Freightliner 126 36-inch XT Sleeper Cab 2023 Review

Looking back over the Freightliner Cascadia stories we’ve done in the past, I realised that it’s nearly three years since I last drove a Cascadia. That drive was in the 116 Day Cab with the Detroit DD12 engine pulling a single trailer.

It was the typical truck for urban work or intrastate, and I used it in that context. I found it a thoroughly enjoyable truck and was looking forward to driving its big brother.

Due to the usual delays which we all know about, it would take a while but finally my time had come. And this time I was in the big banger – the 126 with a 36-inch sleeper – and I had it for two days.

The Cascadia was hitched up to a Krueger 34-pallet B-double set loaded to around 60 tonnes – a setup that would give me a thorough feel for the truck. I couldn’t wait to get on the road.

Cascadias come in many forms, with a choice of 36-inch, 48-inch and 60-inch Sleeper Cabs as well as the aforemention Day Cab.

Engine choices are the DD12 in the 116 or, in this case, the Detroit DD16. Outputs range from 530hp to 600hp and 1850lb-ft (2508Nm) to 2025lb-ft (3400Nm).

Our test truck was the 36-inch sleeper (as you can no doubt tell by the subtle wrap on the truck) with the big 600hp DD16. Transmission is the DT12 automated manual as standard although you can opt for an Eaton RTLO (Roadranger) 18-speed manual in various guises.

After a brief walk-around and a chat with Freightliner Field Service Manager and Trainer, Paul Windelborn – a veritable font of knowledge when it comes to Cascadia – we were ready to go.

Climbing up into the cab, I was expecting it to be all-too familiar. I’d driven the Day Cab, driven the prototypes, and even some of the test vehicles in the US, so I was pretty well versed on where things were in the Cascadia. Was it all the same? Well, no.

On settling into the comfy Isri seat, I was faced with a pair of screens not unlike you’d see in the Mercedes-Benz Actros. This was the new digital-dash version of the Freightliner. The digital dash is an optional extra in the Cascadia and can replace the analogue dash, which has gauges either side of a smaller digital screen.

The new dash has a 12.3-inch screen with a digital tacho and speedo as well as gauges, trip data and adaptive cruise control information.

Another centrally mounted 10-inch display features a touchscreen for ease of use, allowing access to a raft of information and settings, but also features a row of traditional buttons along the bottom for features a driver may want to control in a hurry, such as audio.

Below the central screen are two banks of buttons for mechanical features like diff locks, lane departure warning and interior lighting, as well as some spares that you may need.

The air-conditioning and heating controls are to the left and are operated by conventional dials.

There is no doubt the Freightliner Cascadia carries the title of the safest conventional bonneted truck on the market, and that was one of the reasons it was bestowed the trucksales Innovation Award 2021.

The list of standard equipment is extensive and covers all the usual features like ABS, ESP, seatbelt pretensioners and the like, but adds extras like radar cruise, and pedestrian detection that alerts the driver to the presence of a pedestrian on or about to cross the road. If the driver doesn’t respond, the truck will hit the picks for you.

That’s linked as part of Freightliner’s Active Brake Assist (ABA), which will pull the truck up if it thinks you’re closing too quickly on the vehicle in front.

Optional features include Side Guard Assist, which is yet another radar (there are two on the front) that looks down the side of the truck and alerts the driver to any vehicle, bike or person that may be in your blind spot when you’re about to turn. And there is a now a side airbag to add to the driver’s airbag, which comes standard.

Sitting in the Cascadia, the first feeling I got was one of spaciousness. Even though the test truck was far from the biggest cab offered, it still feels roomy. Some trucks feel a little tight, even claustrophobic, but the Cascadia is light and airy with great vision ahead and to the sides. It was a breeze to drive out through the suburbs of Melbourne before we hit the highway.

Our route was going to take us up the highway to Shepparton and then on to the border town of Echuca and over into NSW. The route took us from the highway then through some secondary roads and through some traditional towns. It was a route that was not unlike something a driver would take on an intrastate delivery.

