Trucks World News: June 2005

SAFETY - AUSTRALIA - Three in four trucks have safety problems

Australia -ABC Online -Jun 29 2005: -- Western Australia's auditor-general has released a scathing report into the regulation of heavy vehicles on the state's roads... It has found that 75 per cent of the vehicles were found to have a safety problem and in one fifth of those, the safety risk was severe enough to incur a fine...

PRODUCTION - INDIA - TATA in talks with Thailand co for pick-up trucks

NEW DELHI, India -Hindu Business Line -Jun 29 2005: -- Commercial vehicles major Tata Motors is in talks with Thai Rung Union Car Plc for production of pick-up trucks...

REPORT - USA - Predicts Vastly Expanded U.S. Light Duty Diesel Market

VAN BUREN TWP., Mich., USA -PRNewswire -June 29 2005: -- Published today, Ricardo Diesel Report predicts a momentous rise in U.S. light duty diesel market penetration over the coming decade... Sales in the light duty vehicle segment (up to 8,500 pounds gross vehicle weight) are projected to grow from a mere 43,000 units in 2004, to exceed one million units annually by 2012, rising to 1.5 million by 2015...

PRODUCTION - SOUTH AFRICA - Volvo Trucks switches assembly plant

USA -Automotive Business Review -28 Jun 2005: -- Heavy truck specialist Volvo Trucks is opening a new factory in Durban, South Africa after electing to switch production from its Botswana facility. The move is part of a wider plan to shorten lead times and lower freight costs...

RISING FUEL - AUSTRALIA - Prices linked to higher freight rates

Australia -ABC Online -Jun 28 2005: -- The Queensland Trucking Association says freight users will have to get used to paying a permanent levy for fuel, with escalating fuel prices... says fuel costs make up a third of a trucking companies' expenses and a 20 per cent increase in prices in recent months is hurting the industry...

SAFETY - USA - NHTSA Seeks Safety Improvements in Cars and Trucks

USA -Consumer Affairs -Jun 27 2005: -- The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) is looking for at a number of safety improvements to passenger cars and trucks, including increased use of electronic stability control, safer pickups, enough seatbelts to go around and better safety ratings.

STATISTICS - USA - Facts about truck driving in Pennsylvania

PA,USA -NEPA News -Jun 26 2005: -- Source: Pennsylvania Motor Trucking Association - In 2000:
- Trucks traveled 12.1 billion miles on Pennsylvania public roads, represesenting 12 percent of all roadway traffic.
- Trucking is the fourth-largest employer in Pennsylvania, employing about 418,260.
- On a daily basis, trucks move an average of 260 million tons of manufactured freight in and out of Pennsylvania.
- The Pennsylvania trucking industry pays $1.4 billion annually in state and federal roadway taxes and fees.

DISCOUNTS - USA - GENERAL MOTORS' Discounts may be extended

DETROIT,MI,USA -Bloomberg News -Jun 25 2005: -- General Motors Corp., seeking to reverse a decline in U.S. sales and market share, may extend past July 5 an offer of employee discounts for all U.S. buyers, marketing chief Mark LaNeve said Friday...

JOBS - USA - Fort Wayne Truck Manufacturer Adding Jobs

Indianapolis,IN,USA -Inside INdiana Business (press release) -6/24/2005: -- Fort Wayne-based Bentz Transport Products, Inc., a locally owned and operated manufacturer and modifier of truck sleeper cabs, is expecting to add approximately 25-35 new jobs over the next six months... The increased workforce is a necessary response to growing customer demand. Bentz Transport is holding an onsite job fair on Saturday, June 25, to accept applications for truck interior installers and cab assemblers/modifiers... Wages range from $9-$16, depending on skills and experience...

HYDROGEN - USA - Energy proposed for cars, trucks

PALO ALTO, Calif,USA -Webindia123/India - Jun 25 2005: -- A Stanford researcher urges an Apollo-style program for hydrogen energy with an eye toward a new fuel source for the nation's cars and trucks... In an article in the latest edition of the journal, Science, Stanford scientists say conversion of American vehicles to hydrogen fuel cells would improve air quality, health and climate, especially if wind were used to generate the electricity needed to make hydrogen a pollutionless process...

RECALLS - AUSTRALIA - Holden recalls 22,000 trucks after burns

New South Wales,Australia -Sydney Morning Herald (subscription) -Jun 25 2005: -- Holden is recalling 22,000 imported Rodeo light trucks in Australia and New Zealand, after 19 incidents in which people have been burned when a mixture of petrol vapour and air was ignited by static electricity during refuelling... The static electricity is generated by petrol coming through the bowser filler hose, and if a spark occurs it can ignite the fuel vapour and air mixture flowing from the vehicle's fuel tank...

CHALLENGE - USA - Law firm opposes “Dirty Diesel”

USA -Fleet Owner (subscription), by Terrence Nguyen -Jun 22 2005: -- International law firm Jones Day has published a white paper challenging the Clean Air Task Force’s (CATF) report, released in February 2005, that concluded that diesel emissions will be responsible for 21,000 premature deaths in the U.S. annually by 2010... The law firm’s white paper asserts that CATF’s conclusions on premature deaths related to diesel exhaust are based on old science and exaggerated calculations...

TERMINALS - MEXICO - Con-Way to Add Mexican Terminals

LA,CAL, USA -Los Angeles Times/Bloomberg News -June 23, 2005: -- CNF Inc.'s Con-Way Transportation, the biggest regional trucker in the U.S., said Wednesday that it would add six freight distribution terminals in Mexico City, Nuevo Laredo, San Luis Potosi, Queretaro, Monterrey and Guadalajara, will open July 4... CNF is building on increased trade between the countries, expanding after U.S.-Mexico trade rose 10% in the first quarter and 5.6% last year, according to the U.S. Transportation Department. Trucks carry about 80% of the cross-border cargo, as measured by value, according to the department...

ECOLOGY - USA - CCA Awarded Diesel Emissions Reduction Grant from the TCEQ

MONROE, CONN,USA -E-Wire -Jun 23 2005: -- Combustion Components Associates (CCA), a global provider of air pollution control technologies for the power generation and transportation industry, announced today that it has been awarded $174,200 in funding from the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) under its New Technology Research and Development (NTRD) Program. This grant will support the EPA ETV verification of CCA's urea-based ELIM–NOx SCR system for Class 8 heavy-duty diesel vehicles...

STATISTICS - usa - Driver turnover drops, but remains high

ALEXANDRIA, Va, USA - The Trucker -23 Jun 2005: -- Driver turnover fell from its record high for large truckload carriers during the first quarter of the year, according to the American Trucking Associations, as pay increases improved driver retention... Annualized driver turnover at large truckload carriers decreased to 120 percent for the three month period ended March 31 from 136 percent in the fourth quarter of 2004. Also, driver turnover at small truckload carriers — those earning less than $30 million in annual revenue — remained at a record high of 102 percent...

JOBS - USA - Trucking company to hire 100 new drivers in Huntsville

Birmingham,AL,USA -Birmingham Business Journal -June 22 2005: -- Trucking company Schneider National Inc., announced it will add 100 new professional driving positions in the greater Huntsville area... says it plans to hire 100 over-the-road drivers and owner-operators within the next 30 days. Most newly-hired drivers will work for Schneider National's One-Way Van division, the company's over-the-road, full truckload service...

SCIENCE TRUCKS - USA - Make stops at University

Sioux Falls,SD,USA -Sioux Falls Argus Leader -06/22/05: -- After another year of taking science to students across the state, Science on the Move trucks are at South Dakota State University for a workshop this week... For the third consecutive summer, SDSU is a temporary home to two 53-foot semi-trailers, tools of the South Dakota Science on the Move program. The trucks are equipped with computers, microscopes and sophisticated computer-based scientific sensors... Middle and high school teachers participating in the five-day workshops experiment with physics, chemistry, biology and earth science. Activities range from DNA fingerprinting to using Global Positioning Satellite units...

ECOLOGY - SWEDEN - VOLVO's Low-Emissions Drive As Europe sets stricter emissions standards

The Swedish truck and bus maker is a leader in producing clean-running vehicles
USA -BusinessWeek -22 Jun 2005: -- When the city of Gothenburg in western Sweden adopted an ambitious program to cut greenhouse-gas emissions at the beginning of 2003, it turned to home-town Volvo AB for help. The company, whose Swedish branch now produces only buses, trucks, and construction equipment, offered 64 buses that run on natural gas. Volvo's buses were among the few that met the city's strict emissions standards, buses powered by ethanol, for instance, did not...

TECHNECOLOGY - SWEDEN - VOLVO invests in fuel cell technology

To reduce truck idling emissions
USA -BusinessWeek -22 June 2005: -- If trucks were equipped with a power unit driven by fuel cells, the CO2 emissions from a single truck could be reduced by an estimated 20 to 30 tons per year. As a result, trucks would not have to run at idle to have an electrical supply when they are parked. In an effort to solve this problem, Volvo is now starting a joint-venture company for the development of power units based on fuel cell technology. The power unit features a newly patented technology and is so compact that it can be installed in standard trucks...

