A major Australian transport company is pioneering the use of automatic transmissions in its fuel haulage division. Scotts Transport Industries has successfully tested two Allison 4500 Series transmissions in Western Star 4800 tractors hauling fuel tankers. Scotts’ operations manager, Ashley Scott, said the decision was prompted by a recommendation from a colleague in the United States.
“When I was talking to a colleague who operated a transport fleet in the U.S., he told us that automatics delivered safer operation, faster runs, better efficiency and lower overall maintenance costs,” Scott said. “That was backed up with other research, so we decided to trial the two Western Stars delivering fuel to a mix of urban, semi-rural and rural operations because it was a vocation that appeared to ideally suit the automatics. Our drivers start in the morning with a little under 30 tons of fuel. About 20 deliveries are made throughout the day, so there is a lot of stop and go traffic and highway cruising.”
The Allison-equipped Western Stars have been in the Scotts’ fleet since September 2012. Overall, the trial has been a success with increased efficiency and a strong vote of confidence from the two drivers. Detroit Diesel DD15 engines power both of the two Western Star 4800s used in the test.
