Trucks World News: December 2004

SALES - DAIMLERCHRYSLER reports strong sales of commercial trucks

Detroit,MI,USA - Detroit Free Press - December 16, 2004 -- BERLIN, Alemania (AP) -- DaimlerChrysler AG's commercial vehicles division sold 28 percent more trucks and buses through November 2004 than all of last year,the German ... Including sales for Mitsubishi Fuso, global truck sales rose 44 percent in the first 11 months of 2004 ... The DaimlerChrysler Buses and Coaches division sold 29,100 units through the first 11 months of the year, up 17 percent over the same period in 2003.

TECHNOLOGY USA - SMITHS Detection to Showcase Mobile, High-Energy Cargo Screening ...

System That Inspects Loaded Trucks and Containers
Atlanta,GA,USA - WebWire (press release) Smiths Detection - 12/15/2004 -- PINE BROOK, N.J.-Smiths Detection, the world’s leading provider of X-ray and trace detection systems, said it will showcase a high-energy mobile cargo screening system, called HCV-Mobile, that can scan more than 25 loaded trucks and containers per hour .... The 3.8 MEV system combines mobility, radiation detection capabilities and high-energy X-rays that can penetrate more than 10.5 inches of steel. The HCV-Mobile generates high-resolution images of a container’s contents and is designed to assists in the identification of conventional ....

USA - TRUCKS-ONLY road may be justified

A lawmaker in Washington state is pushing for a 100-mile, trucks-only tollroad from the southwestern part of the state to Interstate 90.
Birmingham,AL,USA - The Birmingham News / AL.com - December 15, 2004
We've all heard of truck lanes, but what about truck roads?
A lawmaker in Washington state is pushing for a 100-mile, trucks-only toll road from the southwestern part of the state to Interstate 90. The road would bypass Seattle and have a limited number of exits.
A private company would construct the route and collect tolls. If just half of the 22,000 trucks that roll down the highway from Seattle each day used the toll route at 60 cents a mile, or $60 for a one-way run its $5 billion price tag could be justified, according to a Washington Transportation Department study.

SALES UK - VOLVO Executes DAF Take Away

UK - Transport News Network - 14/12/2004 -- ... FM12 Globetrotters. The deal will see the first new Volvo trucks go into service as part of a recently struck agreement... The company says it took the trucks based on overall operating and whole-life costs. "Volvo provide value-for-money," explains Golden West's National Fleet Engineer Paul Stephens. "They gave us a good price and in terms of whole-life costs and fuel performance gave us a better package than anyone else could offer. The locality of the Dealership is also ideal, so back-up is never far away."...

PRODUCTION INDIA - TATRA to hit the road in 2005

New Delhi, INDIA - Rediff, by Kalyana Ramanathan - December 13, 2004 -- Tatra Trucks India Ltd, the joint venture between Czech truck maker Tatra and Vectra of UK, is planning to launch its first highway transportation vehicle (for the goods segment) late next year.The company plans to enter the Indian truck market, which is currently dominated by two domestic firms, Tata Motors Ltd and Ashok Leyland Ltd, with the launch of a 20-tonne multi-axle truck....

TECHNOLOGY JAPAN - Hino devises front bumper air bag for new truck

TOKIO,JAPON - Today's Trucking - December 7 2004-- Japanese truck maker Hino Motors says it has jointly developed with Seino Transportation Co. a small truck equipped with upgraded safety devices, including an air bag attached to the front bumper.... The 3-ton Hino Dutro truck has a sensor that reacts when a person bursts in front of the vehicle while in motion and inflates an air bag from within the bumper to prevent him from getting rolled under it, the company said....

TRANSPORT USA - TRUCKS get biggest slice of NAFTA pie

USA - Today's Trucking News -Dec. 10, 2004 -- .... U.S. surface transportation trade with Canada and Mexico has grown more than 80 per cent since the implementation of the North American Free Trade Agreement a decade ago.... surface transportation consists of freight movements by truck, rail, pipeline and other modes of surface transportation. ... About 90 per cent of US trade with Canada and Mexico involves surface transportation, with trucks carrying the lion's share of that commerce....

STORIES USA - NO control over trucks crossing border

Numerous provisions in the so-called "free trade" agreements are chipping away at our nation's sovereignty.

Vacaville,CA,USA - The Reporter/Janis K. Frelick, Greenwood - December 10, 2004 -- The North American Free Trade Agreement contained a little-known provision mandating that by the year 2000, our nation's southern border must be opened wide to all trucks entering from Mexico. Once this provision was discovered, trucking union officials and environmentalists lodged a formal complaint, and a federal appeals court ordered a study be conducted to address legitimate concerns about safety and air pollution....

