and temporary/supplemental workers. “UAW members get up every day and put in long, hard hours of work from designing to building Mack trucks,” said Ray Curry, secretary-treasurer of the UAW and director of the Heavy Truck Department. “UAW members carry on their shoulders the profits of Mack, and they are simply asking for dignity, fair pay and job protections.” Workers are striking at the following Mack plants: Allentown, Pennsylvania; Middletown, Pennsylvania; Hagerstown, Maryland; Baltimore, Maryland; and Jacksonville, Florida. The Mack brand is part of the Sweden's Volvo Group, which also includes Volvo Trucks North America (VTNA). Chris Heffner, manager of public relations for Mack Trucks, said that while no Volvo trucks are built at the five Mack facilities, the Hagerstown, Maryland, location supplies Volvo engines and transmissions to Volvo’s North River Valley Plant in Dublin, Virginia. Heffner added that if the strike continues, Volvo truck production would be affected in addition to Mack truck production. “On the contrary, we’ve invested more than $400 million in our plants and logistics network over the last 10 years, and since 2015 have insourced work that has created more than 500 jobs in our U.S. factories,” Weissburg added. “We have significant new investments in both facilities and products on the way.” The strike by Mack employees comes in the midst of a nearly month-long strike by General Motors employees that began Sept. 16 and is still ongoing.

Peterbilt Delivers First Electric Cabover Truck to Frito-Lay Heavy Duty Trucking (HDT) / October 16, 2019 Peterbilt Motors has delivered the first Peterbilt Model 220EV to PepsiCo's Frito-Lay division. Frito-Lay will use six of the battery-electric medium-duty trucks as part of its Modesto, Calif., Zero- and Near-Zero-Emission Friehgt Facility Project announced earlier this month. “Peterbilt continues to lead the charge in electric commercial vehicle development. With Frito-Lay's Model 220EV, Peterbilt will have 15 battery-electric trucks in three applications — city delivery, regional haul, and refuse — in customers' hands running real routes and collecting real world validation data,” said Jason Skoog, Paccar vice president and Peterbilt general manager. The zero-emission 220EV is powered by two battery packs with a total capacity of 148kWh and a Meritor Blue-Horizon two-speed drive eAxle. It features a range of more than 100 miles and a recharge time of one hour, making it ideal for local pick-up and delivery operations. “Frito-Lay is continuously exploring current and emerging technologies for our freight equipment as we work toward reducing PepsiCo’s absolute greenhouse gas emissions by 20% by 2030,” said Michael O’Connell, vice president of supply chain, PepsiCo. “PepsiCo and Frito-Lay have a longstanding relationship with Peterbilt, and are excited to partner in the advancement of electric vehicles within our fleet and to be the first customer to put the Model 220EV in service in our delivery operations.” Peterbilt’s Model 220EV was introduced at CES in January 2019 and now joins the Models 579EV and 520EV in customer field trials. In addition to customer testing, Peterbilt is engaged in validation testing at the Paccar Technical Center (PTC) in Mount Vernon, Wash., where trucks are stringently tested in a variety of scenarios to ensure the highest levels of quality and performance. .

Transport Topics / October 16, 2019 U.S. retail sales of Class 4 through Class 7 trucks rose 5.8% in September compared with a year earlier, and included large gains in Freightliner sales of Class 7 vehicles. Overall sales reached 20,278 compared with 19,173 in the year-earlier period, WardsAuto.com reported. Class 7 sales rose a leading 25.2% to 6,543, or a gain of 1,319 trucks compared with a year earlier. And 66% of the gain came from Freightliner alone, as its year-over-year sales increased by 878 to 2,912. International, Ford, Peterbilt and Kenworth also reported year-over-year gains in Class 7. Freightliner is a brand of Daimler Trucks North America, which reported supply constraints are easing, and more trucks are being delivered now. In a recent survey of Freightliner dealers, several responded that strong demand this year from construction, utility and government customers is driving their year-over-year increase in medium-duty sales. Overall, dealers expect medium-duty truck sales to increase low single-digits on average in 2019, which is in line with their outlook in our prior [quarterly] survey, the survey indicated. Notably, a few dealers had customers report that the fuel economy for DTNA’s proprietary DD8 engine is impressive. Meanwhile, an industry anayst said he expected production next year to slow down, as “we [will be] burning off inventory as we roll through 2020.” Production started abating in July. “So demand is softening and I think that is the bigger issue, and that’s just in line with the general economic tenor of what is going on right now,” he said. “It’s not a concrete slowing in that portion of the business, as it is a sentiment. You have a higher concentration of small business owners in the medium-duty marketplace, and I think they are just unsure what the near-term future holds.” Class 6 sales fell 9.7% to 5,519 compared with 6,110 a year earlier, according to Wards. That included a nearly 1,000-truck decline in sales at Ford. “We had a lot of demand from the lease-rental fleets in the 2017 and 2018, and that diminished in 2019, and will likely in the 2020 time frame, too,” he said. Sales of Class 4 through Class 5 trucks climbed 4.8% to 8,216.

