Capital Equipment News January 2018

COMMERCIAL VEHICLES

Hino went the full automatic route for the first time with the launch of its 500 Series at Futuroad Expo 2017.

high rolling resistance, automatic transmission is said to be the best. Taftman says there is definitely a growing interest for automated gear changing systems in the construction industry. “With the Scania Opticruise, there are specific features which are developed specifically for construction/off-road applications, such as the ‘Off-road’ and ‘Rocking’ modes. These make sure that the vehicle doesn’t get stuck or can climb obstacles without compromising all the benefits of an automated gear changing system,” says Taftman. Swanepoel is also of the view that automatic transmissions are indeed the most appropriate for construction applications due to the performance demands of the segment which requires robustness and reliability. “With lesser maintenance requirements on automatic transmission, there is reduced downtime and improved uptime, which is the main driving force in construction,” says Swanepoel. “The automatic transmission delivers excellent acceleration and when integrated with a retarder, it provides effective downhill braking which is a perfect combination for use in construction. It is for these reasons that most customers in construction prefer automatic transmission,” adds Swanepoel. According to Prince, the place where one requires an automatic transmission most is in arduous, difficult driving conditions characterised by frequent stop/starts, such as in construction and mining. He also says that the automatic transmission is a winning solution in conditions where the truck needs to pull away with big loads on steep inclines and where a high rate of acceleration is needed. “It is also a huge advantage when working in tough underfoot conditions, such as soft sands, for a simple reason that you don’t have to use the clutch to get the vehicle out of a hole, for example,” he says. Prince adds that the reason behind a strong uptake of automatic transmissions in construction applications is that this form of transmission is particularly ideal for short distance operation where acceleration is important, and the fact that there is non-stop power to the wheels is a huge plus. “A full automatic transmission shifts gears without ever de-throttling the engine or interrupting power to the transmission, which is why you have continuous power going to the wheels,” concludes Prince. b

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