CONTROLS USA - Industry divided on on-board recorders

USA - eTrucker/Trucking Headlines, By Jill Dunn - 13 Dec 2004 -- In comments solicited by the Federal Government, many trucking organizations said mandatory on-board recorders would be costly and unreliable, but some major fleets -- including ABF, J.B. Hunt, Werner and Yellow Roadway -- indicated cautious acceptance of the idea.
The American Trucking Associations and other trucking groups said federal officials lack sufficient evidence that the recorders would improve hours compliance and safety, while LTL fleets and local fleets, in particular, have trouble justifying the costs of existing recorder systems.

SECURITY USA - AGENCY seeks recall of 600,000 Dodge trucks

Suspension problem seen with Durango SUVs, Dakota pickups
WASHINGTON, USA - MSNBC, The Associated Press - Dec. 10, 2004 -- Federal safety regulators have asked DaimlerChrysler AG, want 600,000 Dodge Durangos SUVs, and Dakota pickups trucks, from the 2000 to 2003 model years, recalled because their wheels could fall off, but the auto maker doesn’t believe the defect is dangerous, a company spokesman said.

ECOLOGY USA - California seeks to mandate upgrades of older engines

USA - eTrucker/Trucking Headlines, By Jill Dunn - 09 Dec 2004 -- The California Air Resources Board officials voted to require owners of nearly 60,000 diesel heavy-duty trucks, school buses and motor homes built 1993-98 to have the engines’ computer software upgraded to reduce emissions, but a proposed amendment would make manufacturers pay.... In March, board members had given manufacturers seven months to install new “reflash” software to prevent release of additional nitrogen oxide. Manufacturers were told to voluntarily reflash 35 percent of all state-registered vehicles, but only 13 percent actually were upgraded.

TECHNOLOGY USA - SOUTHERN California Commits to Westport Technology for Trucks

San Francisco,CA,USA - Business Wire - December 08, 2004 -- VANCOUVER, British Columbia: Westport Innovations Inc. (TSX:WPT) today announced an award of US $1.95 million from the South Coast Air Quality Management District (AQMD) to advance the development of Westport's proprietary High Pressure Direct Injection (HPDI) technology for heavy-duty truck engines.
... The AQMD project complements Westport's overall program to developand deploy the next generation of HPDI trucks, which will achieve emissionlevels and reduce ... under the program, Westport will continue developing its HPDI natural gas fuel systems for 450 horsepower Cummins ISX engines to meet approaching emissions regulations for oxides of nitrogen (NOx) and particulate matter (PM) emissions set by the United States Environmental Protection Agency and California Air Resources Board.

ECOLOGY - USA - Seattle's Gov. Gary Locke backs tougher emissions standards

OLYMPIA, Seattle,WA,USA - Seattle Times/By David Ammons,The Associated Press - December 09, 2004
... proposed that Washington adopt California's vehicle-emission standards, the toughest in the world.... Carbon-dioxide emissions from vehicles, including buses and commercial trucks, account for 55 percent of the state's emissions ... The proposal to adopt California's auto standards, effective with the 2009 model year, is the centerpiece of Locke's package of bills to ...

STORIES USA - SHAME On You: U-Haul Rental Trucks

New York,NY,USA - CBS New York -Dec 2, 2004 -- “We’re going 40 miles an hour and I can’t hear myself,” shouts CBS 2 Reporter Arnold Diaz. "It was a frightening experience driving the truck we rented from U-Haul. Not only was the sound deafening, we couldn’t tell what gear we were in. In fact, the entire steering column was loose. I'm very tuned to safety and this was not a safe vehicle," admits Jonathan Winant of Long Island. Winant rented a U-Haul truck and says it wasn’t at all what he had expected. "In my mind U-Haul was synonymous with truck rentals.” ... The company says it inspects its trucks every five thousand miles....

TECHNOLOGY, FRANCE - Lightweight car (850 kg) uses MICHELIN’s Active Wheel units

FRANCE - Green Car Congress - December 15, 2004 -- Michelin is providing a bit more information on the HY-LIGHT hydrogen fuel cell concept car, including a simplified schematic. Developed in partnership with the Paul Scherrer Institut (PSI), the HY-LIGHT made its debut at the Challenge Bibendum in Shanghai this year. The lightweight car (850 kg) uses Michelin’s Active Wheel units—electric traction motors combined with an active electric suspension—mounted in the front wheels. Supercapacitors store the electricity generated by braking....

