Paccar to go driverless with a partner

BRIEFS

Iveco going Chinese

CNH Industrial revived talks to sell the bulk of Italian truck group IVECO to Chinese automaker FAW Group, according to Reuters. Discussions were put on hold last year after the Chinese company made a preliminary offer valuing IVECO at a little more than 3 billion euros. CNH rebuffed the offer. The latest talks come as Changchun-based FAW, which makes heavy duty trucks under its Jiefang brand, looks to expand outside China. FAW made an improved offer and wants to acquire all of Iveco’s commercial vehicles business, including trucks and buses, as well as a minority stake in its FPT engine division. CNH is controlled by Exor, the holding company of Italy’s Agnelli family, and has held talks with Chinese Shandong Heavy Industry Group. Separately, IVECO is in talks to jointly develop autonomous truck technologies with Chinese startup Plus. A sale of IVECO would be an alternative to a plan set to split into two and list its lower-margin truck and bus business, along with FPT, in an effort to boost the group’s asset values and streamline its businesses.

M-B and Daimler to divorce

Daimler plans a fundamental change in its structure, which it says is designed to unlock the full potential of its businesses in a zero-emissions, software-driven future making the Daimler Truck business a fully independent, stand-alone corporate governance. Daimler Trucks is one of the world’s largest truck and bus producers, with industry leading positions in Europe, North America and Asia, and with more than 35 main locations around the globe. With more than 100,000 employees, it unites seven brands under one roof: BharatBenz, Freightliner, Fuso, Mercedes-Benz, Setra, Thomas Built Buses and Western Star. In 2019, a total of around half a million trucks and buses were delivered to customers.

Experienced new head at Fuso

Commercial vehicle manufacturer, Daimler Truck and Bus Australia Pacific, has appointed Alexander Müller as the new Fuso Truck and Bus Australia Director. Mr Müller, was previously the Head of Global Key Account Management and Vocational Business for Mercedes-Benz Trucks in Stuttgart. He has also served as the Head of Sales and Marketing of Fuso Europe from 2006 to 2013, during which time he oversaw a restructure of the sales network and set an annual sales record of 10,000 units. Mr Müller began his career with Daimler in 1999 in Stuttgart, in the role of Marketing Manager Vans. In 2002, he took over the role as Head of Sales and Marketing Vans in Italy. In 2006, he returned to Stuttgart as Head of Sales and Marketing Fuso Europe until 2013, when he was given responsibility for Sales of Daimler Latina in South America for the Fuso, BharatBenz, Freightliner, Western Star, Mercedes-Benz Truck and Vans brands. After his return from Sao Paulo in 2015, Mr Müller was responsible for the management of the worldwide Mercedes-Benz Truck Fleet and Bodybuilder business.

Mack’s new Australian national Anthem

Mack Trucks Australia has revealed a revamped model line-up offering a new stand-up sleeper cab, redesigned interior, new transmission options and an all-new model line-up.

The new, locally engineered and Australian built Mack Anthem is powered by the proven 13 litre Euro 5 MP8 engine with horsepower ratings ranging from 435 to 535hp and 16551920lb-ft of torque, the Anthem is set to tackle all manner of transport applications, from vocational rigid roles to B-double highway hauler. The bold new look manages to capture aerodynamic efficiency whilst retaining a hard-edged profile. Aerodynamic gains have been aided by closing gaps between panels and minimising seams. Even the tow hooks in the 3-piece bumper have been covered to assist with air flow. The Mack Anthem will be available as a sleeper or day cab and will be available in 6x4 and 8x4 rigid guise or as a 6x4 prime mover.

An integrated Bendix Wingman Fusion active safety system is standard equipment providing adaptive cruise control, blind spot alerts, autonomous braking and roll stability.

A 5-inch colour digital Co-Pilot display makes navigating various digital menus and functions a breeze while on the move.

The integration of the Bendix safety system now means that much of the system’s functionality can be accessed via the Co-

Pilot display.

Paccar plans to go driverless and finds a partner

Aurora has entered into a global strategic partnership with PACCAR in preparation for the delivery of the first driverless application in trucking.

This partnership combines PACCAR’s considerable expertise in heavy-duty truck development, manufacturing and sales with Aurora’s understanding of autonomous vehicle technology to bring a safe, efficient self-driving product to market quickly and deploy it broadly. This partnership builds on that foundation in two ways, both are a first for PACCAR and Aurora in the trucking space. It brings the engineering teams together around an accelerated development program to create truly driverless-capable trucks, starting with the Peterbilt 579 and the Kenworth T680. It also brings together the broader PACCAR and Aurora organizations in the creation of an expansive commercialization plan for the deployment of these trucks at scale over the next several years.