VENTURE - CHINA - HYUNDAI sets up bus and truck venture

London,UK -AWKnowledge (subscription) -23 Jun 2005: -- ... its main opportunity remains in the light- and medium-duty truck market,which ... stiff competition from the country's already established 20heavy truck and 30 ...

DEFICIT - USA - Truck Drivers Could Put Brakes on Easing of Harbor Congestion

Los Angeles,CA,USA -Los Angeles Business Journal, by DAVID GREENBERG -6/22/2005: -- Mostly optimistic notes are being sounded about less congestion at the Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach during this summer’s peak shipping season, but a potential shortage of port truck drivers – particularly those willing to work nights – could lead to bottlenecks at times... While hardly a certainty, the prospect of a driver shortage is getting the attention of shippers and port officials because three-quarters of the cargo that’s moved in and out of the ports is hauled by trucks...

RECOMMENDATIONS - USA - Buy GM Before The Chinese Do !!

MIAMI,USA - Forbes/Lehmann Income Securities Investor, by Richard Lehmann - 06.21.05: -- Making my recommendation to buy the General Motors debt in the April issue of the Forbes/Lehmann Income Securities Investor and subsequently in my Forbes column was one of the easiest calls I've ever made... As I mentioned at a market price of half its book value, GM is an attractive takeover candidate for entities like China's biggest automobile manufacturer, the Shanghai Automotive Industry, which would like to become a leading exporter of cars... SAIC and GM already have a strategic joint venture which currently has a capacity of 500,000 vehicles in China per year, including autos like the Buick Regal and Chevy Sail...

POLLUTION - UK - Averages: How much CO2?

UK - Google Groups: uk.transport, by iiiiDougiiii -20 Jun 2005: -- The average person in Britain produces 9000 kgs of CO2 every year. A sustainable level of CO2 production would be around 800kg per person per year.
1 km by car produces 0.218 kg of CO2 (assuming a small engine and no traffic lights/congestion) per car
1km by plane produces 0.206 kg of CO2 per passenger
1 km by bus produces 0.0135 kg of CO2 per passenger
1 km by train produces 0.0130 kg of CO2 per passenger
1 km by cycle produces 0.0001 kg of CO2 per bike

BIODIESEL - BRAZIL -Brazil's Biofuel Strategy Pays Off as Gas Prices Soar

Rio Janeiro,Brazil -Truth about Trade & Technology/Des Moine,IA,USA/Washington Post,by: Dan Morgan Pradopolis -Jun 21 2005: -- In Brazil, the greatest harvest of the sugar of the world is moving... Around half of the brought sugar cane to distill will be turned ethanol as it leaves from a game for 30 years to replace the petroleum concerned by fuels of the harvests... Traditionally, something of coal is sent again within the atmosphere when it is extinguished burns it before the cane is cut. But according to Guillermo L. Burnquist of the center of the technology of the sugar cane, the Brazilian environmental laws also require this practice is eliminated...

BORDER - USA/MEXICO - Mexico Soldiers Become Cartel Hit Men

NUEVO LAREDO, Mexico -Associated Press, by OLGA R. RODRIGUEZ -June 21 2005: -- Zooming around in sport utility vehicles bristling with weapons, Mexican soldiers-turned-drug hit men have taken this border city to the brink of anarchy, infiltrating local police and threatening anyone who gets in their way... Residents and law enforcement officials say the men are the feared Zetas, former members of a military intelligence battalion sent to the border to fight drug trafficking. Instead, they joined the Gulf Cartel, one of Mexico's top drug gangs. They adopted the name Zetas - a radio code for a military commander - recruited followers and made the city of 300,000 their home base... The Zetas rule with fear, threatening police and city officials and extorting money from businesses, including restaurants, car dealerships and junkyards... While drug trafficking is nothing new to Nuevo Laredo, the Zetas took things from bad to worse. They kidnap people for ransom and charge ``fees'' to migrant smugglers and other drug traffickers. They often kill those who refuse to pay, officials say...

PRODUCTS - USA - VOLVO Trucks debuts VT 880

Greensboro,NC,USA -The Business Journal, by Mick Normington -Jun 21 2005: -- For American truck drivers, bigger is better, and that's what executives at Volvo Trucks North America Inc. in Greensboro, rolled out Monday when they unveiled their massive new VT 880 model... Volvo executives said their new truck comes with a massive 12-liter, 625-horsepower engine under the hood, the biggest mass-produced truck engine in the nation...

TECHNOLOGIES - USA - Creating potential threats to privacy

While technological advances designed to make cars and trucks "smarter" are improving safety
Great Neck,NY,USA -Newsinferno -June 21, 2005: -- The crashworthiness of motor vehicles has improved immensely over the past several years. The addition of front, side, and overhead air bags, crumple zones, safety cages, reinforced door panels, and less vulnerable fuel tanks have significantly improved your chances of surviving even a violent collision... It is for this reason that manufacturers are turning their attention to “crash-avoidance” technology which is designed to enhance driver awareness, reaction, and response in critical situations... The potential “dark side” to all of this technology, however, can be found in the sophisticated data-collection or “black box” devices that are now routinely installed in about two-thirds of the new vehicles sold in the United States. Some 30 million vehicles already have these devices...

SALES - AFRICA - Market for Trucks is Booming

Nairobi,Kenya,Africa -AllAfrica.com,by Muna Wahome/The NationJune 21, 2005: -- The 10,000 units a year new motor vehicle industry has been booming with the main focus falling on car and minibus sales... But a new story is to be found in the market for lorries or trucks which is surging forward, powered by demand in the for road haulage services, especially from the Port of Mombasa...

ANNIVERSARY - USA - MACK Trucks Here 100 Years

Akron,PA,USA -Layover.com/The Morning Call -Jun. 20 2005: -- Even with its assembly engines idling, the Mack Trucks plant in Lower Macungie Township was vibrant Sunday... Red-shirted employees seemed palpably proud as the company celebrated its 100th anniversary in the Lehigh Valley with an open house, highlighted by a mile-long walking tour of the plant and a contest to choose the most outrageously dressed example of Mack's wrinkly-faced mascot, the bulldog...

FEES - USA - Supreme Court upholds Michigan truck fees

WASHINGTON DC, USA -Detroit Free Press/AP/Detroit,MI -June 20, 2005: -- The Supreme Court upheld Michigan's truck fees on Monday, rejecting arguments that the $100 annual fees discouraged trucking companies from doing business in more than one state...

SECURITY - USA - Giving trucks their space makes the roadways safer

Baltimore,MD,USA -The Baltimore Sun, by Jody K. Vilschick -June 19 2005: -- WHEN WE hit the roads in search of pleasant summer memories, we dread finding ourselves just behind that 18-wheeler, just as truck drivers dread being surrounded by impatient car drivers. "Cars are notorious for cutting in front of trucks, placing everyone in jeopardy," said Larry Daniel, president of AITA Inc., a trade association of independent truck drivers... Trucks can weigh as much as 40 tons when loaded. "The law of physics dictates that when 40 tons are in motion, it cannot stop, turn or react quickly," he said. "[When] a truck driver is forced to try to violate this law, something bad usually happens."

CUTTING - USA - FORD Cutting Another 1,700 Positions

USA - FORBES/Associated Press -06.22.2005: -- Ford Motor Co., reeling from costs and weaknesses in its North American operations, is cutting another 1,700 salaried positions and reducing its full-year profit outlook for the second time in two months... Ford also said it was taking new steps to reduce costs related to salaried employees this year... The company will cut salaried positions at its North American operations by 5 percent, or about 1,700, and reduce the use of agency and purchased services by 10 percent. The new cuts come atop 1,000 salaried job cuts also announced in April...

LICENSE - CHINA - HONDA becomes 1st Japan firm to get transport license in

TOKYO,Japan -Forbes/AFX News Limited/USA/Nihon Keizai Shimbun/Japan -06.19.2005: -- Honda Motor Co has obtained a trucking license in China through a local subsidiary, making it the first Japanese company to do so in that country... A wholly-owned subsidiary of transport and logistics arm Honda Express Co on June 7 obtained the license from China's Ministry of Communications for transporting cargo on highways...

SECURITY - USA - On track for trouble

Middletown,NY,USA -Times Herald-Record, by Dave Richardson & Wayne A. Hall -June 19 2005: -- Sitting in his pickup truck at a rail crossing, waiting for a half-mile-long train to pass, a local volunteer firefighter rests his hand on a thick, orange book – a bible of sorts. Inside it are 372 pages of information about deadly chemicals, explosives and other threats to life and limb... Almost every page details a different way a person can die or be grievously injured from coming in contact with any of them: Blistered lungs. Severe burns. Suffocation. Toxic poisoning... Orange County's hazmat team, for example, has specific training in everything from routine chemical spills to rail and truck accidents and even how to deal with weapons of mass destruction...

