Kenworth PBS Truck and Dog: Review

Ian Hunt was well on the way to a broad-acre farm not too far out of Lockhart in New South Wales’ Riverina region to collect a load of grain from the farm’s storage silos.

He has been loyal to the Kenworth and Hamelex White products all his life, and has nothing but praise for his local dealers in nearby Wagga Wagga.

He reckons Brenton McKay and team at Inland Truck Centre, Wagga Wagga really go the extra mile for him, in fact, everyone there makes you feel part of the family, he reckons.

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He explained he had taken delivery of this Kenworth T409SAR and Hamelex White trailer about two years ago and so far, the combination hadn’t missed a beat.

“I know how reliable the Kenworth and Hamelex trailers are because you still see plenty of older ones lining up at the silos day after day,” he admitted.

Not far out of town Ian wheeled the truck and dog combination through a narrow farm gate and wound his way towards a row of silos in the distance.

He pulled underneath an auger in front of the silos a few moments later. He climbed from the cab and pulled the starter cord on a small Honda motor at the base of the auger then opened a trap door on the silo and grain began to flow steadily in the tipper body.

Ian told us that unwelcome rain prior to the harvest meant the quality of grain from this harvest is down to previous years, even so, volumes are fairly well up and over seven million tonnes of milling-grade wheat will be exported.

As soon as the silo emptied out, Ian shut down the auger’s motor and closed the trap door at the bottom of the silo.

He then wound out the tarps before he climbed back in the cabin of the 409 and got rolling down the farm driveway.

Ian reckons the vision and maneuverability of the T409SAR around farms is exceptional when you consider it is really quite a big heavy-duty specified truck.

The versatility of this T409SAR is another big advantage for Ian. Because it is rated up to a 90-tonne roadtrain, he can also pull an additional four-axle dog trailer on roadtrain routes, which increases productivity even further.

The restrictive length laws in Australia drove the original concept of the SAR at the time, which limited the length of trailers that could be towed by the longer bonneted W-Model. What customers wanted was a high horsepower bonneted truck like the W-Model, which would fit into the overall semi-trailer combination length of 47 feet and tow the longer 36-foot trailers.

Almost four decades later and the design that engineer Dave Glider first penned on paper back in the seventies is still leading the way in productivity gains through a wide range of applications.

Now with the implementation of the PBS scheme, the combination of Kenworth’s SAR and Hamelex White’s truck and dog configuration is again leading the way in productivity.

For the uninitiated, Performance Based Standards (PBS) offers the potential for heavy vehicle operators to achieve higher productivity and safety through innovative vehicle design. These gains are typically not available under conventional ‘one size fits all’ prescriptive mass and dimension rules or the state-based permit system.

Basically, PBS brings a fresh alternative approach to heavy vehicle regulation. It focuses on how well the vehicle behaves on the road through a set of safety, road wear and bridge loading standards rather than how big and heavy it is as in length and mass.

“In other words, PBS governs what a vehicle can do, not what it should look like,” a National Transport Commission (NTC) spokesperson said.

”PBS sets minimum vehicle ‘performance’ standards to ensure trucks are stable on the road and can turn and stop safely. We have tagged them SMART trucks – because they work smarter,” the spokesman continued.

In Queensland, like the southern states, truck and dog trailer combinations that meet the (PBS) Level Two will be granted access on a permit basis enabling them to carry increased mass (57.5 tonnes, up from 50 tonnes) on the B-double and Higher Mass Limits (HML) network.

Don Hogben, Director of Vehicle Management and Safety for VicRoads said:
“Stringent testing on a number of seven-axle truck and dog trailer combinations have been assessed against the national Performance-Based Standards.

“The results have shown that well designed truck and dog trailers at up to 57.5 tonnes and 20 metres long are dynamically stable and can pass all the PBS Level Two standards. This is great news for operators of truck and trailer combinations, especially those involved in quarrying and construction.”

In Victoria alone there are in excess of 2000 truck and trailer combinations transporting a range of quarry products, such as cement, sand, rock pre-mixed concrete and asphalt.

Philip Lovel from the Victorian Transport Association added: “The increase to 57.5 tonnes is a 15 per cent productivity increase for the quarry industry. Over time this will mean a reduction in the number of trucks and trailers on the roads for the same freight task, which will not only reduce congestion but will also see a decrease in carbon emissions. Furthermore, these vehicles will be safer as they’ve passed a PBS assessment.”

Kenworth’s EBSS safety package is founded on the proven Bendix ABS-8 advanced anti-lock braking system. It also incorporates ESP software that Kenworth has calibrated specifically for its model range, and Australia’s unique operating environment and applications. Kenworth’s EBSS incorporates a variety of safety features including ABS, Drag Torque Control, traction control and ESP.

Under the bonnet of this T409SAR is the ADR 80/03 compliant Cummins engine rated at 550hp that develops 1850lbft torque. Transmission is Eatons’ 18-speed coupled to Meritor RT46-160 rear axles with cross-locks in both axles riding on Kenworth’s Airglide 460 rear suspension.

Hamelex White’s dog tippers are legendary. The floor is made from 6mm high-tensile aluminium plate welded directly to the main bearers, while the walls are made from 5mm high-tensile aluminium plate welded to the top rail and lower corners with exclusive Hamelex White body extrusions.

The running gear is based on the proven Meritor suspension, and the trailer features a dolly lock in the fore-carriage and LED lights all come as standard equipment.

“Safety is paramount in our business,” Ian explained. “To comply with grain silo and quarry’s safety requirements, we’ve had to fit additional components like the wide-angle mirrors, which reduces the blind spot up the left side of the truck. We’ve also fitted, an auditable warning, which sounds if the doors are open, and the park brake released.”

“In addition, the four-axle dog trailer has been fitted with a body-up alarm system,” Ian continued. “This system provides an audible and visual alarm in the cabin to indicate that the tipper body is elevated and helps prevent it from contacting overhead hazards, including powerlines which can cause a significant risk to the driver. The system works through the truck hydraulics and registers any pressure on the hoist, which triggers the audible tone and LED display in the cabin of the truck.”

Ian adds another advantage of the Hamelex White truck and dog combination is at seeding time, when he can load fertilizer in the trailer and seed in the truck’s body.

A little over and hour after loading, Ian arrived at the Oaklands, GrainCorp centre and there were few trucks ahead of him all waiting to get onto the weighbridge. It’s here that Ian pointed out that his payload was only a few tonnes less than the B-Double ahead of him.

“For a farmer like myself, this is the perfect combination,” Ian said. “I basically took a broad approach and looked for a combination that would deliver good productivity with proven reliability.

“And, that’s exactly what I’ve found with this Kenworth T409SAR and Hamelex White truck and dog combination,” he concluded.

Specifications:
Model: Kenworth T409SAR
Engine: Cummins X15
Horsepower: 550hp (410kW) at 1900rpm
Torque: 1850 lb/ft (2508Nm) at 1000 to 1450rpm
Transmission: Eaton RTLO20918B 18-Speed
Engine Brake hp: 600hp (447kW) at 1900rpm
Front Axle: Meritor MFS73
Front Suspension: Parabolic
Rear Axle: Meritor RT46-160 with DCDL
Rear Axle Ratio: 4.30:1
Rear Suspension: Kenworth AG460
Wheels: Alcoa Alloy 10-stud
Rating: 90,000kg GCM
Bumper: Polished Alloy
Exhaust: Single vertical
Cab Colour: Ice White
Chassis Colour: Black
Interior Colour: Premium Soft Trim - Grey Graphite
Extras: Stainless Visor, Stainless mirrors