Reflecting at the Mid America Truck Show 2015

The 2008 Cascadia which started with the simple goal of attaining a mile per pint of fuel.

This is my seventh year attending the Mid America Truck show in Louisville, KY. with Freightliner Trucks. I just arrived in Louisville this Tuesday afternoon to find the convention center in full swing preparing for this years event.

As I pulled into this years event, I was reflecting on the past seven years with thoughts of what a great experience I've had participating in what began as Slice of Trucker Life and now operates as Freightliner's Team Run Smart program. When I began this venture, the main goal for Freightliner was to put three owner operators from across the country into what was the all new Cascadia with it's brand new Detroit DD15 engine. When I was asked to participate early on in the program, I was thrilled at the opportunity to test the newest truck and it's engine. For me, it was like being a kid again in a candy store with the new design and technology. I was given the chance to spec the truck myself, however was roped into keeping the main components fairly mainstream. When looking at my various options, I was going after options that most buyers were not selecting at the time. Some of these included: short wheel base, wide base single tires and a 6x2 axle configuration. As it turned out, Freightliner preferred that I remain mainstream for what most of their customers would purchase. We agreed on a 2008 Cascadia 125 BBC, 72 inch raised roof, 238 inch wheel base, DD15, 455hp/1550/1750 multi torque engine, Eaton 13 speed ultra shift transmission and Meritor rear axle with a 3.42 axle ratio. My goal for this truck was to attain a mile a pint which is 8 mpg. I did manage to reach the goal and this truck was sold through Freightliner to one of their customers back in 2010. If my memory serves me right, I want to say the truck had approx. 240,000 miles. Ironically, just a few weeks ago, I happened to pass that truck going the opposite direction on the highway.

The 2010 Cascadia was my first 6X2 tag axle tractor and I pushed till the traction limits were exceeded

In 2010, Freightliner allowed me to have a bit more lead-way on the specs. Every detail was pretty much the same as the first truck, however this Cascadia was equipped with SCR Technology. This was my first 6x2 tag axle tractor. My goal quickly became to attain 9 mpg fill ups on a regular basis. The lifetime average for this truck became 8.7 mpg for all miles traveled. This truck was sold in 2012 and had over 250,000 miles.

My 2012 Cascadia Evolution was the truck which inspired me to blog about trucking's four minute mile .

The next test was with the 2012 Cascadia Evolution. This truck featured the latest aerodynamics, engine and transmission technology from Detroit. I still had the horsepower set at 455 hp/1550-1750 multi torque. However, this time the Detroit DT12 Automated Manual Transmission along with a 2.50 rear axle ratio was employed. The only other change was a reduction in the wheel base which was set at 225 inches for a closer trailer gap. My goal for this truck was to break the double digit mile per gallon barrier which was 10 mpg. After much persistence, I was able to reach the first 10 mpg fill up, 10 mpg week and 10 mpg month. I am still trying to attain a 10 mpg quarter/year. The last quarter in this truck obtained 9.995 mpg. This is close...but not quite to 10 yet. The lifetime average on this truck is currently 9.7. It's interesting to note that this truck is a very close cousin to the Cascadia Evolution Tour Truck.

At this year's Mid America Truck Show, I have brought along what will become my next truck. This is a 2016 Cascadia Evolution featuring Integrated Detroit Power-train. I am very anxious to see how this truck performs with the new Detroit down-sped engine. This new engine, is able to produce 1,750 pounds of torque at rpm's below 900. This truck is also equipped with the Detroit DT12 transmission, Detroit axle's with a 2.28 axle ratio. I've not had the opportunity to drive this truck in regular service as of yet, however, my expectations are high for the performance of this truck. Testing has shown that this combination should yield an additional 5 to 7 percent in fuel efficiency.

I am looking forward to decaling this truck into Albert Transport livery and seeing what is possible in regards to performance and fuel efficiancy .

I will be here at the show all week. The truck is parked at the Pappa John's statium parking lot. Please come by the Freightliner Hospitality trailer and the Detroit Engine display trailer also located next to my truck in this parking area. I will also be working in the Freighliner booth during the day at the show. Swing by the boot area to check out the new concept Super Truck on display.By the time you read this post, there will have been a press release on the fuel mileage results from this amazing truck!

I think this amazing truck would look good painted blue and gold !

I would like to thank other participating companies who have assisted me along the way in my fuel efficiency quest for outstanding fuel mileage. I want to give a shout out to Michelin Tires, Fleet Engineers/Side Skirts and Aero Flaps, Nose-Cone, FlowBelow wheel covers/filler panels and AT Dynamics Trailer Tail.