SALES - USA - MACK's bullish business continues

Deliveries of trucks to dealers in May up 49% from last year.
Allentown,PA,USA -Allentown Morning Call, by Dan Shope -18/6/2005: -- Mack Trucks overcame an industrywide shortage of steel and tires to deliver more than 3,000 trucks in May, the Allentown truckmaker said Friday... It was a 49 percent increase over May 2004, and nearly surpassed the 3,193 trucks delivered in March. Only twice have deliveries to dealers passed 3,000 since the late 1990s...

LAYOFFS - USA - GM Layoffs announced for Truck workers

Second shift stopped for 7 weeks
Flint,MI,USA -WJRT, by Taryn Asher -06/18/05 -- It's been rumored for weeks but second shift employees have received the official word that starting July 18th they will be out of work... Flint Assembly produces the Chevrolet Silverado and GMC Sierra Heavy Duty crew cabs in addition to the medium duty truck line...

WATCH OUT - USA - Skycops to watch for Beltline offenders

Madison,WI,USA -Wisconsin State Journal, by Ed Treleven -6/22/05: -- Starting Monday, police will have eyes in the sky to watch out for bad driving on the Beltline... Madison police, along with four other law enforcement agencies, will crack down not only on speeders but on tailgaters and other aggressive drivers. Aiding the effort will be a patrol plane from the State Patrol, in which officers equipped with stopwatches will keep an eye out for speeders and erratic drivers... said State Patrol commercial vehicle inspectors will also be involved in cases where trucks are stopped for following too close. The inspectors will check driver logs, cargo content and weight and make sure all are up to code, he said...

SAFETY - NEW ZEALAND - Hundreds of trucks fail safety checks

Auckland,New Zealand -New Zealand Herald, by Helen Tunnah -18.06.05: -- Hundreds of trucks and heavy vehicles have been ordered off the roads by police because of safety worries. Police figures indicate that as many as one in five heavy vehicles remains a risk on the road because of mechanical faults, ranging from faulty brakes or even cracked chassis to certificate of fitness breaches such as bald tyres or broken lights... In the 21 months to the end of March, 355 vehicles were immediately taken off the roads by inspectors because they were not safe to be driven. Repairs were ordered on a further 3100, out of 15,473 tested overall... The Audit Office report also showed essential maintenance was being left to the last minute by some operators while the condition of brakes on trucks remained "poor"...

ECOLOGY - USA - EPA Requires More Truck Emission Testing

Modern Bulk Transporter
Akron,PA,USA -Layover.com -06/17/2005: -- The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is establishing a manufacturer-run, in-use emissions testing program for 2007 and later model year heavy-duty diesel vehicles... The program will require engine manufacturers to measure exhaust emissions from their diesel engines using portable emissions measurement systems... Also for the first time, all manufacturers will be regularly providing EPA with a significant quantity of emissions data generated from engines used in regular service...

TYRES - ITALY - PIRELLI sets up JV with Roadone Tyre

To produce truck tyres in China
MILAN,Italy - FORBES/AFX News Limited/USA -06.16.2005: -- Pirelli & C SpA said it has signed a joint venture agreement with Roadone Tyre Co Ltd to produce radial tyres for trucks in the Chinese province of Shandong...

SALES - SWEDEN - VOLVO group Jan-May truck deliveries up 22 pct

STOCKHOLM,Sweden - FORBES/AFX News Limited/USA -06.17.2005: -- AB Volvo said deliveries from its truck operations, which comprise Volvo Trucks, Mack and Renault Trucks, rose 22 pct in the period January-May compared with a year earlier. In total, deliveries for the period amounted to 90,491 trucks, up from 74,134...

BOOKS - USA - "Pedal to the Metal....."

Re.: Truck Drivers Psych 101 "Required Reading"
USA - Google Groups, misc.transport.trucking - 17 jun 2005: -- The following are excerpts from the book : "Pedal To The Metal: The Work Lives Of Truckers" Contents Chapter -01 Driving Trucks, Driving Ourselves Chapter -04 Conflict between Drivers and Owners -Chapter 05 Work Skills and Self-Esteem -Chapter 09 Careers, Magic, and Masculinity... by Lawrence J. Ouellet: a sociologist who drove trucks for 13 years, has produced a fascinating study of the lives and work ethic of truckers. He explores, for instance, the range of identities truckers create for themselves as the renegade cowboy, the company man, the voyeur, or the lone king of the road...

ECOLOGY - UK - Environmental campaigners say all cars could be green

UK -Solid Scot/Google Group: england.transport -15 June 2005: -- Motorists could soon shed their tag of enemies of the environment if the Government agrees to back the use of “green fuels” in cars and other vehicles... That was the message from a coalition of UK companies and campaign groups, urging the Government to encourage greater use of biofuels and boost the fledging British environmental industry... The group, which includes Friends of the Earth, Saab and the Transport and General Workers Union, is seeking government support for bioethanol, a green fuel with a sugar or wheat base, which produces at least 50% fewer carbon emissions than petrol...

EDUCATION - USA - Semi drivers teach driving class

SWITZ CITY,Linton - USA - Linton Daily Citizen -16 Jun 2005: -- Driver's education students at White River Valley High School got an extra lesson in safety on Wednesday as three semitrailer drivers shared tips on sharing the road with big trucks. Students were shown a video on safe driving techniques and then went outside for a demonstration. Students learned about the four major blind spots around a truck, safefollowing distance, the dangers of tailgating, safe passing and stopping distance... A tractor-trailer traveling 55 mph requires 302 feet to come to a stop,said driver Butch...

ECOLOGY - Discussions - ALCOHOL based fuel

Re: Environmental campaigners say all cars could be green
Google Groups - england.transport, by Joe - 15 jun 2005: -- ... Something no one mentions is that using alcohol or an alcohol based fuel, you need twice the amount of fuel to produce the same amount of power as gasoline. So you will only get ½ the mileage on alcohol that you would get on gasoline...

RECALL - JAPAN - Mitsubishi Fuso recalling 42,000 trucks, buses

Tokyo,Japan -Japan Today/Kyodo News -June 16, 2005: — Mitsubishi Fuso Truck & Bus Corp said Wednesday it is recalling a total of about 42,000 trucks and buses in five separate defect cases, of which two were found previously... 37,000 vehicles manufactured from 1998 to 2004 due to a defect in the clutch system. Its attachment device lacks strength and may crack, making gear changes impossible...

COMPANY - USA - Really big trucks

PACCAR has a rich history of making big rigs, and it currently appears to be a solid Quality play.

USA -Reuters -16 Jun 2005: -- As the economy has strengthened and more people are working, demand for products has increased. As the level of freight shipped has increased, so has the demand for the types of trucks that are used to carry the shipments. This is world of PACCAR Inc., which ranks among the world's key players in this market... PCAR is reportedly the world's second-largest manufacturer of big rigs. I'm talking about big trucks. Really big trucks. Think things like over-the-road cargo haulers...

ENERGY - USA - NEW TYPES: "DiamondFlo" ?

"... new types of energy or better ways of using what we already have..."
Google Groups - misc.transport.trucking, by TwoGuns: Dennis -14 jun 2005: -- ... One of the companies is a small startup company out of Houston, Texas, Sequoia Interests SQNC on the Pink Sheets... They have a product called DiamondFlo which they are developing that has several possible uses. One of the main benefits of it may be its use in extracting oil from the Tar Sands typical to Alberta and other parts of the world. Do a google for "tar sands Alberta" just to get an idea of the potential supplies of oil in Canada. To read about the DiamondFlo product and its latest test results go to this site:..

ECOLOGY - DIESEL SHORTAGE - Benefits of use Hydrogen in fuell cell vehicle

Google Groups - misc.transport.trucking, by Dave Smith -15 Jun 2005: -- The environmental benefits of using hydrogen in a fuel cell vehicle could be significant but this greatly depends on the source of the hydrogen. For example, if the hydrogen is produced by electrolysis from water using electricity from a renewable source (e.g. utility supplied hydro-electricity or wind energy) then the net greenhouse gas emissions can almost be neutral. But if instead utility fossil fuel generation provides the electricity then the net greenhouse gas emissions would be significantly higher.

PRODUCTION - BRAZIL - AGRALE to boost lineup

BRAZIL -AWKnowledge (subscription)/ London,UK - Jun 15 2005: -- Owned by Francisco Stedile Group, AGRALE SA., with 38 years of tradition in the internal market, has four industrial parks in Brazil, being the only Brazilian company of national capital, it produces light trucks, vans, micro and midi buses for passengers, bus chassis, cargovans, tractors, and diesel engines, also assembles motorcycles and scooters...

PRODUCTS - USA - New Wireless Service Provides Drivers With Traveling Instructions

Akron,PA,USA -Layover/financialwire Jun 15 2005: -- Nextel Communications Inc., ALK Technologies and Motorola Inc. have launched ALK's PC*MILER/Mobile, a subscription service available on select Nextel Java- and GPS-enabled handsets that provide spoken turn-by-turn, street-level and truck-specific routing information...