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Ford GT race stint ends after 4 years, 19 wins Michael Martinez, Automotive News / October 12, 2019 Ford Motor Co. had a singular goal when it resurrected the GT race program in 2016: win at Le Mans to honor the 50th anniversary of the company's legendary victory there over Ferrari in 1966. It did that — and won 18 other races to boot — over the course of a four-year campaign that ended last week at Petit Le Mans in Atlanta. Aside from its success on the track, executives say the revived GT race program helped validate technologies and features that have made their way down Ford's lineup to F-150s, Mustangs and other vehicles. "The GT program was intended to be a halo for the company in terms of what we do and what we're capable of doing," Mark Rushbrook, global director of Ford Performance motorsports, told Automotive News. "The race car element is the pinnacle of that, allowing us to put cars in front of fans around the world and prove we can compete against the best companies and win races and championships." The GT's on-track success was further validation for Ford's EcoBoost-branded line of turbocharged engines. The car was powered by a 3.5-liter V-6 EcoBoost engine, the one found in F-150 pickups, although uniquely tuned for the track. Beyond that, Rushbrook said, insight gained on lightweighting and aerodynamics also have informed decisions on production vehicles. "There's a direct link between what a customer buys in the showroom and what we race on the track," he said. "This program gave us the opportunity to tell that story directly." Early troubles, then victory The GT's first event, the Rolex 24 at Daytona International Speedway in January 2016, ended in disaster. Both vehicles Ford entered suffered from a faulty gearbox actuator and other problems that caused them to pit numerous times. The No. 66 GT finished seventh and the No. 67 GT finished ninth of 11 cars in the GTLM class. "It was so emotional that this can't be happening," Rushbrook said. "But nobody blinked an eye, and that really cemented how strong the team was." Ford ran into trouble at subsequent races, including a crash at the 12 Hours of Sebring, but began to iron out its issues as the racing season continued. One of Rushbrook's favorite memories, he says, was the GT's first victory at Laguna Seca in May 2016. "It really made a statement to win that early in the program with a brand new car," he said. "What the team really needed was something to pick up their spirits and keep everybody fighting to go to Le Mans after that." Roughly a month later, with Executive Chairman Bill Ford and then-CEO Mark Fields watching, Ford placed first, third and fourth in its class at Le Mans. Ferrari finished second. Rushbrook said he remembered Ford, Fields and other executives popping in during the 24-hour race even in the early morning hours, which he saw as a sign of their commitment to the program. The end of the race, he said, felt surreal. "For me, we were so focused on the task, you're not paying attention to anything else that's going on around you," he said. "When you do deliver it, the relief and the joy of celebrating with team members that have been along on the journey was one of the best moments of this whole program." What's next Ford will continue to make road versions of the GT through the 2022 model year, or until production of the allotted 1,350 cars is complete. On the racing side, Ford will continue to compete in NASCAR and other series. "Our focus is not to be in racing just to be in racing," Rushbrook said. "Our focus has been to be on the track in the series and championships that matter and are important, and to win those." He said that as the industry transitions to electric vehicles, Ford will look to that technology in racing as well. Does that mean the next GT, whenever it's resurrected again, will come with a battery instead of a gas engine? "It's honestly too early to say," he said. "There's a lot of technology developments out there. Any of those decisions will be based on what we think the best tech is and the right time to introduce it."