ECOLOGY - From Tobacco to Soy for Biodiesel

USA - Green Car Congress/Newsobserver- December 11, 2004 -- North Carolina’s Golden LEAF Foundation has committed $5 million to a soy biodiesel plant planned to be online by the end of 2005... Repurposing tobacco farms to soy for biodiesel seems like a good idea...

OIL’s not Well

USA - Green Car Congress - December 12, 2004 -- In the latest Oil Market Report, the IEA has kept its projection of oil demand for 2004 unchanged at 82.4 million barrels per day, and trimmed its previous growth forecast for 2005 by 80k barrels per day, bringing it down to 83.8 mbpd. The IEA projected a slower rate of growth in demand next year because of an expected slowdown in economic growth and oil demand in China. That slowdown, however, remains a major wildcard....

ECOLOGY - DaimlerChrysler On Track for 100 FCVs by Year-end

USA - Green Car Congress - December 09, 2004 -- In December, DaimlerChrysler will more than double the number of fuel cell vehicles it has placed in the United States. That puts the company on track to meeting its promise of having 100 fuel cell vehicles by the end of the year, .... Adding to what is already the largest fleet of fuel cell automobiles in the world, the recent U.S. arrivals consist of Mercedes F-Cell passenger cars and medium-duty ....

ECOLOGY - RENAULT Adds New CNG Trucks to Lineup

USA - Green Car Congress - December 09, 2004 -- Renault Trucks, Europe’s largest, and the world’s second largest truck manufacturer, has launched two new CNG vehicles: the Midlum NGV and the Puncher NGV. Targeted for use in refuse collection, street cleaning, and urban delivery, both models are powered by Cummins Westport natural gas engines...

BULGARIA - Experts Propose Banning Old Cars Import

Sofia,Bulgaria - Sofia News Agency - 6 December 2004 -- An interdepartmental group from the Bulgarian Parliament has proposed countries to prohibit the import of old cars, used for more than 10 years... The old vehicles endanger the security of the traffic participants and dangerously affect the environment, according to the experts.

PRODUCTION USA - GM & FORD cuts to hit trucks hard, reductions follow ...

Detroit,USA - AutoWeek, by JASON STEIN - 6/12/04 -- First-quarter production cuts planned by General Motors and Ford Motor Co. will hit where it hurts the most - high-profit trucks.
Ford will trim production to 930,000 vehicles, down 7.7 percent compared to the year-ago period. About 65 percent of the automaker's 78,000-unit decline will come in ....
General Motors will slash production by 95,000 units to 1.25 million vehicles. That's down 7.1 percent from the first quarter of 2004. Nearly 54 percent of GM's production trims will come from ...

PRODUCTION - USA - HEAVY-TRUCK makers are roaring ahead

Allentown,PA,USA - The Allentown Morning Call - Reporter James P. Miller - 5/12/04 -
... truck makers are now enjoying a stronger-than-expected rebound. The surge in orders that took hold early this year is so vigorous that producers are struggling to keep up with demand ... orders for heavy trucks running at their highest level in six years, truck makers including Mack Trucks of Allentown, Paccar and Freightliner....

AUSTRALIA - To reduce the number of trucks, can a pipeline save our beaches?

Australia - NEWS.com.au, By Environment Reporter DANIEL CLARKE - December 6, 2004 - ... a major pipeline system to transport sand from northern metropolitan beaches to the city's southern coast ... The ambitious project is part of the Coastal Protection Branch's plan, which now cart the sand, on coastal roads. ...Some of the southern beaches are losing the equivalent of 7000 truckloads of sand each year through coastal drift .... "if sand carting stopped, southern beaches would disappear within 15 years. But the trucks caused other problems .... on beaches and on residential roads does not make a very happy community," ...

PRODUCTION - CHINESE-MADE trucks best-selling in DPR of Korea

Beijing,China - China Daily/Xinhua- 5/12/04 -- Chinese-made trucks become best-selling in The Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), as these vehicles are inexpensive, efficient, have easy access to purchasing parts, and are easy to maintain and repair, according to ..... In the first eight months this year, the DPRK imported 31 trucks, with a total value of US$48,580 from China .... Most of the these trucks are of "Jiefang" and "Dongfeng" brands, manufactured by Chinese automotive factories. They are mostly small diesel trucks with a capacity of 5 tons or less.

USA - TRUCKING industry facing safety issues

Washington,DC,USA- Washington Times(UPI) 1 Dec 2004-- Increasingly congested traffic patterns have led the US government to adopt technology such as "black boxes" for large trucks to make the roads safer ...
Trucking has grown by 70 percent since 1989 but highway spending -- needed to keep roadways repaired and safer -- has not kept that pace....