PROFITS - CHINA - Auto sector profits fall in firsts 4 months

Beijing,China - Xinhua/Chinaview -2005/06/14: -- Profits in China's auto sector slumped by more than half in the first four months of this year due to sluggish sales, tumbling vehicle prices and mounting costs, according to an industry organization... The sector, including vehicles, engines, spare parts and motorcycles, reported 12 billion yuan (US$1.45 billion) in profits in the period, down 57 per cent from a year earlier, showed statistics from the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers... Profits in the vehicle-making segment slid by 74 per cent year-on-year to 4.36 billion yuan (US$526.5 million) in the period... The whole sector's profit margin declined to less than 4 per cent from January to April this year from some 9 per cent last year, said Zhu Yiping, spokeswoman of the auto association...

COMMENTS - AMERICA & EUROPE - Keep on Trucking

Washington,DC,USA -The Globalist, by Marianna Childress -Jun 15 2005: -- It is not surprising that truckers in Europe spend less time on the road than their U.S. counterparts. After all, no matter what their profession, Europeans work fewer hours. But a recent attempt to increase the average U.S. trucker’s workday from 14 to 16 hours — by adding two hours for breaks and other non-driving activities — was striking... In Europe, trucks make up 16.5% of total highway traffic, while they account for only 7.5% of U.S. highway traffic...

TECHNOLOGY - USA - CHRYSLER Adding MDS to Trucks

Ventura,CA,USA -Trailer Life Magazine -Jun 13, 2005: -- Dodge announced it will offer a multi-displacement system (MDS) in its pickup trucks for the 2006 model year. MDS technology offers a mileage improvement of 20 percent to vehicles, according to Chrysler. The fuel-saving system has been offered in the Hemi-powered 2005 Chrysler 300C, Dodge Magnum R/T and Hemi-powered Jeep Grand Cherokee...

ECOLOGY - SWEDEN - VOLVO's Green Machines

Truck maker eyes fuel cells for idling - Units would cut CO2, nitrogen oxide emissions

SWEDEN -USA/MSNBC -June 13, 2005: -- Volvo Trucks and a Swedish partner on Monday announced a joint venture to produce power units that use fuel cells to reduce diesel truck emissions. The technology doesn't replace the engine, but allows truck drivers to idle with the power unit instead of diesel... A single truck could reduce emissions of carbon dioxide, which many scientists tie to global warming, by 20 to 30 tons per year, Volvo said, citing statistics by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency...

RECALL - USA - FORD recalls about 260,000 vehicles

DETROIT,MI,USA -Reuters -Jun 13 2005: -- Ford Motor Co. is recalling nearly 260,000 vehicles, most of them large pickup trucks, to fix safety defects that include sudden stalling of diesel engines... problem affects F-Series Super Duty pickups from the 2004-2005 model years as well as the 2004-2005 Ford Excursion full-size sport utility vehicle and E350 and E450 vans... About 180,100 of these vehicles are equipped with 6.0 liter diesel engines and the recall stems from a potentially faulty fuel injection control module...

PRODUCTION - VIETNAM - Company to Make Light Trucks, Buses

Vietnam -USA/FORBES/AP -06.14.2005: -- The Vietnamese government has allowed Taiwanese manufacturer VMEP to expand from assembling motorbikes in Vietnam to making light trucks and minibuses, a government official said. Vietnam Export Processing Co, or VMEP, which is controlled by Taiwan's Chinfon group, plans to build a new automobile plant with an annual capacity of 10,000 vehicles...

JOINT VENTURE - USA - NAVISTAR Plans Venture With Indian Firm

USA - Forbes/AP -06.14.2005: -- Navistar International Corp., a maker of trucks and buses, on Tuesday said it plans to form a joint venture with India-based automaker Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd. to manufacture commercial trucks and buses for India and export markets...

WARNING - USA - Oil Prices Cause Paving Costs to Rise

To motorists this summer: Rough road ahead.

USA - Forbes -06.14.2005: -- From New England - where the punishing winters leave roads rutted, cracked and riddled with potholes in the spring - to the Deep South, repaving projects are being canceled or postponed because of the rising price of oil, which is used to make asphalt as well as diesel for dump trucks, steamrollers and other heavy equipment...

MARKETS - USA - Big Three Set For Further Market Share Declines

USA -FORBES -06.14.05: -- In a review of the automotive sector, Prudential Equity Group said domestic automakers are set for further declines in market share through 2006 as Japanese firms attempt to branch out into luxury SUVs and light trucks. "The big three's U.S. market share has been on a secular downward trajectory that has accelerated since 1998, as the likes of Toyota Motor and Honda Motor, expand into the profitable U.S. automobile market," said Prudential. "Toyota and Honda have grown sales in both the U.S. and Europe, and we believe this trend will continue at least through 2007, increasing the importance of a diversified revenue stream." The research firm said General Motors, and Ford Motor, have partially offset slumping sales in the U.S. by expanding into China, South America and Australia...

EDUCATION - FRANCE - RENAULT Has Educated Over 92,000 Pupils In Road Safety

Fifth round of the international "Safety for all” competition

Paris,France -Auto Spectator/USA -Jun 12 2005: -- Some 92,000 primary school pupils from nine countries took part in the fifth round of Renault's international "Safety for all" competition. This year's theme – "Road safety, it's a family matter" – attracted nearly 4,750 entries. A total of 200 national finalists met at Paris on June 10-12, 2005 for the closing ceremony of the competition...

ECOLOGY - USA - ARB Announces In Use Testing for Heavy Duty Trucks

Sacramento,CAL,USA -Auto Spectator -Jun 12 2005: -- The California Air Resources Board (ARB) has announced a cooperative agreement between itself, engine manufacturers, and the United States Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) to test heavy duty trucks in the field to verify that they meet emission standards. This Program will help to improve California's air quality and ...

EMISSIONS - USA - Advanced Technology Will Test Real-World Truck and Bus Emissions

Supporting Tougher Clean Diesel Standards

Washington DC,USA -Auto Spectator -Jun 12 2005: -- Testing highway diesel truck and bus emissions will be more accurate, less expensive, and more effective under a new in-use testing program announced today by EPA. Using state-of-the-art technology, the program will ensure EPA's stringent emission standards are met under real-world driving conditions and deliver increased public health benefits. This program is the result of unprecedented cooperation involving EPA, the California Air Resource Board (ARB), and diesel engine manufacturers...

PERFOMANCE - GERMANY - MBenz Particulate Filter: Inspection Authority Confirms World Record

Stuttgart,Germany - USA/Auto Spectator -Jun 09, 2005 -- Even one full month after the spectacular world records for diesel engines over distances of 50,000 miles (80,467 kilometres), 100,000 kilometres and 100,000 miles (160,934 kilometres) at 224.823 km/h*, these vehicles continue to demonstrate their ability to perform. First the Mercedes-Benz E 320 CDI handled a 1,039-mile(1,672-km), USAC** monitored test drive without refuelling. The average fuel consumption for the trip was 4.75 litres per 100 kilometres. Now measurements carried out under the supervision of the German Technical Inspection Authority (TÜV) on an exhaust roller dynamometer test bench confirm that the diesel particulate filter has maintained its full functionality despite the enormous demands set by the world record bid...

SECURITY - CANADA - Trucks scrutinized RCMP

Safety blitz checks commercial loads
White Rock,British Columbia,Canada -White Rock Peace Arch News, by Tracy Holmes -Jun 10 2005: -- Truckers trying to dodge Surrey RCMP's Commercial Vehicle Blitz at Pacific Highway this week learned the hard way it doesn't pay to try and slip by unnoticed. Fergus Savage of ICBC Fleet Safety recorded measurements made by RCMP Cpl. Mike Duncan on this truck carrying crushed cars Tuesday at the weigh scales on 176 Street near the Pacific Truck Crossing. Worn tires and how the load was secured were among the problems discovered...

POLLUTION - USA - Port pollution must be reduced

The problem grows every day...

Oakland,CA,USA/Inside Bay Area, byTim CARMICHAEL and Margaret GORDON -6/11/05: -- THE Bay Area was under a microscope... one of the most serious challenges to our health, usually invisible, may have escaped their eyes: toxic air pollution from seaports and cargo movement. Cargo movement, locally and globally, relies heavily on dirty diesel engines, a major source of toxic air pollution... Diesel exhaust causes cancer, respiratory illnesses and even premature death. Every day, each diesel ship entering the Port of Oakland generates as much air pollution as 62,500 cars. Every day, some 11,000 diesel trucks serve the port and drive through Bay Area communities... This number is expected to double — to 22,000 — in just five years, although our area is already the second most congested in the nation...