At this time of the year, with Mack brand sales slowing, Volvo will consider the strike a blessing in disguise. When you observe the late model tractors on U.S. highways, Freightliner accounts for 40-45 percent, Paccar (Kenworth and Peterbilt) 40-45 percent, Navistar International 5-10 percent, Volvo 3-6 percent, Mack 2-5 percent and Western Star 1 percent. https://www.bigmacktrucks.com/topic/56885-mack-trucks-market-share-continues-decline/?tab=comments#comment-421305

Scania Group Press Release / October 8, 2019 Ekonovus, the waste management company entrusted with operating in Vilnius, has invested in a compressed gas Scania L 340 refuse truck. With its low-entry cab and outstanding driver visibility, the truck has been specifically designed for tight and congested cities. Featuring a rich diversity of buildings, the Lithuanian capital of Vilnius has been placed on the UNESCO World Heritage list. From its medieval foundation, Vilnius has influenced Eastern European architecture and culture over several centuries. The Vilnius historic centre has been largely preserved, delighting residents and tourists alike. But its narrow streets make refuse collection challenging. Alternatively fuelled trucks for sensitive areas “The first compressed gas trucks will serve the densely populated and most environmentally sensitive areas, such as Vilnius Old Town. In the future, we will use alternatively fuelled trucks in all such areas,” says Andrius Murnikovas, Director, Ekonovus Logistics and Technical Department. An ambition to provide efficient waste management services, as well as to minimise emissions, prompted Ekonovus to invest in the new Scania model. “We will see far more of these trucks as the fuelling infrastructure now rapidly expands. Here in Lithuania, we’re pioneers in adopting next-generation refuse trucks inspired by similar trucks in neighbouring countries.” “We will later invest in more trucks for more cities” Ekonovus plans to invest in more Scania low-entry trucks for deployment across the country. “The first gas refuse trucks will serve Vilnius and Klaipeda residents,” says Ekonovus’ CEO Romas Draskinis. “We will later invest in more trucks for more cities.” The Scania L 340 has a body with a crane and compactor for emptying Molok waste containers, which partially lie underground. During the emptying process, the lid is removed, and a lifting bag is pulled from the well. After positioning the bag over the compactor, the bottom of the bag opens, and the content is released. .

Scania Group Press Release / September 30, 2019 In the Netherlands, waste and recycling company SUEZ and logistics provider HAVI have both been providing services to McDonald’s for a quarter of a century, constantly working to improve sustainability in the logistics waste chain. In addition, Scania and HAVI are working together to reduce the ecological footprint of McDonald’s logistics. In 2017, they signed an international agreement to reduce the number of diesel-powered vehicles by switching to hybrid or gas-driven vehicles. Introducing Scania’s hybrids marks the next step for both partnerships. .

The U.S. doesn't need to import any oil at all now. However, it still does, unfortunately, because certain American and foreign businessmen profit more from doing so.

Fuso Starts FE180 Gas Cabover Production Heavy Duty Trucking (HDT) / October 10, 2019 Mitsubishi Fuso Truck of America, Inc. (MFTA) announced that production of its Class 5 cabover gasoline-powered work truck began at Freightliner Custom Chassis Corporation (FCCC) plant in Gaffney, S.C. FCCC is a sister company within Daimler Trucks. This truck adds to the lineup of Fuso's Class 4 gasoline models introduced in 2018. The Fuso FE180 Gas, which offers 11,855-pounds in payload capacity, was first introduced at the NTEA Work Truck Show in March 2019, where the first prototype was unveiled. Full production of the Class 5 work truck will share the production line with the lighter Class 4 versions. “North American market data shows that demand for gasoline-powered work trucks is increasing and in some areas outperforming conventional diesel-powered trucks,” said Justin Palmer, president and CEO, Mitsubishi Fuso Truck of America, Inc. “We attribute this market shift to the maintenance requirements of diesel trucks due to the increasing sophistication of diesel emission components. Our Fuso Gas trucks eliminate this additional burden while still providing the long-run durability of the engine and its performance.” The Class 5 Fuso FE180’s 297 hp PSI-General Motors V8, 6.0L gasoline engine achieves a standard 361 lb.-ft. of torque. Fuso coupled the engine with the commercial grade Allison 1000 Series 6-speed automatic transmission. To improve fuel economy, Allison FuelSense 2.0 technology with DynActive shifting is included as a standard feature. The increased payload capacity with the FE180 Gas truck is best suited for deliveries with a traditional dry van body. Add a refrigerated body, and this truck is perfect for fresh food or frozen food deliveries. Because of the higher Class and gross vehicle weight, the FE180 Gas can also enter other vocational markets such as landscaping, tree care, vehicle recovery, and construction, just to name a few examples. “The introduction of the Fuso FE180 Gas Class 5 work truck offers customers a powerful, hefty work truck that reduces the operational complications that its diesel counterpart faces today,” said Greg Baker, director of Product Management, Mitsubishi Fuso Truck of America, Inc. “We’ve designed this truck with the customer’s wish list in mind by giving it the power, torque and comfort drivers want in a work truck.” Pricing available through Fuso dealerships. With production under way now, the FE180 Gas truck is expected to arrive at dealerships beginning in November.