Along the way, we got a variety of weather from sunny to cloudy before we hit a massive storm that had high winds tossing tree branches across the road and heavy rain pelting sideways into the truck (although fortunately we did miss the hail, that we heard had also accompanied the storm).

All through it, the Cascadia just did its thing and continued doggedly on. I did have to slow down for while in the storm but then pushed on and hit its straps again.

It’s the kind of truck that, as my co-driver Paul said, “just gets it done”.

The ride in the Cascadia is smooth. The taper-leaf front suspension combines well with the AirLiner rear giving a smooth, almost refined ride. And it can handle the rough stuff pretty well too, as we found out when we hit a washed-out culvert at speed on one of the secondary roads. It was a big hit but the Cascadia took it in its stride and we didn’t move off line or bounce around. Both seats were suspension seats, so we were under control as well.

There was still some road damage around the Murray from recent flooding but it didn’t faze the Cascadia, which got me to thinking that while you probably wouldn’t take the Cascadia totally out into the backblocks on crappy dirt roads, it’d certainly handle poor-quality blacktop with no worries at all.

As our day came to a close, we eased the big Cascadia into a handy rest area and met up with another mate from Freightliner who gave us lift into town for a steak and some refreshments.

It had been a great day on the road and I was looking forward to good night’s sleep in the cab, so after dinner I was dropped back to the truck and climbed aboard for a nap.

Although it’s the smallest of the sleepers on offer, there still is a surprising amount of room. The flat floor means you can stand up in the cabin to a height of over six feet. There are two sets of curtains, one for just the sleeper and the other for the whole cab.

I chose the latter option, and they were great. No light intruded into the cab, even from on-coming trucks on the highway.

There are two double-acting vents on the sides of the cab that can open either facing forward or back, meaning that you can catch the breeze whichever way it’s blowing. I found them great for cooling down the truck after the sun had gone down.

Our test truck was fitted with the TV bracket and had all the wiring, but no TV. Clearly someone had forgotten it or pinched it in transit, so I had to opt for clearing some emails and reading. There is a control panel in the sleeper for lights and air-con, but I would have liked a bit of storage nearby for my phone and book or a bottle of water. Picky, I know, but if it was my truck, I’d have something fitted.

All told though, I had a great night’s sleep, and when I met the boys for breakfast in the morning, I was bright and chirpy and ready for the great trip home.

After we got back, we consulted the Detroit Connect telematics and found that we had achieved 1.7km/litre fuel economy, which isn’t bad considering we spent the whole time loaded to 60 tonnes.

The Detroit Connect system is fantastic – you can pull down an amazing amount of detail from any journey and it can be used to compare drivers and trips. It’s a great tool for anyone, no matter if you run just one truck or many.

As we’ve said before, the boys at Daimler Truck Australia (DTA) have spent around $100 million getting this truck to Australia, and everything was in place for its success when the dreaded Covid hit. To say that they’re a little frustrated would be a massive understatement.

The pandemic and the subsequent supply chain problems have hit everyone hard, but they’ve arguably hit Cascadia hardest.

Not only has DTA had to deal with the problems that all the other Aussie importers have had to deal with, they’ve had to deal with the fact that Cascadia is the biggest-selling truck in the USA too, so obviously the locals want to feed their market first. Consequently, our comparatively small market Down Under hasn’t been exactly flush with product.

However, that seems to be easing and perhaps the people at DTA and their dedicated dealer network can now get a good go at moving a few Cascadias. Certainly, from this scribe’s perspective, it’s a truck that deserves many more sales than it has been getting, and hopefully we’ll see a lot more Cascadias on the road in the months and years to come.

Specifications:
Engine: Detroit DD16
Power: 600hp
Transmission: DT12 12-speed automated manual
Front axle: Meritor FG-941 14,600lb
Front Suspension: Freightliner taper leaf
Rear axle: Meritor RT46-160
Axle ratio: 3.42:1 (std)
Rear suspension: Freightliner AirLiner, driver-controlled differential locks
Fuel: 1000L (options available)
AdBlue: 55L
Tare: 8200kg
BBC: 3920mm