SOUTH AFRICA - IMPERIAL takes wheel at Renault Trucks

Johannesburg,South Africa - Business Day, By Bobby Cheetham - 26/11/04 - Motor giant Imperial Group has entered into distribution agreement with Renault Commercial Vehicles Trucks.
The agreement, announced in Johannesburg, gives Imperial the right to distribute Renault Trucks in Southern Africa and ends speculation about the future of ...

.... The added benefit of an assembly facility to reduce cost to the end user....

AUSTRALIA - CAMERAS to cut trucks in urban corridor

Brisbane,Queensland,Australia- Brisbane Courier Mail, by Steven Wardill - 27 nov 04 - HI-TECH cameras will monitor trucks in the Brisbane Urban Corridor, in a program to ban unnecessary heavy-vehicle movement in the congested route. In a state-federal initiative, a $1 million trial will be conducted from February 28 to allow trucks to travel toll-free on the Logan Motorway at night...

STORIES - USA - View from the big rig

Philadelphia,PA,USA - Bucks County Courier Times - By JENNIFER WEST - 26/11/04 -- Bill "Red Beard" Crossland arrives at the McKeon trucking company in Warwick as usual - at 5:30 a.m. That leaves him a half-hour, tops, to do a safety check of his 12-ton big rig and then drive to the nearby Wrightstown quarry. That's where he makes a living hauling gravel.
For this job, 6 a.m. is "go time." Arrive too late and all the good hauls, those that fetch the most money, will be gone to independent drivers like him.
... Many in Lower Bucks see quarry trucks as dangerous and unfit for asuburban landscape. But there's nothing Red Beard loves more than drivingthe big rigs. ...

JAPAN - AUTO PRODUCTION comes down in October

New Delhi,India - Hindustan Times /Associated Press/Tokyo, 26/11/04 -- Auto production in Japan fell 3.7 per cent in October from a year earlier, marking the first drop in five months, ....
Output of buses, trucks and cars totaled 897,425 vehicles, .... Domestic vehicle demand totaled 425,996 vehicles, down 7.5 per cent from the same month the previous year.....

MALAYSIA - LION Motor to sell RM100m chinese light trucks

The Malaysia Star - Malaysia - 26/11/04 - LION Motor Sdn Bhd is targeting to achieve sales of more than RM100mil from its new light truck, Dong Feng Pahlawan LM228, next year.
.... the company, which signed a franchise agreement in October last year with Dong Feng Automobile Co Ltd (DFAC) of China to assemble and market the truck, hoped to assemble 2,000 units annually, ... Phang said that up to 800 units of the light trucks, also known as Xiao Bawang, would be assembled at Kinabalu Motor Assembly in Kota Kinabalu,Sabah monthly. ...

USA - COMPROMISE lets more big trucks roll

MI,USA - Business Direct Weekly, By Alex Nixon -25/11/04 -- Road builders and underground construction companies are on the verge of lowering one cost of doing business in Michigan.

Local government officials, for their part, seem satisfied with an agreement that maintains some local control and deters overloading of trucks. ...

NORWAY - WINTER roads: Stricter control with foreign trucks

Baerum,Norway- Norway Post - 24. November 2004 - The Norwegian Truck Owners Association (NLF) demands that the Highway Department establish a 24-hour border control in order to stop foreign trucks and road trains which arrive without snow tyres and chains.
Many of these block traffic and cause serious accidents on Norwegian roads in the winter.

PAKISTAN - Overloaded trucks being ignored

Islabamad, Pakistán - Daily Times, By Shahzad Malik - 14/12/04 - Overloaded trucks are banned in the federal capital because they damage roads, create pollution and pose traffic hazards.
However, many trucks ply major roads near Islamabad, such as the Kashmir and Islamabad highways, because they must reach cities in Punjab, the NWFP and Azad Kashmir.
According to a survey carried out by Daily Times, more than 2,000 trucks ply the capital’s roads every day, and most of these trucks appear to be overloaded.

USA - FORD faces potential recall of 644,000 trucks, SUVs

Indianapolis,IN,USA - Indianapolis Star / Washington, Bloomberg - November 24, 2004 -- Ford Motor Co. faces an investigation and potential recall of 644,000 of its F-150 pickup trucks, and Expedition, and Navigator, sport-utility vehicles, after complaints of engine fires.
The inquiry .... follows 36 reports of engine fires that may be related to a cruise-control deactivation switch, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said. The fires occurred while the vehicles were parked and the engine was off, with no accidents or injuries reported, the agency said.

