Dana launches SPL 250 Lite driveshaft for heavy trucks

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Neil Abt, Fleet Owner  /  September 26, 2017

ATLANTA. Dana Inc. announced several product enhancements on Sept. 26, including the launch of the SPL 250 Lite driveshaft for heavy-duty trucks.

The new driveshaft is about 20 pounds lighter than competitive products, Steve Slesinski, director of product planning for Dana, said at a press event during the North American Commercial Vehicle (NACV) show. It has been engineered to reduce noise and vibration without impacting performance, he said.

It will be formally launched in November, although some OEMs have already begun installing the driveshaft, Slesinski said.

Earlier this year, Dana launched the SPL 350 Lite driveshaft. The two share service components, increasing ease of service and simplifying inventory for truck owners and service facilities.

Dana also announced the addition of an aluminum hub option on Spicer D-Series steer axles with a 14,600-pound gross axle weight rating. The axles are targeted for on-highway, city-delivery, bus, and vocational applications.

Also at NACV, Dana said its Spicer S140 Series single-reduction, single-drive axle is now available as an option on medium-duty vehicles from Peterbilt Motors Co.

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Dana debuts new driveshaft, hub option on Spicer D-Series

Jason Cannon, Commercial Carrier Journal (CCJ)  /  September 26, 2017

Dana announced Tuesday at the North American Commercial Vehicle Show in Atlanta the launch of its SPL 250 Lite driveshaft.

Optimized for the most popular configurations of heavy-duty commercial trucks and designed to handle torque ratings of more than 18,000 lbs.-ft., the SPL 250 accommodates the lower numeric axle ratios required to support engine downspeeding which can cause stress to the drivetrain and alter harmonics in driveline components.

It has been engineered to reduce noise, vibration, and harshness (NVH) levels; improve performance; and enhance vehicle dynamics without compromising strength.

“This drive shaft [features] improves balance for better NVH characteristics,” says Dana’s Director of Product Planning Steve Slesinski, adding the removal of components aided in a weight reduction of up to 25 pounds compared to other products.

Dana is also adding an aluminum hub option on its Spicer D-Series steer axles with a 14,600- pound gross axle weight rating (GAWR) – the industry’s only 14,600-pound GAWR integrated air disc brake steer axle available with a lightweight hub option.

The Spicer D-Series steer axles reduce weight by up to 76 pounds compared to existing solutions and the new option expands the previously released 10,000 to 13,200 pound GAWR range with aluminum hubs.

Also announced Tuesday is the availability of the Spicer S140 Series single-reduction, single-drive axle is now available on Peterbilt class 6 and 7 trucks.

Available as an option on Peterbilt models 220, 330, 337, and 348, the axle is designed to support applications with gross axle weight ratings (GAWR) from 17,000 through 21,000 pounds.

It is available in a range of ratios from 3.31 to 6.50:1, supporting medium-duty pick-up and delivery trucks as well as municipal and utility vehicles. This axle also improves accessibility and versatility with up to one inch of additional ground clearance.

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Dana launches new products at NACV

Truck News  /  September 26, 2017

ATLANTA, Ga. – Dana has expanded its line of downspeeding-compatible driveshafts, with the introduction of the SPL 250 Lite.

The company says the new offering reduces weight by up to 25 lbs compared to competitive products. It has been designed to reduce noise, vibration and harshness (NVH), while improving vehicle dynamics without compromising strength, the company announced at the North American Commercial Vehicle show.

“The lower numeric axle ratios required to support engine downspeeding and improve fuel efficiency can cause significant stress to the drivetrain and alter harmonics in driveline components,” said Mark Wallace, executive vice-president of Dana and president of Dana Commercial Driveline Technologies. “Excessive vibration leads to unplanned downtime and driver fatigue on the road. The SPL 250 Lite driveshaft leverages proprietary precision manufacturing methods that ensure no NVH issues while delivering a smooth ride. It also reduces weight without sacrificing performance or durability.”

Dana also announced the availability of an aluminum hub option on its Spicer D-Series steer axles with a 14,600-lb gross axle weight rating. It’s the industry’s only 14,600-lb rated integrated air disc brake steer axle available with the lightweight hub option, Dana claimed.

It’s aimed at on-highway, city delivery, and vocational applications.

“Dana now offers multiple options for the industry’s only integrated air disc brake steer axle that supports up to 14,600-lb GAWR, putting us in a unique position to offer our customers a choice on applications that cannot be matched,” said Wallace. “Spicer D-Series steer axles deliver best-in-class performance and durability, enabling improved vehicle stopping power and reduced maintenance without the added weight that typically results from specifying air disc brakes.”

The company rounded out its news conference by announcing its Spicer S140 series single reduction, single drive axle can now be spec’d on Peterbilt medium-duty trucks. It’s available on 220, 330, 337, and 348 models with gross axle weight ratings from 17,000 to 21,000 lbs. Dana officials said the axle weighs up to 100 lbs less than competitive designs.

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Dana Introduces New Driveshaft Product and Medium-Duty Option

Transport Topics  /  September 26, 2017

ATLANTA — Dana Inc. launched its latest driveshaft, expanded the availability of a drive axle and offered a new option for certain steer axles, while outlining the trends in electrification.

The company made its announcements at the inaugural North American Commercial Vehicle Show here Sept. 26.

Ryan Laskey, vice president of engineering for commercial vehicle and core driveline products at Dana, outlined trends in the fast-emerging electrification of vehicles.