The all-new Autocar DC-64. #FrontEndFriday #Badass #AutocarDC #AlwaysUp .

Yes, it's plowing season already in the Dakotas. Back in 1941 the Town of Pomfret, New York was proud to show off their new Autocar C8044 (four-wheel-drive) truck with optional "Tropicaire" heater. With about 100" of snow a year, that 11 foot wing got plenty of use. Thanks, Mike Lusher. Always Up - Autocar Trucks .

Matt Cole, Commercial Carrier Journal (CCJ) / October 10, 2019 One of the largest fleets in the country, Stevens Transport, announced it is shuttering its Dallas, Texas-based oilfield tanker fleet, effective Tuesday, Oct. 15, according to a notice submitted to the Texas Workforce Commission. The closure will put more than 550 truck drivers out of work. Stevens Tanker Division, a subsidiary of Stevens Transport (No. 38 on the CCJ Top 250), submitted a WARN notice to the state of Texas on Sept. 26 stating it would be ceasing all operations at all 12 of its locations in Texas, Louisiana and Oklahoma. According to the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s Safety Measurement System, Stevens Tanker has 576 drivers and 853 trucks. The WARN notice indicates 586 employees will be laid off at nine Texas locations – the majority of which (367) are employed at the company’s Stockdale, Texas, facility east of San Antonio. It’s unclear how many employees will be affected at two Louisiana and one Oklahoma location. Attempts to reach Stevens Tanker for comment on the closure have not been returned as of Wednesday afternoon. A photo circulating on social media of a purported memo to Stevens Tanker employees states the oil and gas industry has slowed down since December 2018, adding that the company has seen a 65% reduction in sand orders since Sept. 20. Stevens Tanker Division has hauled water and sand for oil and gas companies in Texas, Oklahoma, Louisiana and New Mexico. Stevens is the second major fleet this month to announce a downsizing effort. Roadrunner Systems (No. 31 in the CCJ Top 250) announced late last month that it was downsizing its dry van division and would lay off 450 drivers. Likewise, multiple large fleets this year have abruptly shuttered operations.

Heavy Duty Trucking (HDT) / October 9, 2019 UPS will purchase more than 6,000 natural gas-powered trucks beginning in 2020 and running through 2022. This three-year commitment represents a $450 million investment in expanding the company’s alternative fuel and advanced technology vehicle fleet as well as supporting infrastructure. Roughly 25% of vehicles purchased by UPS in 2020 will run on alternative fuels, said Juan Perez, chief information and engineering officer, UPS. The new vehicles will be equipped with compressed natural gas (CNG) fuel systems provided under an exclusive agreement with Agility Fuel Solutions, a provider of clean fuel solutions for medium- and heavy-duty commercial vehicles. As of October 2019, UPS has agreed to purchase 230 million-gallon equivalents of RNG over the next seven years, making the company the largest consumer of RNG in the transportation industry. Vehicles equipped with CNG fuel systems can interchangeably use RNG and conventional natural gas. Since 2016, Agility Fuel Solutions has provided natural gas fuel storage and delivery systems to more than 1,700 UPS trucks. Over the past decade, UPS has invested more than $1 billion in alternative fuel and advanced technology vehicles and fueling stations to help meet its target of reducing absolute greenhouse gas emissions by 12% across its global ground operations by 2025. UPS has continued its relationship with TruStar Energy to design, manufacture and install five new CNG fueling stations in Lathrop, Visalia and Moreno Valley, Calif., Houston, Texas, and Cleveland, Ohio. UPS will deploy the new CNG vehicles on routes to utilize the new CNG stations as well as adding to existing natural gas fleets in other UPS locations. By the end of 2019, UPS will be operating 61 natural gas fueling stations strategically located across the U.S., and outside the U.S. in Vancouver, Canada, and Tamworth, United Kingdom.