kscarbel

Mack had planned to relaunch the E9 V-8 in 2003 (for the U.S. domestic market and Australia) with Bosch electronic unit pump (EUP) injection. Revisions allowed it to meet the latest EPA standards while delivering superb power and fuel economy. However, Mack Truck engineering was snubbed by Volvo Group. Volvo cancelled the pedigreed Mack E9 from re-entering production, in favor of the upcoming Volvo D16 (deceptively rebadged as MP10). So again, for the record, Hagerstown produced the last E9 V-8 engine in 2003. The Mack E9 was killed by Volvo Group, after having acquired Mack Trucks in 2000. Friend, I'm just telling you the sad truth. And it is very sad. Volvo only wanted the Mack nameplate, seeking to finally penetrate the US market sucessfully (after buying out market competition White and GMC, and milking them as far as they'd go). Today, we have the Mack-branded Volvo-produced truck, a mix of Volvo global components including the chassis, powertrain, transmission and suspension. For any Mack person, it is truly sad to see what happened to "The Greatest Name In Trucks". As for the Super-Liner, I've tried to outline the situation as clearly as possible, explaining why after the Super-Liner II ended production, the U.S. market did not get a Super-Liner III like the Australian market did three years later in 1996. From 1996 on, because of the Renault-Volvo merger issue (that you may simply not be aware of), Volvo was indeed exerting influence at Mack.

Fleet Owner / May 31, 2013 Navistar International Corp. has appointed Bill Osborne as senior vp of global quality. Osborne, 53, most recently served as senior vp of Navistar's specialty business, including Navistar RV. Osborne spent 20 years of his career at Ford Motor Co. serving in a number of senior-level positions, including president & CEO of Ford Australia as well as of Ford Canada. He also spent two years as executive director for pickup trucks and commercial vehicles, responsible for the engineering design, development and release of those products. Navistar noted that Osborne’s earlier assignments at Ford included a variety of roles with increasing responsibility in product design, development and engineering, during a time when Ford significantly improved its quality performance. "Bill played an important role in helping transform Ford into a quality leader in the automotive industry," said Eric Tech, Navistar president of global truck & engine. "I have every confidence that he will be able to use the same skills and rigor he demonstrated at Ford to oversee Navistar's quality transformation and improving customer satisfaction." Osborne, who will report to Tech, will head up quality and reliability for all Navistar products worldwide. "We have come a long way in quality with our new Class 8 products," Osborne said. "I am confident we are investing in the right technologies and capabilities across our enterprise to ultimately be the quality leader in our industry." Prior to joining Navistar in April, 2011, Osborne spent two years as a member of the Navistar Board of Directors. He was elected to the board while president & CEO of Federal Signal Corp., a position he held from September 2008 until November 2010. Before his career at Ford, Osborne held positions at Chrysler and General Motors.

Fleet Owner / May 31, 2013 The City of New York is investing half a billion dollars in its municipal fleet this year, much of it focused on continuing efforts to create “the greenest fleet in the country,” according to Keith Kerman, deputy commissioner and chief fleet management officer. Representing a major renewal of the city’s Fire, Police and Sanitation Department fleets, the 2013 buy will include 1,000 hybrid and electric vehicles. The new equipment will include 20 CNG-powered heavy-duty trucks for refuse collection. Other green-fleet initiatives already undertaken by New York’s municipal fleet operations include a citywide mandate that all diesel-powered trucks – including emergency equipment such as fire trucks – run on B5 biodiesel, with non-emergency vehicles switching to B20 from April to November. The city has also embarked on a retrofit program for diesel particulate filters (DPFs) for older trucks and completed work on three natural gas fueling facilities, one solely dedicated to heavy trucks run by the Sanitation department. Kerman was speaking at the 25th annual fleet show hosted by the N.Y.C. Parks Dept. in the old World’s Fair Grounds. The Parks’ fleet operations, which were once headed by Kerman, holds the show every spring to introduce other city agencies and nearby municipal fleets to new truck technology, much of it focused on clean diesel and alternative fuels. New this year at the show was a ceremony announcing the first “certified” fleets under a new Empire Green Fleets program sponsored by the area’s local Clean Cities organization, Empire Clean Cities. The group analyzes equipment and fuel-use data from fleets seeking the certification, focusing on reductions in petroleum use and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, according to Christina Ficicchia, executive dir. The first three fleets to receive the Empire Green Fleet certification were the NYC Parks Dept., the municipal fleet for the City of White Plains in neighboring Westchester County, and Down East Seafood, a small distribution operation. White Plains earned its certification by reducing petroleum use by 23% and GHG emissions by 12% with a fleet of over 320 vehicles using biodiesel, compressed natural gas and ethanol, according to the organization. “We have 150 heavy- and medium-duty trucks that have been running on B20 for almost five years without any problems,” said Josepho Nicoletti Jr., the city’s commissioner of public works. “No matter what the fuel, the important thing for us is that there is no compromise in operations.” With 16 refrigerated medium-duty trucks delivering fresh seafood to restaurants and other commercial customers in the New York area, Down East has reduced their GHG emissions 17% and overall vehicle emissions by 48%. “We have two Smith plug-in electric trucks that have been operation 8 hrs. a day, 6 days a week without any problems for the last four years, “ said Ed Taylor, founder and CEO of Down East. “Our other trucks all run on biodiesel.” The green fleet certification not only fits the company’s desire to be environmentally proactive, “but it also fits our business,” Taylor said. “Our customers are happy to do business with someone who cares about sustainability.”