PRODUCTS - USA - International offers factory-installed tracking

USA - eTrucker, by Jill Dunn -June 2005: -- International Truck and Engine now offers factory-installed electronic tracking systems for medium and heavy trucks... The comprehensive International Aware Vehicle Intelligence system also prevents truck thefts, said Rob Swim, an International marketing director... The engine shuts down unless an access code is entered within 7 seconds after starting, Swim said. If the code is incorrectly entered repeatedly, the system can be programmed to alert a phone number, beeper or e-mail address...

TRACKING - USA - Proposes national truck tracking network

USA - Fleet Owner -Jun 10, 2005: -- Georgia Southern University Professor Bob Cook is proposing that the federal government create a national truck tracking system based on radio frequency identification (RFID) devices as a way to better secure the trucking industry... suggestion is to attach a small RFID unit with its own identification code to each truck and container. Every time a truck passes through a weigh-station, an electronic reader would sense the RFID devices and feed the truck and container’s location into a national truck tracking computer system...

CHALLENGE - USA - Price hurdle for safety technology

WASHINGTON, D.C.,USA -Fleet Owner, by Sean Kilcarr -Jun 10 2005: -- According to Michael von Mayenburg, Freightliner Group senior vp of engineering & technology, the main challenge to getting advanced safety technology onto commercial trucks boils down to cost... “The trucking industry is very competitive and calculates everything down to the penny. That’s why safety devices are not an easy sell,” saidthis week at an “Innovations Symposium” held here by Freightliner’s parent company, DaimlerChrysler...

STOCKS - USA - Schaeffer's S&P 500 Index Hot Stocks

Features General Motors, Ford Motor, Navistar International...

CINCINNATI,USA -BUSINESS WIRE/San Francisco,CA -June 10, 2005: -- Among the stocks featured in the June 10 edition of Schaeffer's S&P 500 Index Hot Stocks are General Motors (NYSE:GM), Ford Motor (NYSE:F), Navistar International (NYSE:NAV), Advanced Micro Devices (NYSE:AMD), and Adobe Systems (NASDAQ:ADBE)... Schaeffer's S&P 500 Index Hot Stocks is just one of the many free market commentaries written everyday at the home of Bernie Schaeffer and Schaeffer's Investment Research...

CORRUPTION 2 - MOCANBIQUE/AFR - Survey Finds Police the Most Dishonest Institution

Maputo,Mocambique -All Africa/ Agencia de Informacao de Mocambique -June 9 2005: -- The most dishonest institution in Mozambique is the police force, according to a survey undertaken in 2004 on perceptions of governance and corruption...

CORRUPTION - MOCAMBIQUE/AFR - Nampula Traffic Police Accused

Maputo,Mocambique -AllAfrica.com/ Africa /Agencia de Informacao de Mocambique -June 10, 2005: -- The provincial Transport and Communications Directorate in the northern Maozambican province of Nampula has accused the local traffic police of promoting corruption and lack of discipline in passenger and cargo road transport, reports Friday's issue of the Maputo daily "Noticias"... The provincial director, Baptista Rodrigues, said that if the traffic police does not change its attitude, all the efforts of his department to bring order to the Nampula roads will go to waste... All attempts by "Noticias" to obtain comment from the traffic police were fruitless. The commander was on leave, and the director of operations, who gave his name only as Luis, said he was not authorised to speak to the press...

NIGHTING - USA - Los Angeles Port to Expand Trucking Hours

LA,CAL,USA -Bloomberg, by Greg Baumann -June 10 2005: -- The ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach, adjacent terminals that ship more cargo than any other harbor in the U.S., are encouraging truckers to load at night and on weekends to reduce traffic and air pollution... The trucking hours at the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach will be expanded to 91 hours a week from 45 currently... Fees will be levied when trucks load between 3 a.m. and 6 p.m., said Paul Sherer, a spokesman for the group...

FUTURE - GERMANY - Daimler No US truck slowdown before 2007

BERLIN, Germany -Reuters / MSN Money/USA- June 09, 2005: -- DaimlerChrysler expects a truck boom in the key U.S. market to continue until at least 2007, the head of its market-leading commercial vehicles business, Andreas Renschler, told reporters on Thursday...

STUDY - USA - Trucks consume half of US fuel

TOLEDO, Ohio,USA -Today's Trucking -Jun 8 2005: -- Trucks now account for over half of all vehicle fuel consumed in the U.S., according to a new study... The U.S. Commercial Fleet Market Forecast, 2004-2008, by Toledo, Ohio-based market research and consulting firm Havill & Company Inc., says that the number of trucks on the road has grown at over twice the rate of the overall vehicle population since the late 1990s...

STRATEGIES - GERMANY - DaimlerCrhysler to Optimize Business Model

GERMANY - FORBES/USA/Associated Press -06.10.2005: -- German-American automaker DaimlerChrysler AG said Friday it will optimize its business model and strategy for its commercial vehicles unit, one of its bright stars. The program, dubbed "Global Excellence," will focus on improving "short, medium and long-term goals primarily aimed at increasing efficiency and exploiting economies of scale," the company said in a statement...

INNOVATIONS - USA - FREIGHTLINER shows off truck technology at DaimlerChrysler event

WASHINGTON,DF,USA - Today's Trucking -June 9 2005: -- New truck technology on Freightliner trucks was a big draw at parent company DaimlerChrysler's Innovations Symposium in Washington... The truckmaker was showcasing the latest developments in heavy-duty truck safety technology, including electronic stability control (ESC), electronically-controlled braking systems, radar collision warning with adaptive cruise control, Lane Guidance, lane departure warning, and a side visibility camera...

EARNINGS - USA - NAVISTAR Reports Second Quarter Earnings at High End of Guidance

Class 8 Market Share Continues To Improve, Initiatives Keep Company On Growth Track
WARRENVILLE, Ill.,USA -BUSINESS WIRE -June 9, 2005: -- Navistar International Corporation today reported strong revenues for the three months ended April 30, 2005, driven by favorable market conditions... The company said it earned $53 million, equal to $0.70 per diluted common share, for the three months ended April 30, 2005...

SALES - USA - FORD Plans Strong Commercial Truck Sales in 2005

USA -Forbes -06.09.2005: -- ... Ford also said it plans to expand its commercial truck business substantially, noting this month's launch of a new "low cab forward" model of heavy duty truck, whose tilted cab allows easier maneuvering, better driver visibility and more cargo space. The company predicted that it will sell about 325,000 more commercial trucks in 2005 than in 2004...

OUT LAW - MEXICO - City Borders Struggles to Restore Law

NUEVO LAREDO,Mexico -Guardian Unlimited-UK/Associated Press, by OLGA R. RODRIGUEZ -June 9, 2005: -- Nuevo Laredo is the busiest border crossing for cargo trucks heading to the United States from Mexico, and U.S. officials have said the violence could threaten trade... Bloody battles and shootouts have become commonplace here: Since January, more than 60 people have been killed in Nuevo Laredo, including Dominguez and six other police officials... Alejandro Dominguez was the only person brave enough to apply for the job of police chief of this lawless border city... He took office Wednesday afternoon, declaring he wasn't afraid of anything. Shortly after nightfall, he was dead, gunned down by assailants in this city on the front line of a turf battle between Mexico's two main drug gangs...

BALANCE - AUSTRALIA - Between rail and road freight

Railing against the trucks that eat Sydney
New South Wales,Australia -Sydney Morning Herald(subscription)-June 9 2005: -- The city is about to be crippled by an influx of container trucks, and painful decisions need to be taken now to ease the calamity. But there are ways, argues Darren Goodsir, to profit from what seems a helpless situation... It is not our worsening addiction to cars that will further clog already packed bitumen arteries. The truck industry - obliged to take greater volumes of freight - will be responsible for most of the problem. Freight haulers have no other option at the moment than to go by road because of the poor rail network... This blueprint examines far-reaching measures needed to redress the balance between rail and road freight. It also focuses on roads and road tunnels that need to be built for city motorists. If nothing is done to fix rail's deteriorating market share - at present 22 per cent - truck volumes will triple, air and noise pollution will soar, as will the financial and emotional costs associated with higher accident rates...

TECHNOLOGY - USA - "Convergence" Arriving on Backs of Trucks

CHICAGO,ILL,USA -InternetNews.com, by Jim Wagner -June 8 2005: -- The future called convergence is finally arriving as manufacturers deliver equipment that can run and manage those networks... Convergence has been a buzzword for a while now in the industry, a phrase to describe the morphing of separate voice, data and video services onto one network, whether the platform is Wi-Fi, fiber optics or CMDA...

SECURITY - USA - D.O.T. Inspecting Trucks, Drivers Not Happy

Des Moines,IA,USA, -WHO-TV -June 8 2005 - The Department of Transportation is taking action to get dangerous trucks and drivers off Iowa's roads. The Iowa D.O.T. is looking for hazardous materials, trucks that are in need of repair and unlicensed drivers... Truck drivers are upset about the inspections. We talked to more than a dozen this morning. We didn't find one in who is in favor of inspection. The problem is time is money to these drivers. The more hours spent on the road is more money in their pocket. The inspections slow them...