First, battery costs are falling fast, he said. In 2010, the cost per kilowatt hour was about $1,000.

“We see by 2020, they are going to sitting down in the range of $100 to $150 per kilowatt hour, and that is the point you really see total cost of ownership driving electrified solutions,” Laskey said.

Regulations — both national and local — that slash emissions are the other key mega trend, he said. “You are going to need to have a solution that is not going to use the likes of a diesel engine to do that.”

For its part, Dana is accelerating the hybridization of electrification across its entire driveline industry and power technologies group, he said.

At the same time, the annual demand in China for “pure battery electric solutions” transit buses is already dwarfing electrification in the rest of the world, and is helping provide scale for companies involved in China and also looking to market in other areas, he said.

China is on track for 100,000 such buses this year, and 300,000 in 2020, Laskey said.

Meanwhile, Dana launched its SPL 250 Lite driveshaft, calling it the next generation in a “robust” series of driveshafts for heavy-duty trucks.

It is designed to handle torque ratings up to 25,000 Nm [newton-meter], and is up to 25 pounds lighter than competitive products and engineered to reduce noise, vibration and harshness levels, according to the company.

“The lower numeric axle ratios required to support engine downspeeding and improve fuel efficiency can cause significant stress to the drivetrain and alter harmonics in driveline components,” Mark Wallace, president of Dana Commercial Driveline Technologies, said in a statement.

In addition, Dana’s Spicer S140 Series single-reduction, single-drive axle is now available as an option on Classes 6 and 7 vehicles from Peterbilt Motors Co. — a unit of Paccar Inc. — including the 220, 330, 337 and 348 models. It comes with gross axle weight ratings from 17,000 through 21,000 pounds, while weighing up to 100 pounds less than competitive axles, according to Dana.

With 50% fewer components and six fewer pints of lubricant required than any other axle in its class, maintenance costs have also been reduced, according to the company. Both the SPL 250 Lite and SPL 350 Lite driveshafts are available with a choice of service-free or standard re-lube designs to accommodate fleet preference.

Lastly, Dana made its new aluminum hub an option on Spicer D-Series steer axles with a 14,600-pound gross axle weight rating, according to the company.

Dana supports the commercial truck, off-highway and passenger vehicle markets, as well as industrial and stationary equipment applications.

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Dana Launches New Lightweight Driveshaft Line

Heavy Duty Trucking (HDT)  /  September 27, 2017

ATLANTA — Dana has launched the SPL 250 Lite driveshaft at the North American Commercial Vehicle show in Atlanta, designed to be a lightweight option for most configurations of heavy-duty commercial vehicles.

The SPL 250 Lite can handle torque ratings up to 18,439 lb.-ft. and is up to 25 pounds lighter than competitive products, according to Dana. It has also been engineered for reduced noise, vibration and harshness levels, improved performance, and improved vehicle dynamics without compromising strength.

"The lower numeric axle ratios required to support engine downspeeding and improve fuel efficiency can cause significant stress to the drivetrain and alter harmonics in driveline components," said Mark Wallace, executive vice president of Dana and president of Dana Commercial Driveline Technologies.  "Excessive vibration leads to unplanned downtime and driver fatigue on the road.  The SPL 250 Lite driveshaft leverages proprietary precision manufacturing methods that ensure no NVH issues while delivering a smooth ride.  It also reduces weight without sacrificing performance or durability."

The SPL 250 Lite driveshaft widens the range of applications supported by an updated family of lightweight, durable driveshaft products and expands on the launch of the SPL 350 Lite driveshaft earlier this year.

Designed with fewer components to reduce weight and enable faster, easier installation by OEMs, the driveshafts in this series feature extended component life and reduced maintenance.  They also share service components with their existing SPL 350 and SPL 250 driveshaft counterparts to increase ease of service and simplify inventory for truck owners and service facilities.

Spicer D-Series Steer Axles with Integrated Air Disc Brakes

Dana also announced the addition of an aluminum hub option on Spicer D-Series steer axles with a 14,600-pound gross axle weight rating (GAWR).  This new product expands the previously released 10,000-pound GAWR range to 13,200 pounds with aluminum hubs, and introduces a 14,600-pound GAWR integrated air disc brake steer axle available with this lightweight hub option.

Spicer D-Series steer axles are designed for on-highway, city-delivery, bus, and vocational applications. These axles build upon the Spicer E-Series axles, providing greater durability and superior performance along with reduced maintenance and tire wear. Additionally, Spicer D-Series steer axles provide a robust axle-to-brake attachment and reduced assembly time.

The Spicer D-Series steer axles reduces weight by up to 76 pounds when compared with existing solutions, according to Dana. The axles are available in both standard and wide beam widths, delivering broad application coverage for the commercial-vehicle market.

S140 Drive Axle Available on Peterbilt Medium-Duty Trucks

The Spicer S140 Series single-reduction, single-drive axle is now available as an option on medium-duty vehicles from Peterbilt, including the 220, 330, 337, and 348 models.  This axle is designed to support Class 6 and 7 applications with gross axle weight ratings from 17,000 through 21,000 pounds.

Dana says the S140 axle can weight up to 100 pounds less than competitive axles and deliver greater payload and improved fuel economy.  It is available in a range of ratios from 3.31 to 6.50:1, supporting medium-duty pick-up and delivery trucks as well as municipal and utility vehicles.  This axle also improves accessibility and versatility with up to one inch of additional ground clearance.

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