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JAPAN - Mitsui admits lying about filters

Australia - Big News Network.com- 14/12/04 - The Japanese manufacturer misrepresented the ability of its top-selling filters to remove harmful particles from truck exhaust, Shoei Utsuda, president of Mitsui & Co., said this has cost taxpayers more than $77 million because of government subsidies given to buyers of the filters...
....Utsuda offered free replacements to buyers of the diesel particulate filters, which are attached to diesel-fueled trucks.... while the products actually met only 70 percent of the required standard.The filters, produced by a wholly owned Mitsui subsidiary, ....

CANADA - LIBERALS ease Drive Clean for cleanest trucks

Toronto,CAN - Today's Trucking News, USA - Nov. 23, 2004 - The Ontario Liberal government has followed through on a promise by the former Conservatives to establish a new Drive Clean standard which will allow the owners of the cleanest trucks in the province to undergo emissions testing ever second year instead of annually....

USA - FOREIGN trucks entering California must meet tougher emission

London,UK - AWKnowledge (subscription) - 23/11/04 - California governor Arnold Schwarzenegger has approved state legislation that will require heavy-duty diesel trucks entering the state from outside the US ...

USA - JAPANESE making inroads in truck market

Washington,DC,USA - The Washington Times, By Tom Ramstack - 22/11/04 - Toyota Motor Co. is going after one of the last strongholds of the American automobile manufacturer: pickup trucks. In Texas. ... Light trucks are pickups, vans and sport utility vehicles...

The fourth-largest manufacturer plans to build a truck plant on the home turf of the American truck market, where one in four Texas licensed drivers drives a pickup, compared with one in five nationally....

USA - DEALERS cut orders of cars, trucks

Detroit,MI,USA - The Detroit News, By Eric Mayne - 22/12/04 - ... recent years, auto dealers have been perhaps the biggest winners as Detroit's Big Three lavished customers with record sales incentives on new cars and trucks. ...
AutoNation Inc., the largest holding company for U.S. auto dealerships, and other dealers have warned in recent weeks they will resist pressure to load up on poor-selling models.

CYPRUS - Truckers blockade ports in dispute over EU rules

London,UK - EUbusiness - 13/12/2004 - Several thousand Cypriot truck drivers went on indefinite strike Monday, blockading the island's two main sea ports in Limassol and Larnaca in a row over EU rules governing their profession.

... Long lines of trucks were blockading the ports and industrial areas,with two cargo ships already stuck at Limassol unable to unload bricksand iron and ...

Truck drivers are opposed to EU rules in which "A" licences are no longer issued to individual trucks but companies, preventing them being sold on after owners retire for a fee .....

USA - TRUCK traffic growing more dense, experts warn

Long Island,NY,USA - Newsday - 12 Dec 2004 - ... Railroads, which now move 12 percent of the cargo out of North Jersey container terminals ... Trucks now shoulder 84 percent of the load, but that would be cut to ....
The federal government estimates that by 2020 New Jersey will see truck traffic volume increase about 80 percent over what it was in 1998. That adds up to a lot of wear and tear on highways, with damage from one 18-wheeler roughly equal to the wear caused by 8,000 cars....

AUSTRALIA - Two billions to drive trucks off the road

Sydney,New South Wales,Australia - Sydney Morning Herald (subscription), By Darren Goodsir - December 13, 2004- ... or trucks could be fitted with satellite tracking devices so a feecould be imposed according to where and when they travelled and the weightof their cargo....
The Government wants to lift rail freight from Port Botany from 23 per cent to 40 per cent by 2011. But, if current patterns continue, the cabinet papers show that 3 million six-metre containers - referred to as 20-footers in the industry - will be carted on streets by 2021, a 300 per cent increase on current rates.

INDIA - Chennai port holds decision to cut charges for Hyundai cars

Chennai,India - The Hindu Business Line, by P. Manoj - Dec. 11 2004 - THE Chennai Port Trust has decided to put on hold its earlier decision to cut the wharfage charges and vessel-related charges for export of Hyundai cars through the port, after the South Korean car maker back-tracked on certain conditions that were linked to these concessions....
Besides, it has also back-tracked on the earlier commitment to bring in two additional automobile carriers which can also load trucks. This would have helped the port to attract other similar cargo like trucks manufactured by Ashok Leyland and Volvo....