PURCHASES - USA - UPS orders 800 trucks worth $5.6 million from two Ontario manufacturers

CHATHAM, Ont.,Canada -Canada.com - June 08 2005: -- Courier company United Parcel Service of America Inc. has selected two southwestern Ontario truckmakers to produce more than 800 trucks for its distinctive brown-painted fleet in a deal worth $5.6 million...

PRODUCTION - UK - IVECO Is Fastest Growing Heavy Truck Manufacturer

UK -TNN- 8/6/05: -- Iveco is the fastest-growing manufacturer in the UK's heavy truck market above 16 tonnes, according to sales figures released by the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) for the first five months of the year (January - May 2005)...

ECOLOGY - USA - EPA Announces New Testing for Diesel Engines

Akron,PA,USA -Layover.com -06/07/2005: -- The U.S. EPA will implement new testing procedures for diesel engine emissions in time for new air quality standards the agency is scheduled to phase in over the next five years... The engines will be tested for emissions of hydrocarbons, carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxides and particulate matter...

STORIES - CANADA - Kenworth Toronto Reaches 25-Year Milestone

MISSISSAUGA,Ontario,CAN -Layover.com/Akron,PA,USA -06/06/2005: -- Over 50 years ago, Luigi Tarola emigrated from his native Italy and settled in a new home in Toronto. A mechanic by trade, he started a small gas station that also made auto repairs, later bought a car dealership, and then turned his attention to trucks in 1980 by becoming the Kenworth dealer in Toronto...

CONTRACTS - USA - Modine lands truck business with DaimlerChrysler

Milwaukee,WI,USA -The Business Journal of Milwaukee -Jun 6 2005: -- Modine Manufacturing Co. has been awarded a long-term contract by DaimlerChrysler AG to supply engine cooling modules for heavy-duty Freightliner trucks and to become a development partner for Mercedes-Benz trucks in Europe...

OPERATIONS - USA - DaimlerChrysler commits $40bn to US operations

Michigan,USA -Auto Industry/UK - 7 Jun 2005: -- DaimlerChrysler AG will spend $40 billion over the next five years to introduce new models and reinvest in its North American plants, CEO Juergen Schrempp announced on 6 June in the US... DaimlerChrysler maintains 37 factories in 13 states, pays 100,000 employees about $8 billion in annual wages and spends $36 billion on US-produced components...

RECALL - UK - KIA Recall Sedona

For wheel bearing and oil strainer replacement
UK -Auto Industry -7 Jun 2005: -- Kia Motors (UK) Limited is contacting 6,000 Sedona customers to replace wheel bearings and oil pump strainers. In 5,642 Sedonas built between June and October of 2004 there is a possibility of premature wearing of the rear wheel bearing. In a small number of cases reported in the United States the rear wheel bearing cap has not been tightly sealed, allowing moisture to accumulate in the rear wheel bearing...

’FORGETFUL FEW’ - UK - 15% of the population are needlessly paying millions

UK -Auto Industry -7 Jun 2005: -- The ’forgetful few’ are wasting their hard-earned cash on fines, interest charges and penalty notices simply because they say they don't always do things on time: -do not always pay bills... -do not always return borrowed or rented items... or -didn't update their driving licence and vehicle registration certificate... according to a new poll commissioned by the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA)...

ECOLOGY - UK - Britain's top companies get greener

Green Transport Week survey

UK - Auto Industry -7 Jun 2005: -- Britain's leading companies have improved their green credentials, according to a survey by the Environmental Transport Association (ETA), the ‘ethical alternative’ breakdown service. The announcement marks the 12th annual Green Transport Week created by the ETA to highlight alternatives to the car for everyday journeys.

ALCOHOL - SWEDEN - SAAB puts Alcokey into production

SWEDEN -Auto Industry/UK -8 Jun 2005: -- As the UK Government launches its Road Safety Bill 2005, which includes research into Alcohol Ignition Interlock Programmes (AIIPs), Saab Automobile is now implimenting the technology in Sweden... Saab Automobile AB’s Alcokey was introduced in concept form in autumn 2004. Financed in part by grants from the National Swedish Road Administration's sign fund, Saab is now commencing field trials involving both private customers and trucking firms...

ECOLOGY - SWEDEN - VOLVO to invest £48m in world’s cleanest topcoat paintshop

SWEDEN -Auto Industry/UK -Jun 87 2005: -- Truckmaker AB Volvo has decided to invest SEK 650m (£48m) in a new paintshop at its cab plant in Umeå, in northern Sweden. The new paintshop will be the cleanest topcoat paintshop in the world. The investment is being made possible by a regional investment grant of SEK 45m (£3.3m) from the Swedish National Board for Industrial and Technical Development and an environmental grant of SEK 85m (£6.3m) from the EU...

DUMPING - MALAYSIA - Imports is affecting Proton's competitiveness

Bernama,Malaysia -UK/Auto Industry/Malaysian National News Agency -8 Jun 2005: -- Proton adviser and former Malaysian prime minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad claims that the dumping of foreign completely-built-up (CBU) cars into the country at below cost are affecting the national car maker's (and Lotus Group owner’s) competitiveness... "We produce 25,000 cars a year initially in the beginning, but now we are producing more than 200,000 units, you cannot say we are not making money," he said...

MERGERS - JAPAN - TOYOTA plans poison pill

Tokyo,Japan -UK/Auto Industry -8 Jun 2005: -- Toyota Motor, the world's biggest vehicle manufacturer by market value, plans to propose a poison pill and other counter-measures against potential future hostile takeover bids at a shareholders’ meeting, according to a Kyodo News agency report, quoting unnamed Toyota executives... Such a move would respond to pending changes to Japanese corporate law originally intended to make corporate mergers and acquisitions easier. The new law, now subject to parliamentary deliberations, would allow foreign companies to use equity swaps to take over Japanese firms from 2007...

FLEET COSTS - UK - Road tolls will drive up fleet costs, says ACFO

UK -Auto Industry -8 Jun 2005: -- Fears that motoring and administration costs for the business driving community will increase significantly under Government congestion charging plans have been expressed by the Association of Car Fleet Operators (ACFO)...

MARKETS - EUROPE - J.D. Power-LMC report on May European car market

UK -Auto Industry -8 Jun 2005: -- Western European car sales fell 1.1% in May, year-on-year. The seasonally adjusted annualised sales rate for the month stood at 14.30m units/year, confirming the currently weak sales environment. A strong implied rate came in from Germany, although even this key market failed to help offset declines elsewhere. Improvements also came in from two other major markets, France and Spain, although the same could not be said for the UK... Italian registrations were the big disappointment in May — the selling rate dropped to 1.58m units/year in the face of a supply chain strike...

PRICES - UK - New car prices start to rise at faster rate

Glass’s New Car Market Trends Report
UK -Auto Industry -7 Jun 2005: -- The monthly Glass's New Car Market Trends report indicates that list prices rose by 1.7 per cent, year-on-year, to the end of May, equivalent to a rise worth £221 for the average vehicle. This represents the highest rate of list price inflation since February, when prices rose 2.4 per cent, year-on-year...

SECURITY - USA - Trucks and truckers get a second look

State police begin Operation Roadcheck

Flint,MI,USA -ABC12.com,by Randy Conat -6/7/2005: -- Vienna Twp. -- It could take truck drivers in mid-Michigan a little longer to reach their destinations for the next three days. State troopers are conducting roadside inspections on hundreds of trucks. They're looking for obvious safety issues. If none is seen, the trucker continues on down the road. But every once in a while, something is seen that catches a trooper's eye and a more thorough inspection follows...

COMENTARIOS - UK - Take the B-Double train

UK -Transport News Network -08/06/2005: -- There is a move to make 25.25m commercial vehicles legal across Europe. Sweden and Finland have them and Holland is trialling them. In Britain pioneering hauliers are campaigning to bring them here... Demand for movement of freight by road is expected to grow within the EU by around 50% over the next 15 years. Concern over CO2 emissions and congestion mean something has to be done. If a growing number of EU states and industry players have their way 60-tonne double articulated or articulated drawbar combinations will be part of the solution...

SALES - UK - Vans and trucks break registration records, again

UK -Transport News Network -Jun 7 2005: -- The Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders, is reporting that sales of commercial vehicles are still on the rise... Rolling year registrations at 395,665, up 5.7 per cent on year to May 2004... Year to date CV registrations up 5,742 units and 3.6 per cent to 163,989... Strong growth for light vans and trucks counter decline elsewhere...

DANGER - USA - Connecticut to restrict driver cell-phone use

USA -FleetOwner -Jun 3 2005: -- The Connecticut State Senate has passed a bill that would impose a $100 fine on drivers caught using a handheld cell phone. Gov. M. Jodi Rell [R] is expected to sign it into law, according to The Hartford Courant. The law would be effective Oct. 1... New York, New Jersey and the District of Columbia have similar laws...

