Fleet Management News & Business Info | Commercial Carrier Journal
Issue link: http://read.dmtmag.com/i/555101
28 COMMERCIAL CARRIER JOURNAL | AUGUST 2015 579 and vocational Model 567, is designed for shorter wheelbases and reduces weight as much as 100 pounds versus the company's 80-inch sleeper. It is available in both low- and mid-roof configurations. • Kenworth Truck Co. customers now can spec Yokohama's all-position 101ZL, 703ZL, 709ZL, MY507, RY023, RY617, and TY517 over-the- road tires when ordering new heavy- and medium-duty conventional trucks. The tires are available in a variety of sizes for on- and off-highway applications and are verified for low rolling resistance by the U.S. Environmen- tal Protection Agency's SmartWay program. • Peterbilt's SmartLinq technology, a factory- installed fully integrated remote diagnostics system standard on all trucks equipped with a Paccar MX-13 engine, is now in production to provide customers with real-time at-a- glance fleet health to maximize uptime, keep deliveries on schedule and manage service events. The SmartLinq app is a free download for Apple and Android devices. • Peterbilt teamed with the American Loggers Council to create a rebate program for ALC members purchasing select new trucks. ALC members may receive a $1,000 cash rebate on Class 8 Models 567, 367 and 365 in day cab configurations; a $500 rebate on the Class 7 or 8 Model 348; and a $250 rebate on the Class 7 Model 337. They may purchase up to three vehicles and must take delivery by Dec. 31. • Kenworth and Paccar Financial are offering a $3,000 rebate for purchases made before yearend of Kenworth's limited-edition Icon 900, a customized tractor based on the truck maker's W900. Under the program, there is a maximum quantity of 20 units per customer. The Icon900 is available with 72- or 86-inch sleepers and up to a 600-hp engine. • SmartTruck Systems announced that all of its aerodynamic components for long-haul trucking are covered by a limited lifetime warranty, which provides for replacement or a refund or any defective unit as long as the original purchaser owns the SmartTruck system. The previous warranty period was 15 years for SmartTruck's undertray components and seven years for its TopKit. • Great Dane will hold its firstSupplier Sum- mitandInnovation ChallengeSept. 28-30in Savannah, Ga. The summit will provide a forum to celebrate the contributions of the company's key suppliers, including an awards dinner. The Innovation Challenge is designed to unite resources to create new solutions for Great Dane and its customers. INBRIEF Continued from page 26 E arlier this year, Mercedes-Benz pulled the curtain back on Metris, a new midsize cargo van for commercial segments needing something smaller than the company's flagship Sprinter. CCJ was able to take a pre-production 2016 Metris for a road tour in and around the mountain ranges near Telluride, Colo. Approaching the vehicle, little of the exterior is surprising. Last year, sales of Euro-style vans – a Mercedes hallmark – surpassed sales of traditional- style vans for the fi rst time. Now that every major OEM has featured Euro- styling in recent releases, that trend is unlikely to change any time soon. Most noticeable are the interior elements that the 2016 Metris borrowed from Mercedes' C-Class, such as the instrument cluster and a blinker-style column-mounted gear shifter switch. Sprinter's bulbous dash-mounted shifter didn't make the cut in Metris, where gear shifting feels more like set- ting cruise control or switching on the windshield wipers. The commercial van also is not short on guilty pleasures such as inde- pendent climate control for both passenger and driver and a dash-mounted navigation screen. The steering wheel is thick, yet both stylish and comfortable. Tucked behind the steering wheel are two paddle shifters, allowing the driver to gear up or down manually with the vehicle in drive – another nod to the C-Class. Among other practical uses, the paddle shifters allow drivers with a trailer in tow (the van features a tow rating of 5,000 pounds) to reduce gearing versus applying the brake to slow the vehicle down a steep grade. An optional lane departure warning provides a subtle vibration to the steering wheel when the vehicle crosses a lane marker on either side. There is no audible departure warning like what is featured on Sprinter. Cameras mounted in the van's headliner monitor lane markings on both sides. A MIDSIZE MARVEL Mercedes-Benz's Metris van passes the test BY JASON CANNON T E S T D R I V E : M E R C E D E S - B E N Z M E T R I S Mercedes-Benz's Metris is a midsize cargo van for commercial segments needing something smaller than the company's agship Sprinter.