USA - NORFOLK Southern hopes to cash in on boom

"Trucks are our largest intermodal customers"
Roanoke,VA,USA - Roanoke Times - By Lois Caliri - December 09, 2004 - ..... new president of Norfolk Southern Corp., Charles "Wick" Moorman said, "NS wants to move a lot of that cargo to Eastern ports". Virginia has no trust fund allocation for rail, .....The majority of the funds, 78.7 percent, goes to highways; 14.7 percent to transit; 4.2 percent to the Virginia Port Authority; and 2.4 percent to airports. The report also stated its goals.....

USA - "Base Model Trucks Are History"

USA - Fleet Owner (subscription) - 19/11/04 -- The initial price of new heavy-duty trucks is getting pushed further down the list of priorities for customers.
"The top three points we’re finding customers are concerned about are drivers, fuel, and maintenance cost/vehicle productivity – not initial purchase price,” said John Fay, International Truck and Engine Corp.’s heavy vehicle marketing director. “So, for us the challenge is to come up with solutions for each of those areas.”
Factors such as driver shortages, safety, and upcoming near-zero emissions diesel engine technologies have popularized value-adding options like never before.

ECOLOGY - LA area still has nation's worst air

Philadelphia,PA,USA - Philadelphia Inquirer (subscription) - 28/11/04 - LOS ANGELES - Air quality in the Los Angeles basin this year has been the best in 25 years, largely because of a fluke in the weather.

But by virtually all measures, the region, home to 17 million air-breathing humans, remains the nation's capital of bad air....
... sulfur diesel fuel sit at the docks for days as hundreds of trucksand locomotives with ineffective pollution control equipment wait to hauloff the cargo.

CANADA - INNOVATION in security

Edmonton,Alberta,Canada-Edmonton Sun - 28/11/04 - ... a new tool to curb billions of dollars' worth of annual cargo theft... Hundreds of companies offer tracking systems of trucks, trailers,railcars or other ....
"What sets us apart is we incorporate additional elements - door contact sensors, thermal sensors, brake wear, engine diagnostics, locking mechanisms, immobilization," said Curtis Serna, CEO and founder of Safefreight.

USA - Security, Safety, and Operational Efficiency Concerns in the Trucking Industry

SAE Symposium Will Address the Security, Safety, and Operational Efficiency Concerns in the Trucking Industry
WARRENDALE, Pa., USA - Nov. 24 /PRNewswire/ -- The SAE International symposium "Enhancing Heavy Truck Safety, Security and Efficiency Through Technology" will explore ways in which the trucking industry benefits from uniquetechnological solutions to security, safety, and operational efficiencyconcerns.

Safety Child Passenger Program

Booster Seat and Child Passenger Safety Facts & Tips

* Traffic crashes are the leading cause of death for children of every age from 6-14 years.
* When children outgrow convertible seats, at around 40 lbs., they should be restrained in booster seats until they are big enough to fit in an adult seat belt, at about 80 lbs. and 4'9" tall.

USA - SAE - 8/12/04 -

INDIA - Truck & Bus sales zoom in April-October 2004

New Delhi,India - Press Trust of India - November 21 - Cheered by Tata Motors and Swaraj Mazda, commercial vehicle sales surged by 27.2 per cent during the first seven months of this fiscal. A total of 167,274 buses and trucks were sold during April-October 2004 over the same period last year, data compiled by the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers or SIAM showed.

STORIES - USA - Independent truckers hardest hit by fuel prices

Oil City,PA,USA - The Derrick - 22/11/04 - Stagnant freight rates and historically high diesel fuel costs - above the price of unleaded gasoline - have some upset truck drivers pushing for a work stoppage.

GE Buys Citigroup's Truck Finance Unit for $4.4 Billion

USA - Bloomberg - Nov. 22 / 2004 -- General Electric Co. agreed to buy a Citigroup Inc. business that provides lending and leasing to the trucking industry for $4.4 billion in cash to expand its commercial finance unit where it already has customers.

... Sales of heavy-duty commercial trucks used for cargo hauling are rising as trucking companies demand new and replacement vehicles. ...

ECOLOGY - Honda 2004 'Greenest Automaker'

UK - Autoindustry - American Honda Motor Co. has been recognised by the Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS) as the 2004 Greenest Automaker in the organisation's biennial ranking of car manufacturers' environmental performance.

It's the third consecutive number one ranking of Honda in the UCS study. Compared with the UCS's 2002 findings, Honda actually increased its lead over other manufacturers in reducing both greenhouse gas and tailpipe emissions across the full range of its product line-up.