COMPETITIVENESS - USA - Freightliner chides emissions policy

WASHINGTON D.C.,USA -Fleet Owner,by Sean Kilcarr -Jun 7 2005: -- According to Roger Nielsen, COO of Freightliner LLC, inflexible emission regulations and a growing shortage of truck drivers and maintenance technicians are complicating the trucking industry’s ability to remain competitive and profitable in the near future – and could affect the outlook of industries serving trucking, such as vehicle manufacturing...

COMMENTS - USA - As GM limps, its chief faces shareholders

DETROIT,MICH,USA -International Herald Tribune/France -By Danny Hakim,The New York Times -JUNE 7, 2005: -- The past three months have been the worst in five years for Rick Wagoner as the chief executive of General Motors and some of the darkest for a company limping toward its centennial in 2008... Sales of GM cars and trucks are sputtering, two of the three major credit-rating companies have cut the company's bonds to junk status, and a corporate raider, Kirk Kerkorian, has started buying chunks of GM's battered stock... In part, GM was derailed by a strategy in the 1990s driven more by marketing than by product development. Some hits and more misses bear Wagoner's fingerprints. On the upside, the company was early to get into China. On the downside, it poured more than $4 billion in 2000 into a partnership with Fiat, culminating in an embarrassing $2 billion divorce settlement with the Italian automaker this year...

BIGGEST TRUCKS - INDIA - SHELL arm seeks nod for bigger trucks to transport fuel

Chennai,India -Business Standard -Jun 07 2005: -- Shell India Marketing, which runs the retail operations of Shell, has sought the central government’s permission to increase the carrying capacity of its trucks to economise the operating cost of running its petrol pumps... diesel in trucks with a carrying capacity of 40 kilolitres, twice the size of the permissible capacity of 20 kilolitres...

SECURITY - USA - Los Angeles Port to Scan All Incoming Cargo for Radiation

L.A. and Long Beach ports to get radiation detectors

LOS ANGELES,CA,USA -SecurityInfoWatch(Arlington Heights,IL,)/Associated Press,by Alex Veiga -Jun 6 2005: -- The ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach will receive radiation detectors to scan every incoming cargo container for nuclear weapons or dirty bombs, Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff said Friday... The 20-foot-high devices, already in use in at seaports in Jersey City, N.J., and elsewhere, should be at the Southern California ports by the end of the year...

SECURITY - USA - A continental security job

Border officials eye technologies that help a limited corps of agents cover more ground

USA -FCW.com,by Brian Robinson -Jun 6 2005: -- Whether they are monitoring activity at bustling airports and seaports or covering vast, remote regions, government agents charged with protecting U.S. borders struggle to meet the increasing demands of the times... Congress had included plans to add 10,000 border agents in five years as part of the National Intelligence Reform Act signed into...

PRODUCTION - GERMANY - MAN adds Poland's Krakau to list of possible new truck plant

MUNICH,Germany -FORBES/AFX News Limited -06.08.2005: -- MAN AG has added Krakau, Poland, to its list of possible sites for its planned new truck plant and now sees a final decision on the matter by mid-June, a spokesman for the company said...

SALES - JAPAN - MAY: New vehicle sales up 7.0 pct year-on-year

Japan May 4th rise in 16 months

TOKYO,Japan -FORBES/AFX News Limited -06.01.2005: -- Domestic sales of new cars, trucks and buses, excluding mini-vehicles, rose 7.0 pct in May from a year earlier to 278,661 vehicles, only the fourth increase in 16 months, the Japan Automobile Dealers Association (JADA) said... Passenger car sales rose 6.8 pct to 238,182 vehicles, while truck sales increased 8.7 pct to 39,429. Bus sales, however, fell 1.0 pct to 1,050...

TECHNOLGY - USA - Revving Up Fuel Cells

WASHINGTON, D.C.,USA - FORBES,by Andrew T. Gillies -06.01.05: -- On a drizzly day in Washington a bunch of lining cars powered by fuel cells parkeds at the Capitol... The cars, from General Motors, DaimlerChrysler, and Nissan Motor, were part of a technology showcase sponsored by the U.S. Fuel Cell Council, an industry group... a tax provision would subsidize 15% of the price of fuel cell technology bought by private entities... As it stands now, the Senate bill authorizes $860 million from fiscal 2006 through 2010 for the promotion of fuel cell technologies... the Senate legislation sets forth both a purchasing provision and more targets in terms of commercial viability, such as 2.5 million hydrogen-fueled vehicles on the roads by 2020...

CAR MARKETS - CHINA - OPINION: Steep Grade Ahead

New York,NY,USA -FORBES,by Robyn Meredith -06.01.05: -- Just a few years ago, Chinese auto companies didn't know how to make a modern car. Now, thanks to the shared know-how of the world's best-known automakers, China's auto industry has moved into a new phase. The car market--like maturing Chinese markets for other goods--has come to this: lower profit margins for everyone and exports within sight for Chinese car companies... A worker, struggling with English, tried to explain, "They are our cooperator". Indeed. Not quite competitors, not quite partners, as the world's automakers rush into the Chinese market... GM counts 150 million Chinese with incomes of at least $3,000 a year--a car-affordability threshold. Sales are zooming, but minicars carry "margins that are closer to wood shavings than anything you can put in your pocket," says...

POLITICS - USA - GM: "The capacity cuts are too little too late, and the rest is really nothing new"

NEW YORK,NY,USA - Forbes,by Dan Lienert -06.07.05: -- General Motors plans to reduce its U.S. labor force by 25,000 or more by 2008 and cut assembly capacity, saving some $2.5 billion a year, the company's chairman, Rick Wagoner, told its annual stockholders' meeting... he discussed too, GM's plans to close several assembly and component plants over the next few years... wrote professor Peter Morici of the University of Maryland's Robert H. Smith School of Business: "He needed to explain to shareholders what percent of the market GM can hold and then map out how he will win it. He needed to explain how GM will cut nonmanufacturing costs such as product development costs and management overhead. He did none of those things". Added Morici, "The capacity cuts are too little too late, and the rest is really nothing new"...

SCENE - USA - "The trucking scene is booming"

Trucking competition heating up

Missoula,MT,USA -The Missoulian,by ROBERT STRUCKMAN -Jun 5 2005: -- Last month, MTS Freight - a division of Helena-based Mergenthaler Transfer and Storage - purchased Molerway Freight Lines of Billings in a consolidation that had some former Molerway employees scrambling for new jobs... Instead of shrinking, the trucking scene is booming. And that may well mean more competition and more consolidation, said Bill Davis of Jim Palmer Trucking...

SALES - GERMANY - MERCEDES Car Group: Fall 5.8 percent in May

FRANKFURT, Germanyu -Reuters,by Michael Shields - Jun 6 2005: -- A weak showing in Germany and model changeovers at Mercedes-Benz teamed up to drag sales at DaimlerChrysler's premium Mercedes Car Group down 5.8 percent in May, the German-American carmaker said on Monday...

OVERWEIGHT - USA - Trucks Take Toll on Local Roads

Wilmington,NC,USA -WECT -June 4 2005: -- Overweight trucks ruin North Carolina's roads and cost taxpayers as much as $100 million a year... The reason for this tough approach is the roads. They're getting worse, and the trucks seem to be getting heavier. For many companies, it's cheaper to haul more cargo and drive overweight than to pay the fines and be on the lookout for the police...

TRUCKING PRICES - USA - Trucking group sees hazmat rule raising prices

WASHINGTON DF,USA -Reuters -Jun 4 2005: -- The cost and difficulty of getting drivers clearance to transport hazardous materials is forcing some trucking companies out of the business and will raise prices, the head of a trucking industry group warned on Friday...

ECOLOGY - INDIA - FedEx Announces Plans to Add Hybrid Trucks to Fleet

Mumbai,India -Moneyplans.net -Jun 3 2005: -- FedEx Express, a subsidiary of FedEx Corp., has announced plans to add up to 75 hybrid, diesel electric trucks to its service fleet in the next 12 months, contingent upon pricing and availability...

SALES - TURKEY - RENAULT aims to sell more than 2,000 trucks this year

ISTANBUL,Turkey -Turkish Daily News -June 4 2005: -- Renault Trucks expects to sell more than 2,000 vehicles in Turkey this year, General Manager Gina Costa said on Friday... The company obtained a 5 percent share in the market for vehicles of more than 6 tons last year and a 21 percent share in the import truck market...

ENERGY EFFICIENCY - USA - Trucking May Tap Energy-Efficiency Funds

Akron,PA,USA -Layover.com/Fleet Owner -06/03/2005: -- The State Technologies Advancement Collaborative (STAC), a five-year pilot program funded by the U.S. Department of Energy and directed by the STAC Executive Committee, has announced that it will be making $4.95 million available for cost-shared energy efficiency projects... The good news for the trucking industry is that heavy-duty vehicles have been identified by STAC as an "area of interest," specifically projects to...

