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Field Test

Pickup Trucks, Classes 1 - 3, up to 14,000 GVW

What's inside the Ford Lightning electric pickup truck?

Tom Berg

Oct. 16, 2023

Evaluations

Inside International HX with S13 diesel

Tom Berg

Aug. 21, 2023

This HX620 and ballasted Doonan 48-foot steel flatbed gross at 80,000 pounds. The short 56-inch Hi-Rise sleeper can accommodate overnight stays; a tall-roof 73-incher is also available. The traditionally styled HX, complete with high flat face and dual air cleaners, is primarily a vocational model but can be spec’d as a highway tractor. This vehicle has features of both.

Trucking

Test drive evaluates International HX with S13 engine

Tom Berg

Aug. 16, 2023

Field Test

Pickup Trucks, Classes 1 - 3, up to 14,000 GVW

Inside the 2023 Ford Super Duty

Tom Berg

June 27, 2023

Trail Turn Assist feature applies inside rear-wheel brake to drag the truck through turns and drastically reduce a turning circle, as shown by ruts in the sand near the cone. Without Trail Turn Assist, Super Duty 4x4 took much more room to turn.

Pickup Trucks, Classes 1 - 3, up to 14,000 GVW

Test drive of Ford 2023 Super Duties reveal power, technologies

Tom Berg

June 26, 2023

Morrow’s 2023-model VNL760, dubbed “Purple Haze,” usually pulls vans carrying new furniture and averages more than 10 mpg. But it might also work well hitched to a flatbed toting pipe or building materials or a hopper loaded with aggregates. The Volvo’s aerodynamic lines, also used on nonsleeper models, reduce air drag at highway speeds. The I-Torque powertrain includes a D13TC, a 14-speed I-Shift, 2.16 to 1 axle ratio, and a 6x2 axle layout with a liftable pusher axle in the tandem.

Field Test

Volvo I-Torque proves economical

Tom Berg

May 9, 2023

The T380’s 4x4 system operated smoothly but of course wasn’t challenged by this dry dirt trail that ran alongside corn fields. Special equipment includes Braden steel “recovery” bumper that housed a 20,000-pound hydraulic winch, and a 12,000-pound Stellar telescoping crane for lifting heavy machinery components.

Service Trucks

Kenworth service truck set for serious tasks

Tom Berg

March 23, 2023

What a difference a bigger cab makes. In early 2021, Kenworth introduced “next-generation” midrange conventionals to replace long-running models with comparatively narrow cabs...

The 114SD Plus mixer truck scoots along a gravel trail at a test center outside Ypsilanti. Rough portions of two off-road courses gave the chassis a workout, but it never faltered. Not used here were the Detroit Assurance safety systems that can help prevent accidents on highways. Powertrain includes a 440-horsepower Cummins X12, an Allison automatic, and Meritor rear axles.

Trucking

Plus Upgrades Make Freightliner 114SD More Livable

Tom Berg

Feb. 19, 2023

Drivers should like the richer look and feel

The Geith thumb and quick coupler make quick work of a stone slab. The hydraulic quick coupler is factory installed as standard equipment on the ET58.

Evaluations

Operators test Wacker Neuson ET58 performance

Frank Raczon

Feb. 19, 2023

Exclusive Field Test

Viper red Class 7 eMV poses with a Cummins diesel-powered MV, International’s popular Medium Vocational model, at the Navistar Proving Grounds in Indiana. Cabs, frames, and suspensions are shared between the two otherwise dissimilar vehicles, though eMV’s gauge cluster is digital (inset). The drive system is taken from Navistar’s proven IC electric school buses. The eMV’s range is 135 miles, depending on operations, and the goal for future models is 200 miles. A Class 6 version for non-CDL drivers is also offered.

Heavy-Duty Trucks, Class 7 & 8, >26,000 GVW

International eMV Drives Like a Diesel

Tom Berg

Jan. 26, 2023

E-truck drove much like its diesel-powered counterpart

Heavy-Duty Trucks, Class 7 & 8, >26,000 GVW

Inside the Western Star 47X dump truck

Tom Berg

Dec. 16, 2022

Rock solid and carrying rocks. That’s the Western Star 47X you see here, though it was actually carrying gravel: about 30,000 pounds or 10 yards of it, a little light for a “quad...