“Fuel economy of over-the-road trucks has a
lower sensitivity to weight because of the amount
of service time spent running at highway speed,”
say experts at Peterbilt Motors Company, a manufacturer
of on-highway, vocational and heavy
duty vehicles. “Th is is contrary to light duty
vehicles that start and stop many times per day;
the dynamics of getting up to speed is where fuel
usage is high.”
Losing weight
All classes of vehicles benefi t from lightweighting
to some extent, both to improve fuel effi ciency
and increase load capacity. Th is is largely accomplished
through substitution of traditional materials
for lighter weight materials and components,
but can also include reducing both the number
of optional add-ons and the size of equipment.
Light and medium duty trucks
When Ford Motor Company, a U.S.-based manufacturer
of cars, SUVs and light to heavy duty trucks,
redesigned the F-150 half-ton pickup for the 2015
model year, alternative materials were used to
reduce the weight of the vehicle. Th e company was
able to “reduce the weight of the truck by about
700 pounds by using military-grade aluminum
alloy and more high-strength steel,” says Tim
Stoehr, Ford general fl eet marketing manager.
“Th e weight savings contribute to enabling
customers to tow more, haul more, accelerate
quicker and stop shorter, all with better gas mileage,”
Stoehr says.
When this combination proved eff ective and
popular, Ford expanded it to the larger Super Duty
truck for the 2017 model year, and the Expedition
SUV for 2018, saving hundreds of pounds per vehicle
by switching from steel to aluminum bodies.
“Th is weight savings enabled us to strengthen
key vehicle components, including a heavier-duty
fully boxed frame, axles, suspension and towing
hardware, and still end up with a truck that’s 350
12 Fleet Maintenance | June 2018
pounds lighter than its predecessor,” Stoehr says of
the Super Duty. “As a result of the improvements,
the new Super Duty can tow heavier trailers and
haul more cargo than ever before, with best-inclass
towing and payload capacity.”
Heavy duty trucks
Much like light and medium duty vehicle
manufacturers, heavy duty manufacturers, like
Navistar, have taken a comprehensive approach
to lightweighting. In other words, they look at
all areas of the vehicle to determine where best
to remove weight. Navistar is a manufacturer of
commercial trucks, buses and engines.
“When we look at reducing vehicle weight, it
really is a holistic approach throughout the entire
vehicle,” says Jim Nachtman, product marketing
director for on-highway at Navistar. “We changed
the aluminum fuel tank hangers ... from iron
castings to aluminum, and that saved about 55
» “The weight savings
contribute to enabling
customers to tow more, haul
more, accelerate quicker
and stop shorter, all with
better gas mileage,” says
Tim Stoehr, Ford general
fleet marketing manager.
Photo courtesy of Ford Motor Company
The return
for every
pound of
truck removed
is increased
payload.
» Ford designed its aluminum-bodied
vehicles to be easily repairable to reduce
labor time and overall repair cost.
Photo courtesy of Ford Motor Company
pounds on a typical dual-tank confi guration. On
our International ride-optimized suspension, we
changed some of the castings there to aluminum
as well, and that reduced the vehicle weight by
another 130 pounds, approximately. You can also
look at the single-canister aft ertreatment system:
It’s a lot smaller system, it’s a better designed
system than in the past, and that saved another
105 pounds.”
Nachtman explains that Navistar has also
switched to an à la carte pricing strategy when
it comes to spec’ing new trucks. With this new
strategy, customers can order the options that
they want instead of packages that bundle more
systems or components. By selecting only the
options they want, customers can save both