POLLUTION - CHINA - Some Polluters Getting Official Protection

BEIJING CHINA -Reuters -June 3 2005: -- China handled more than 200 cases of local governments protecting polluters last year as it struggles to balance environmental concerns with development... The environment had suffered over two decades of economic reform, a condensed form of the problem which developed countries faced over 100 years or so, the State Environmental Protection Administration official said...

ECOLOGY - EUROPE - Eyeing Changes to Emissions Trading Scheme

BRUSSELS,BELGIUM -Reuters -June 3 2005: -- The European Union's emissions trading system could get a makeover in the future as officials prepare for a planned review, with potential changes ranging from new gases to a new system of allocating pollution rights...

PRODUCTION - USA - HONDA to hike NAmerican production capacity to 1.5 mln autos

TOKYO,Japan -Forbes/USA/AFX News Limited/Nihon Keizai Shimbun -06.02.2005: -- Honda Motor Co plans to reorganize its production in North America and boost its overall capacity there by 7 pct to 1.5 mln vehicles a year by March 2008... The plans reflect a shift in demand from passenger cars to light trucks in the US market, and come as other top Japanese auto companies like Toyota Motor Corp and Nissan Motor Co too are boosting output in North America, applying greater pressure to floundering US automakers in their home market...

RECALLS - SWEDEN - VOLVO Recalls 13,000 Trucks Worldwide

STOCKHOLM, Sweden -MSN Money/AP/USA -Jun 02 2005: -- Swedish truck and bus maker Volvo AB confirmed Thursday it is recalling 13,000 trucks worldwide because of a risk of steering failure... The problem was discovered after an accident last spring, and the company notified that it would recall the FH 16 trucks, manufactured between 1993 to 2002... A failure of an earth connection in the cab and chassis can lead to electricity making its way into the steering shaft, which then heats up and adversely affects steering control...

PRODUCTION - CANADA - GM's Plant win top ranking

Local Nissan Plant Loses Top

Nahville,TN,USA -News Channel 5 -6/3/2005: -- The GM plant in Oshawa, Ontario, Canada, has win a distinction as the most productive auto assembly plant in North America. The new leader for production had set an industry standard with 15.8 hours per vehicle... A report released Thursday in Detroit said the old leader the Nissan plant in Smyrna, Tennessee, has lost this distinction, the plant spent 16.1 labor hours per vehicle in 2004, but in 2003 this time was 15.3 labor hours... Auto industry analysts said Nissan had a heavier lineup of new vehicles in the past year...

SALES - USA - DOWN for GM & FORD

Consumers turn to Asian trucks

DETROIT,Mich,USA -Detroit Free Press/AP -Jun 1 2005: -- General Motors Corp. and Ford Motor Co., the nation's two biggest automakers, saw sales slip again in May as customers continued to turn away from sport utility vehicles and trucks in favor of models from Japanese competitors... GM's car sales were down 1.6 percent,truck sales fell 7.8 percent for the month compared with May 2004. GM's sales are now off 5.2 percent for the year... Ford, sales were down nearly 3 percent in May, and total sales are off 4 percent for the first five months of the year...

OPINION - USA - America: Say No to China

USA - Forbes,by Jerry Flint -06.06.05: -- I am getting tired of the China story. The next chapter as it is commonly told is that China will become an exporter of cars and trucks and destroy the U.S. manufacturing base... When? I can't say, but a few things are certain: China can't do it by itself... Malcolm Bricklin, who has had some success (he brought Subaru to America) and some failure (remember Yugo?) talks about importing hundreds of thousands of Chinese cars from the tiny Chery automobile company. I say don't hold your breath... With today's safety and emission regulations and quality requirements, bringing cars into the U.S. is not a simple matter of nuts and bolts and sheet metal. Chinese parts, yes, particularly cast-iron parts, but finished vehicles, unlikely. China must sharpen its automaking skills by importing technologies from the West and Japan...

FACTORY PLANS - USA - GM's Plan To Save Pontiac And Buick

NEW YORK,NY,USA - Forbes,by Jerry Flint -05.31.05: -- General Motors' new strategy for its six vehicle lines sandwiched between Chevrolet and Cadillac makes sense: narrowly focused lineups and fewer copycat models in each division. In some ways, this is already taking place. For example, U.S. Pontiac dealers are not getting a new small car to replace the Sunfire, nor am I aware of a big sedan in the works to replace the Bonneville when it is discontinued...

AGREEMENT - USA - GM, DaimlerChrysler in Fuel Cell Deals

DETROIT,USA -Planet Ark -May 31 2005: -- General Motors Corp. and DaimlerChrysler Wednesday said they had entered into multimillion-dollar agreements with the US Department of Energy to further the development of hydrogen fuel cell vehicles for the US market...

ANTIECOLOGY - GERMANY - Upper House Rejects Bill on Diesel Filters

BERLIN,GERMANY -Planet Ark -May 30 2005: -- Germany's upper house of parliament rejected on Friday a government plan to promote particle filters to trap soot from diesel engines, arguing that a proposed tax break should only apply to old vehicles.

BIODIESEL - GERMANY - New Blending Rules Put Oomph

HAMBURG,GERMANY -Planeta Ark -Febr 9 2005: -- German output of biodiesel fuel made from rapeseed should move into the fast lane this year due to new regulations permitting blending with conventional diesel, the head of a trade association said on Tuesday...

DISCOUNTS - USA - GM to offer discount purchase program

Columbia,SC,USA -WIS -May 30 2005: -- Hoping to clear lots of unsold models, General Motors reportedly plans to offer customers the same discount that GM employees get... According to the "Detroit Free Press," GM will announce the discount purchase program Wednesday. Price cuts are based on models...

INSPECTIONS - USA - Roadcheck inspections are June 7-9

USA -eTrucker,by Jill Dunn -May 26 2005: -- More than 3 million roadside inspections will be conducted during the 18th annual Roadcheck, June 7-9... The international truck and motorcoach safety and security event is scheduled for 72 continuous hours. This year’s Roadcheck focuses on safety belts, motorcoach safety and commercial vehicle security.

TONNAGE INDEX - USA - ATA truck tonnage index falls 0.9 percent

USA - eTrucker,by Lance Orr -31 May 2005: -- The American Trucking Associations advanced, seasonally adjusted, for-hire truck tonnage index fell 0.9 percent in April 2005... The TTI dropped to 114.3, marking the third consecutive monthly reduction. In March, the index fell a revised 0.2 percent. The index in April was 0.3 percent lower than a year earlier, its first year-over-year decrease since November 2001...

OIL BUSINESS - USA - Recall Ivan as Storm Season Begins

HOUSTON,TX,USA -planetark.com/REUTERS - June 1, 2005: -- Domestic oil production will grow more vulnerable to major hurricanes as it depends on fewer pipelines connecting the US Gulf of Mexico deepwater to the mainland, observers said on Tuesday, the eve of the 2005 Atlantic basin storm season... Hurricane forecaster William Gray on Tuesday predicted a 44 percent likelihood of a major storm hitting the Gulf Coast, compared to a long-term average of 30 percent...

ECOLOGIA - USA - EPA delays introduction low-sulfur diesel

WASHINGTON,USA -planetark.com/REUTERS -June 1 2005: -- The US Environmental Protection Agency pushed back by six weeks the planned date in 2006 for introducing low-sulfur diesel, saying the delay will help ease the transition to the new cleaner fuel... Refiners have to cut the amount of sulfur in their diesel fuel by 97 percent to 15 parts per million (ppm) from the current 500 ppm... Reducing the sulfur content in diesel fuel will allow advanced emission control technology in diesel engines and will substantially improve air quality... When fully implemented, the new requirements will reduce 2.6 million tons of smog-causing emissions of nitrogen oxides (NOx) from diesel exhaust each year, creating the cleanest running heavy-duty trucks and buses in history, the EPA said... The program will result in the equivalent of eliminating air pollution from 13 million trucks, according to the agency...

ECOLOGY - SWEDEN - Green Ocean Transport too?

STOCKHOLM,SWEDEN - planetark.com -May 30 2005: -- Will technological advances, fuel costs and environmental concerns bring back commercial sailing for cargo ships?... Shipping firm Wallenius Wilhelmsen has designed a high-tech "back to the future" freighter powered solely by wind and waves in the expectation that increasing regulation and shipping costs over the next 20 years will force the industry to come up with greener vessels...

CHANGE - CHINA - Anhui Expressway To Change Tolls For Cargo Vehicles

HONG KONG,China -Dow Jones/Yahoo News/USA -May 31 2005: -Anhui Expressway Co., which operates toll highways in the Chinese province of the same name, said it will change how it levies tolls... While tolls on passenger vehicles are unchanged, tolls on vehicles carrying goods will be levied according to weight, rather than vehicle type as was previously the case. Surcharges will also be levied on overweight vehicles. ... "Extra tolls will be imposed according to the excess of the weight of the vehicle and the cargo over the loading limit of the vehicle's shaft," the company said in a legal notice published Tuesday...

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Jun 29, 2005