Daimler signs MOU with Cummins

Daimler Trucks has signed a memorandum of understanding establishing a global strategic partnership for medium duty engine systems.

The announcement also stated that other medium-duty engine systems for Daimler Trucks opportunities for collaboration are also being and Buses and the global production and delivery evaluated. of medium duty engines by Cummins for Daimler Cummins will invest in the development of Trucks and Buses will begin after 2025.

First Volvo FL Electric is with Linfox

As the Volvo Trucks electromobility journey gathers pace globally, Volvo Trucks Australia announced the arrival of the first Volvo FL Electric on Australian shores.

This first unit will be fitted with an 8-pallet body and tailgate lift and is destined for trials and evaluation with Linfox, undertaking metropolitan deliveries. “It is very clear that both our customers, and our customer’s customers, are demanding a cleaner and quieter urban transport environment,” Vice President, Volvo Trucks Australia Tony O’Connell said. “The electrification of our urban supply chain not only affects the local air quality of our cities. It also has the potential to make our urban areas more liveable.” “The introduction of electric vehicles opens an exciting chapter for both Linfox and Volvo,” says Executive Chairman Linfox Pty Ltd, Peter Fox. This will play a crucial role in Linfox’s business as they work towards a cleaner and more sustainable transport industry. “Our investment in sustainable vehicles will significantly help reduce our emissions in the foreseeable future,” Mr Fox said. The 4x2 Volvo FL Electric is powered by 600 Volt, 200 kWh battery packs which power a 200kW/425Nm motor. Power gets to the drive wheels via a 2-speed I-Shift automated transmission. In late 2020 Volvo Trucks announced its intention for all Volvo Trucks to be fossil fuel free by 2040. It also announced that presales for the European market of a complete range of electric heavy duty truck models would begin in 2021 with production to start in 2022. The road map to a fossil free future for Volvo Trucks also includes the development of Hydrogen Fuel Cell technology for long haul applications to complement the more urban centric electric drivelines and the gradual phasing out of the traditional diesel engine.

TWO NEW APPOINTMENTS AT IVECO AUSTRALIA

Discussion paper released for standards relating to Directional Stability Under Braking

The National Heavy Vehicle Regulator (NHVR) has released a discussion paper on the transition arrangements for implementing the new deemed to comply provisions for the PBS standard related to Directional Stability Under Braking.

The essence of the new deemed to comply provisions is that they will require new vehicles added to the PBS scheme to comply with the latest ADRs which include requirements around ABS and Roll Stability Control. The NHVR has proposed some transition requirements to deal with older vehicles, vehicles that are exempt from the ADRs, and existing PBS vehicles. These arrangements are designed to mitigate cost for existing PBS vehicles. The basic principle is that existing PBS vehicles operating under their original Vehicle Approval (VA) will not need to be modified. The transition arrangements proposed by the NHVR will require all new Design Approvals (DAs) and all modifications to existing DAs to comply with the new requirements by the end of January 2022. Any vehicles entering the PBS scheme for the first time under a one of these design approvals will be required to comply with the new requirements. The NHVR has adjusted the design approval modification process to accommodate modifications to DAs without requiring upgrades to PBS vehicles approved prior to the new rules being implemented, provided they stay on the original VA. From July 2022 all components of a combination that have not previously been in the PBS scheme will need to comply with the new requirements regardless of their manufacture date. This will not impact on newly manufactured vehicles but may have an impact on older vehicles entering the scheme. IVECO continues its transformation with the announcement of two key executive appointments. Ella Letiagina has been appointed to the role of Head of Network Development, while Glen Dyer will take the reins heading Truck and Van Sales through the IVECO network. Ms Letiagina joins the IVECO team with a wealth of automotive and management experience, locally and abroad, having held senior leadership positions with Mitsubishi and the Volkswagen Group. She will have responsibility for network performance and together with IVECO’s field-based teams, will oversee the development of new initiatives to strengthen the IVECO network and ensure customer satisfaction is the major focus. Mr Dyer joins IVECO from Mercedes-Benz where he held a variety of senior management roles in their Commercial Vehicle sales and financial services divisions, developing total truck solutions and most recently as Head of Dealer Sales for MercedesBenz Vans.