ECOLOGY - Manufacturers may sue State of California over CO2 emissions policy

UK - Autoindustry - Vehicle manufacturers are joining in legal action by dealers to challenge the State of California’s right to set its own carbon emissions regulations – which require a near-30% reduction in CO2 output from cars and SUVs sold in California by 2016. Manufacturers initially responded to the Californian rules with the claim that only the federal authorities have the right to set fuel efficiency standards.

CHINA - Automotive industry market value will exceed 1 trillion Yuan

UK - Autoindustry - Delegates at the recent 2004 China Auto Parts Executive Conference heard that 2004 vehicle production and sales in China will exceed 5 million units. Car production is forecast to approach 2.2-2.3 million units, while motorcycle output is expected to top 16 million. The gross sales income for the entire Chinese automotive industry will exceed one trillion Yuan.

UK - Early Warning Systems can save billions in warranty costs - report

UK - Autoindustry - In a new report entitled Early Warning System Benefits Emerging, AMR Research finds that manufacturers embracing EWS can save billions through reducing the the time between determining a defect in product design or the manufacturing process, and applying the corrective action. Automotive companies implementing EWS as business critical applications rather then as compliance solutions are said to be achieving greater competitive advantage and higher profits.

UK - TECHNOLOGY - Safety sensor systems

ABI Research: standardisation needed for S.S.S.
autoindustry - UK - 8/12/04 - Manufacturers of automotive Safety Systems based on Radar, LIDAR and optical devices - as well as the OEMs such as Toyota and Mercedes whose vehicles use them - should soon start to address the issue of standardization, according a report, "Automotive Radar/LIDAR Systems", from New York-based ABI Research.

Volvo's DCV in aid of fewer trucks and safer urban traffic

Auto Industry - UK - 23rd November 2004 - Last month Volvo Trucks launched a new concept study into distribution vehicles in Scandinavia designed for urban traffic conditions with the intention of producing fewer, but safer trucks, along with the more efficient distribution of packages and unit goods.

... the Distribution Concept Vehicle -DCV- should be able to replace today's conventional distributionstrucks and courier vans, with the distribution of packages and unit cargoco-ordinated ...

USA - CARRIER EXPENSES: Crunch time

USA - Fleetowner - According to the Motor Carrier Annual Report, which is prepared by the American Trucking Associations, carrier fuel expenses in 2002 ranged from 5.4% to 11.9% of total operating expenses, depending on the type of carrier. It was also reported that insurance expenses for that year, including claims, ranged between 2.6% and 4.6% of total operating expenses.
Together, fuel and insurance costs — which have been among the most volatile of a fleet's operating expenses in recent times — accounted for between 8.8% and 14.8% of total operating expenses in 2002, depending upon the type of motor carrier. At the same time, net profit margins ranged from 0.54% to 3.44%.

USA - PORTS & TRUCKS: The Last Mile

USA - Fleet Owner (subscription) - 23/11/04 - “Trucks are absolutely critical to our operations,” he said. “Yes, we primarily move most of our cargo out by rail, but trucks are instrumental in getting that freight to the rail head. They are a major component in that transportation chain.”

USA - ENERGY guru preaches post-petroleum future

Denver,CO,USA - Denver Post - 21/11/04 - "The United States can get completely off oil and revitalize its economy, led by business for profit," says Amory Lovins, who runs the Rocky Mountain Institute in Snowmass. "Saving and substituting for oil costs less than buying oil. Getting completely off oil makes sense and makes money."

... few decades: first, double the fuel efficiency of cars, trucks andairplanes ... consumers don't want to sacrifice performance, passengerroom, cargo space, safety ...

USA - Satellite radio competitors engaged in a star search

Westchester, N.Y.,USA - Journal News - 8/12/04 - The competition between the country's two satellite radio companies began as a race to the stars, with each fighting to be the first to launch satellites into space.

Now, XM Satellite Radio Holdings (XMSR) and Sirius Satellite Radio (SIRI) are in a race for the stars.

USA/CANADA, frontier - Truckers fear new rules

Delays over security regulations
Winnipeg, CAN - WinnipegSun, By Rochelle Squires - November 19, 2004 - New rules covering shipments to the United States, may turn overnight express into a two-day trip, Manitoba truckers fear. After Dec. 15, truckers heading south will have to provide U.S. customs with electronic information on their cargo at least one hour before arriving at the border.

USA - TRAFFIC - GROUP to reveal truck volume study

Nashville,TN,USA - Nashville City Paper - 29/11/04 - ... the overrun of trucks on the state's roadways. Many states are in the beginning stages of breaking down actual tonnage by type of cargo and transportation ...

