Overdrive Magazine | Trucking Business News & Owner Operator Info
Issue link: http://read.dmtmag.com/i/269152
Voices 4 | Overdrive | March 2014 After President Obama last month announced plans to impose greater fuel-efficiency and emissions standards on post-2018 truck equipment, some readers worried that it would lead to further cost hikes — from purchase prices to maintenance. Part of the concern is whether small operators can handle new costs as well as large fleets. This came up during the Feb. 9-12 Motor Carrier Safety Advisory Committee meeting, when former MCSAC chairman Dave Parker of Great West Casualty commented on the committee's list of recommendations to present to Congress as potential action items for the next highway bill. Parker urged committee members not to go too far down the road of "dictating stuff on equipment that's really easy [to implement] if I've got 10,000 trucks, but not if I have only two trucks." The Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association worried that "the standards will continue to push the cost of new trucks skyward, thereby forcing many small-business truckers and fleet owners to hold on to older trucks and put off buying new equip- ment as long as they can," somewhat counterintuitive to the goal of short- term emissions reductions. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's own estimate of the price premium resulting from the 2014-18 fuel-efficiency standards was $6,200, OOIDA pointed out. The plan also included direction for EPA and the National High- way Traffic Safety Administration to work with the California Air Resources Board to ensure "that the next phase of standards allows manufacturers to continue to build a single national fleet." Some watchers have predicted such a move. With any luck, this new push from the administration won't result in a national retrofit-or-retire mandate. Other voices on the announcement: Jim Stewart: I think I will just keep my 1983 model a little longer. It's been paid for now 25 years. We're on the second rebuild of the Big Cam III at 6.3 average miles per gallon, and it is doing better than most of the new trucks my buddies have with all their shop time and payment plans. Don Smith: I drive a 20-year- old truck with no APU and average 7 mpg, so 10 is not really out of the question. A 30 percent savings in fuel would equal $20,000 to me. Marc Maccione: I see used truck sales going up after this. Manuel Casarez: Up until the 2013 models, DEF/DPF systems have had issues, but newer trucks (with newer emissions systems) have far less of those problems. … Not that I agree with Obama's over-regu- lation, by any means, but my biggest problem with it is that it seems too drastic a change. The regs should be implemented gradually. With highway slopes, passing another rig can take a while. In the meantime, the usual flow of traffic will back up behind the two trucks. Here's my best tip: When I see another rig commit to pass me, I'll tap my brakes to stop cruise control and let my truck coast more slowly. The other driver will pass me quickly, and as he or she does, then I'll hit "resume" on my cruise control and flash my lights to acknowledge it's safe for the passing truck to shift to the right lane in front of me. The passing truck's draft typically helps me regain my full speed quickly, and the big plus is that we don't block traffic. I've never seen on my GPS that this adds any time to my trip, and the other driver usually appreciates this help. I know I would. I like to think that all of us are on one team delivering the goods for America. I reduce my stress with this trick. I think this tip can improve the quality of life for the other drivers on the highway while boosting the stand- ing of all truck drivers with the public. – Kurt Kleinschnitz Trucker tip: Slow down for a passing rig On display at President Obama's announcement of tighter truck fuel-efficiency standards was the latest version of the Cummins-Peterbilt Motors SuperTruck demonstration tractor-trailer, which the companies said has achieved 10.7 mpg under real-world driving conditions. It averaged a 75 percent increase in fuel economy, a 43 percent reduction in greenhouse gas emissions and an 86 percent gain in freight efficiency in testing against a 2009 baseline truck. Fuel proposal prompts cost worries Voices_0314.indd 4 2/26/14 11:51 AM