This is the 100th blog I have written since Jim Mele first asked me to be one of the “experts” in Fleet Owner’s IdeaXchange. So, I have compiled a list of 100 fuel efficiency facts, tips and best practices. Here we go!
- Paint your truck white to reduce thermal loading.
- Driver training and incentives effect fuel economy.
- 3% fuel savings with downspeeding.
- Pay attention to the powertrain as a whole.
- Talk with dealer salesperson about engine parameters.
- Don’t let fuel prices decide your efficiency investments.
- You lose very little productivity by slowing down.
- Sometimes something old can be something good. Think 6x2 axles.
- Keep your tires inflated. ALL of them.
- Shorten trade cycles; today’s trucks are much more efficient than those of five years ago.
- New technologies like AMTs can help with driver recruiting and retention.
- Driving 65 rather than 75 uses 15% less fuel.
- Rail, container and ships are improving their efficiency too.
- Not every fuel saving technology is right for every fleet.
- Set idle reduction goals.
- Encourage truck and engine makers to standardize engine parameter names.
- Smaller fleets and owner-operators are great resources - talk to Henry Albert or Steve Kron.
- Small, incremental gains in fuel efficiency are important.
- Pre-cool cabs before shutting down for rest breaks.
- Do you really need a 15-liter engine? Will a 13-liter one do the job?
- Not every truck needs two 150-gallon fuel tanks.
- Emissions regulations and driver amenities have added 1,000 pounds to the weight of a truck.
- Share your fuel economy stories.
- There is a strong connection between maintenance and fuel economy.
- Use total cost of operation, not just the purchase price, when buying features that save fuel.
- CONFIDENCE is key to the success of efficiency technologies.
- Transparent data and shared learnings help decision making.
- Efficiency is the new normal.
- GHGp2 provides an opportunity for OEMs to improve their product offerings.
- Blatantly copy fleets that are getting high mpg.
- Plan your parking, for instance, face away from the sun.
- Measure and track your mpg.
- Keep track of your loads.
- Slow down going into the wind, speed up a little when it’s behind you.
- Listen to the experts and act on what makes sense.
- Match mud flaps to tire width.
- Relocate license plates.
- Train drivers on proper use of APUs/Electric HVACs.
- Sleeper or day cab: aero matters.
- Spec reviews are critical.
- Continue to tweak specs.
- Address the parking problem.
- You need technology AND driver involvement.
- Be a fuel economy evangelist.
- Bring innovative thinking.
- Don’t forget practical solutions.
- Improved testing and validation is needed.
- Make a lifetime commitment to efficiency.
- Deal with all three drag areas on trailers.
- Look for tires that exceed EPA SmartWay rolling resistance requirements.
- Switch to a lower viscosity engine oil.
- Train drivers in fuel-efficient driving techniques.
- Encourage drivers to keep top speed in the low 60s.
- Stay up to date on fuel savings technologies.
- Wash trucks and trailers frequently.
- Fix loose bumper covers, fairings, skirts, etc.
- Match the outside diameters on dual tires.
- Get rid of unused clutter inside and outside of the truck.
- Give drivers as much visibility to upcoming loads as possible.
- Monitor MPG consistently — find patterns and outliers and act on them.
- Implement one new fuel savings idea every month.
- Add predictive cruise control.
- Spec aluminum wheels.
- Go to industry events and ask questions.
- Eliminate or reduce sleeper size.
- Optimize routing and scheduling.
- Use dedicated freight lanes.
- Consider electrification.
- Take advantage of higher weight limits and LCVs, where legal.
- Reduce packaging and even take advantage of new ideas like 3D printing.
- Openly share all the facts you can about what you’ve learned.
- Tests results can be precise and not accurate.
- Ask how the test results relate to real world operations.
- Manufacturers be more forthcoming about testing details as they apply to real world use.
- Weather, temperature, altitude affect fuel economy test results for the same vehicle.
- Traffic affects vehicle performance and varies by route and trip.
- Knowing your vehicle’s duty cycle is critical.
- Winter conditions can alter the vehicle’s shape and weight from ice, snow and mud build up.
- Be open minded to change – what about platooning?
- Tire rolling resistance improves with wear, its best fuel efficiency is at the end of its life.
- Rolling resistance is impacted by road surfaces, weather, temperature and pressure.
- Trailer-to-tractor ratio may often be overlooked in reporting benefits of trailer devices.
- Trailers that do not move do not improve their fuel economy with aero devices.
- Implement devices that have small fuel economy gains, their benefit will stack up.
- Trailer aerodynamics rule of thumb; skirts/underbody, then tails, and finally gap reduction devices.
- Go with recommended OEM vehicle configurations for aerodynamics.
- Aerodynamics on day cabs is far too often overlooked.
- Reduce lost time in yards or waiting for loads to get more miles.
- The combination of aerodynamic devices may be better or worse than the sum of each.
- Reduce empty back hauls.
- There are no reliable real-world methods to directly measure full-scale, on-road aerodynamics.
- Adjust results of SmartWay aero devices by one third to one half to get closer to the real-world.
- There are many ways to measure fuel economy, use them all.
- Road surfaces vary considerably in their friction impact on tire rolling resistance.
- Many fleets are switching 100% to AMTs
- More work needs to be done on truck stop electrification
- Technology is shrinking the driver’s influence on fuel economy.
- Fleets can save between 2,000 and 4,000 lbs. by investing in lightweight components.
- Make sure tractors and trailers are aligned to see fuel savings of 3% to 11%
- Success for us is continuing to help fleet cut fuel bills significantly.
By Michael Roeth
Source: FleetOwner