USA - TOP SUVs 2004

New York,NY,USA - Forbes - 29/11/04 - The particularly-congested sport utility vehicle (SUV) market presents one of the biggest challenges: How do you make SUVs interesting when they are everywhere, and look so similar?
... applies pressure to domestic automakers with new and improved trucks, vans and ... and are usually aimed at families who want flexible passengerand cargo utility. ...

SAFETY - Pickup beds are bad place for children

Number of deaths and injuries show the need for new laws
Fort Myers,FL,USA - news-press.com - 29/11/2004 - ... Some states have adopted a "Kids are not Cargo" campaign. But what are Florida's laws about people riding in the bed of pickup trucks? ...

The cargo area of a pickup truck, with or without a canopy, has proven to be a source of injuries and death to children and adults. A Washington State study found a fatality risk 10.4 times higher for persons riding in cargo areas than the risk to the general population of people involved in collisions.

TECNOLOGY - USA - Debuts World's Smallest CAN Microcontroller ...

San Francisco,CA,USA - Business Wire (press release) - 1/12/04 - Example applications for the PIC18F4580 microcontroller series include: automotive (body controllers, steering position sensors, cabin environmental control, dashboard/instrument clusters); industrial (copy machines, hydraulic pressure regulators, motor control); consumer (tanning beds); medical (pharmaceutical distribution systems and wheel chairs); J1939 networks (trucks, buses, off-road vehicles, passenger/cargo trains, vending machines); CANopen networks (elevators, escalators, industrial control); DeviceNet networks (factory automation and industrial control).

USA - GRANT meant to make roads safer

Knoxville,TN,USA - Knoxville News Sentinel (subscription) - 1/12/04 - "... truck that goes through," Petrolino said, noting that some 12 milliontrucks each year ... you evaluate the safety of the truck, the driverand the cargo, you can ...

USA - ECOLOGY - The poisoning of Virginia

Fauquier,VA,USA - Fauquier Times-Democrat - By Louis G. Dominguez, Greenwich - 11/30/2004 - They rumble across Virginia highways and roads without much regard for what they spew as they rock-and-roll on their way to the infamous commercial landfills of Virginia.
They are trucks that bring all manner of garbage from places like New York City and New Jersey to the beautiful state of Virginia.
They crisscross highways in Virginia to evade truck weighing stations and known checkpoints. They want to make themselves as invisible as possible ....

USA - Technology lets regulators monitor big rigs wirelessly

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. - Associated Press - December 02, 2004 -- From more than a half-mile away, officers at the Interstate 40 weigh station saw a problem with a tractor-trailer rig using wireless technology.
And before the truck had pulled to a stop, they'd already checked its brakes using their laptops.
The problems were contrived, but the technology was real Wednesday in a demonstration of what someday could lead to nonstop weigh-ins for big rigs or even "virtual inspection stations."

GMC Sierra 1500 Extended Cab Hybrid

New Pickups for 2005

Automobile - USA - 6/12/04 - Although the GM hybrid system does not produce great gains, neither does it demand great compromises. Because the 5.3-liter V-8 is the same as that in non-hybrid pickups, its power and torque outputs are the same (295 horsepower, 325 pound-feet of torque). Acceleration, towing, and payload are undiminished. The extra hybrid gear takes up very little space-the biggest component, the three extra batteries, is under the rear seat. One interesting feature of the hybrid trucks are its four, 120-volt 20-amp AC power outlets in the cargo bed and the rear seat; but the engine must be running in order to use them.

India - Freight rates up on busy cargo movements

New Delhi, Team India - Dec 6 2004 - Freight charges for the nine metric tonne pay load section showed a rising trend on the local truck transport market here today following busy cargo movements amidst less availability of trucks.

Outsiders tighten supply chain

* THE PROBLEM: Global companies today require their logistics providers to offer a range of transport services - from ocean and air freight to road transport and warehousing services. For TNT Logistics, the trend exposed a gap in its expertise. "Customers are increasingly demanding globally integrated supply chains so we needed more capability in freight management," says David Kulik, managing director of TNT Logistics.

Financial Times - London,England,UK- December 7 2004 - By Andrew Ward

Toyota's Truck Unit Plans to Deliver Bigger U.S. Sales

LA, USA - November 30, 2004 - LA Times - In the commercial delivery truck business, American manufacturers dominate.
Hino Motors, hoping to take market share for commercial vehicles from domestic firms, expands Southland operations.
After years of nibbling at the market, Japan's Toyota Motor Co. wants to take a much bigger bite.

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Dec 17, 2004