Cameras and E-logs and Automatics oh my!

I am seriously concerned here about what the drivers coming into this industry are being taught in these truck driving Mills.....


We have a ton who have no Idea how to check brake adjustment and believe it takes two people...

And now this Brandt person believes that BRAKES are what control your speed coming off a Hill.. I wish you would ride with me off a Mountain.. Never touch the brakes, due to a very tried and true method climb it in 7th drop it to 5th to come down or lower.. depending on load length of downgrade, etc.... I hardly ever have to touch the brakes GEAR down and use the jakes all the way to the bottom.. Don't get me wrong when I was green I made my mistakes burning up the brakes, rolling faster than the truck would run on flat ground.. Then I attended a funeral of a friend who died rolling to fast down Donner's Pass changed my driving habits real quick.. But you go ahead pump those brakes and go the posted speed limit down all those hills driver.. Do it your way... DO what the guy with 4 year OTR teaching that class you took taught you.... Or listen to that Safety Guy who has not driven more than 6 months with a company do what he told you... Never listen to those who have actual time on the road and real life experience.. I hope you have a long and Safe Career out here..

 

I am a pro manual guy, but there is no denying the advances and technology that automatics provide... I believe most European trucks all run Eaton and ZF automatics, be it 80k lbs, or 400k lbs... Don't forget about all of the heavy mine trucks that gross at over a million pounds with automatic transmissions, while traveling at speeds greater than 30 mph... I think many people are too stubborn to give up their "freedom" to an automatic transmission... Technology is here to stay, and manuals IMO are slowly being phased out. Like it or not, it is what it is. Many local trucks have gone to autos, and companies see 1-1.5 mpg gains... I like to shift my own truck, but hard from a company standpoint to disregard the cost savings an automatic transmission may save them in fuel savings alone. Not be mention less fatigue and stress on drivers.

 

Diesel Geek Most of your heavy haul mine equipment offroad dumps are Diesel Electric.. The drive motors are electric.. And you are right freedom of having control of my truck... is what makes me a Pro manual guy as you are..

Just like many others on here when I dead and gone the autos will take over..

Many companies who had autos, have changed back to manual transmissions. Autos in my opinion are for those who simply do not know how to properly drive a 13, 15 or 18 speed just my two cents.. to me a 8,9 or 10 speeds are as simple as a 5 speed.. and do not have to much range between the lower gears to reach the maximum potential of the transmission.. this is why the "big" companies choose 9 and 10 speeds or Autos for new drivers.. I run a 18 speed tranny and can honestly say that most of the time when under a load it is very odd to get above 10th gear at times... when empty no problem to see the top gears and max speed of 3.91 rears and grossing 91k empty makes no sense to try to run with the chicken trucks.. Obviously fuel mileage is no concern... there is no such concept in heavy haul... Sometimes it is measured in Gallons per mile lol

 

If a camera only starts recording after a jolt or accident it will not have recorded the accident. They are cameras not time machines.Believe me this is not somethng I would make up or lie about.If a camera is not already recording how could it possibly record something that happemed begore it was recording.

 

From what I am told by the safety director of a company using this type of system the goal of these systems isn't to record an accident per se but rather indicate why the erratic move or braking or maneuver was initiated. In other words the companies employing these systems are more interested (apparently) in monitoring driving habits and responses so if a car cut off a driver and he slammed the brakes and/or swerved the camera would engage fast enough and still manage to capture a shot of the car.

 

I will quit trucking the same day a camera is installed on or in my truck.

 

Well it would be sad to see you quit with all that driving experience you bring to the industry.

 

It's sad to see those with all that experience give up the freedom that was part of the reason they became truckers . I'm also fed up with being micromanaged by ignorant desk jockeys fed info by an EOBR . They don't want intelligent drivers able to make decisions on their own . They want a bunch of mindless puppets they can control by pulling strings .

 

Yeah , and wait until they see that guy that ain't got no panties on .

 

lol, Patty, you need to stop giving advice and do more research. Spent an hour last Friday with a salesman from Volvo Trucks Denver, they just ordered 15 new ishift equipped 880's for a local carrier, they are in the process of replacing all of their 50 truck fleet, they tested two ishift equipped trucks for the last 4 years and have now decided to do that route for all of them. KW and Pete have also seen increases in the number ultrashift equipped trucks they sell.