KW GLIDER

Actually,7.5mpg is not so good for an EU truck.

Length has nearly no influence on MPG.

As weight is higher with an EU truck so there they are at a disadvantage.

With the trailergap (bridgelaw) the USA truck is worst off.

And speed ..............well,there the driver has full control no matter where he lives.

I do think that Guntoter has a point that for better or worse things will change a lot in the near future.
Hate it or love it,those that are not willing to adapt to those new circumstances will have a limited future.

 

We run Eu , Jap and American trucks on the same work.
I can tell you they are all pretty close in mpg.
The Scania 470 straight 6 with compound turbo is the best.
The DAF comes in second with Mercedes straight 6,Volvo and Iveco a bit behind.
The DD in a Freightliner a small bit behind with Cummins and the C12/C13 CAT a bit behind that.
I think the American motors/drive-lines can compete , it is the rest that is just a bit less efficient.
Not by that much to make them noncompetitive.

 

I own 379 long hood and average around 6MPG. My friend purchased an aerodynamic Volvo 780 with ISX in January. For 1st quarter of this year my brick nose averaged 5.87MPG and my friend with his "aerdynamic" Volvo got 5.04 MPG. We both pull reefers so basically conditions are same but not much savings in fuel with that famous Volvo truck.

 

I get 5.1-5.7mpg in my aero truck.....

 

The T8 would be an excellent glider truck that would fit a lot of niches. It is sheer marketing lunacy on KW for not offering that one.

 

Pete gives you the choice of a Cummins harness (ISX I believe) or either a 70 or 120 pin Cat. That's it!

You had better tell your company that according to the internet forum ballpark facts they will be using aero trucks with plastic side skirts in the future. I'm sure the WV coal haulers would benefit if they would simply lose those darn air breathers!

You don't know what your talking about!! Everyone knows that aero trucks ALWAYS are the better option. My dad got 7mpg with his 2002 W900L 6NZ. BlackW900L says he get's between 6-7mpg with his. But according to the internet that's not possible.

Buy some air tabs and a magic fuel pipe and you'll be touching 10mpg!
Funny how at 5mpg my W900L is more efficient than a plastic POS getting 8mpg. Increase the weight limit = increased efficiency! I find it funny how I can load like 3-28,000# coils on my truck and make a single load out of it on my "brick" truck (as some like to call them). And there will be 2 or 3 "super efficient" aero trucks load right beside me, each hauling one single 28k coil. I'm hauling 3 loads at 5mpg which some call horrible, but 3 trucks doing the same work at 8 mpg is awesome! Per ton mile I'm mopping the floor with them.

ALL OF THEM would be good gliders. They're all the same truck except for the location of the front axle and the hood! The rest is identical, if your going to offer one you can offer them all.

 

I really hope this comes to pass.Within about a year and a half to two years from now, I'll be looking to replace my current truck, and I would love nothing better than to settle my butt right back into a W900L with a pre emission engine, factory new wiring and a load of bells & whistles. From everything I've looked into and all the numbers I've crunched, a glider is about the best long term investment I could make. Cheaper than a 'new' truck, best specs possible, better fuel mileage.
Anyone know if Fitzgerald or Hoover's is looking into this at all?

 

Well, I'm Euro guy, I see those trucks on daily basis, and I guess that I can come up with conclusion, which may be working.

They way I see it, the faster you go, more you weight, all that euro-aero-stuff stops working. I mean, if you ever participate in one of those eco-driving schools here, first thing they tell you, is to avoid driving more than 85-85 or so. Which is like 53 mph ? When you exceed that speed, you spend too much fuel on pushing the air in front of you. And it's a case of euro-aero trucks!

So, I highly doubt, if those produce haulers who need to hammer down from time to time, would get any kind of advantage from that stuff. It simply was designed to work on low speeds. If you are doing 70 mph, there is different stuff to care about.

So, overall conclusion is, yea, Aero truck WILL give you slight advantage. But it's more a case of getting rid of all the stuff which creates drag. And since 387, or even T2000 has proven, that they CAN last even 2 million miles, well sorry guys, they may not be as pretty as 379, but when hard times come (like now) and you need some eco-stuff. Well you better of in 387 than a Vulva.

I wouldn't be scared about the truck themselves, they are okay. If they are Paccar ofc.

Other thing, are engines. Excessive back pressure created by DPF. Overall chase of high mpg makes them weak, and unreliable. And that's what creates problems in US - unlike here, when even truck falls apart all the time (the engines are okay most of the time, the truck is what doesn't last).

So, a glider kit offered in let's say an T660, would be just awesome.

 

I still think its only a matter if time until the epa/government sees the glider #'s and outlaws them. They only want the emissions wonder trucks on the road. But for KW to not offer gliders now is an incredibly dumb decision. They are loosing $$$$ and sales for no reason.

 

You are probably right. That is why I ordered up a glider in late February. Delivery date is July 9th.