You are so right. The Mack name is merely a stepping stone towards Volvo's goal of global domination of the truck industry. In their minds, there's but one name and that's Volvo. What Volvo has done, reduce an American and global icon down to a mere shell of its former self, should be a crime.

According to Volvo, the Mack brand has four "models", and I share the same opinion. PinnacleGraniteTitanTerraproNow friend, I didn't say the Granite was a compromise replacement of the RD (alone). Look closer and you'll see I said the Granite is a compromise replacement for the DM, RB and RD-600. The Macungie-produced RWI600/700 Superliner II (utilizing the advanced Ultra-Liner chassis) was built from 1984 thru 1993. Mack Trucks Australia introduced the highly successful third generation Super-Liner III in 1996. Having missed a Super-Liner product for three years, U.S. Mack dealers indeed wanted a next generation Super-Liner as well. However at that time, Volvo had used its relationship with Renault (the result of their merger negotiations) to successfully replace the pro-Mack President Pierre Jocou with the pro-Volvo takeover Mack President Michel Gigou who was charged with keeping spending down until the acquisition could be accomplished. And absolutely, when asking why the U.S. market didn't get a next generation Super-Liner as Australia did, the dirty pool that Volvo played at this juncture can't be understated. Volvo met with Marc Gustafson, Mack’s vice president of sales and marketing from 1992, and convinced him into being a traitor for the Volvo cause. Gustafson plotted with the ruthless Swedes at Volvo to conspire against Mack (the Swedes later double-crossed him – traitors usually get what they deserve). The traitor Marc Gustafson is the first reason why Mack (U.S.) didn't get a next generation Super-Liner. Gustafson abruptly left Mack in 1996 to become CEO of Volvo Trucks of North America. He betrayed Mack and used his privileged insider knowledge against Mack Trucks to help orchestrate Volvo’s takeover. Note the time period - 1996. This is when Mack lost momentum and direction. At Volvo, Gustafson convinced Volvo Group that with his insider knowledge, he could deliver Mack Trucks into Volvo’s hands. And sadly, he contributed to that end. (Renault-appointed Mack President Pierre Jocou responded quickly and took a hard stand against Gustafson’s defection. But Volvo then used its relationship with Renault (the result of their merger negotiations) to ease the legal battle against Gustafson, and abruptly replace the pro-Mack President Pierre Jocou with the pro-Volvo takeover Mack President Michel Gigou in 1996) "stop running down something you've never driven mr k scarbel" Hmm. My friend, you just don't know the half of it. And you worked for Mack Trucks how many years?

Congratulations on getting a nice truck. 275 versus 300, for your trouble and expense, you won't notice the difference in power. Enjoy the slight fuel savings of the 275 and stick with it. Mack parts used to sell a Jake retrofit kit, give your dealer a call. Both Kysor and Red Dot used to offer aftermarket AC kits for this cab. I much prefer Red Dot (the in-cab portion). I preferred the Mack OEM compressor bracketry over what came with these aftermarket kits. Taking a look at a similar vintage R/RD with factory air will be immensely useful to you.

I'm with you. The Granite MHD is just a decontented Granite, not a purpose-designed truck model (e.g. Freightliner M2) for the market segment intended. Hence Volvo can't reach the price point with it. The Mid-Liner was a terrific truck. Sales fell only towards the end because Renault arguably waited too long to replace it, and when that did occur, under Volvo's reign in June 2001 with the Mack "Freedom", a high price made it uncompetitive. (Plus, you have our high tariffs on imported trucks. Assembling the trucks in the US as Hino does, would resolve that disadvantage). The Mack-branded "Freedom" (the European Renault Midlum with its Renault Premium-based cab) was too high end for the American market, a dramatic change from the utilitarian MS/CS/Manager it replaced (Nothing wrong with a more refined interior IF it's styled for the "American" medium truck segment and priced competitively). Volvo should have tuned down the cab interior's European flavor and price point. Compared to the European market, a U.S. market medium truck has less features and a resulting lower price. The "Freedom" wasn't properly market-adapted to the United States.The horrible looking front grille that Volvo chose for the U.S. market Mack-branded version ruined the appearance of the entire truck (The Renault version was much better). It's much easier to sell trucks that people find attractive.Volvo didn't market/promote the "Freedom" properly. As a European-appointed truck lost in the U.S. market place, Volvo only sold the "Freedom" from 2001 thru 2003, a far cry from the Mack/RVI marketed Mid-Liner/Manager that sold solidly for 22 years from 1979 thru 2001.

Under Volvo, the Mack product range has narrowed considerably to just four models, down from sixteen. Pinnacle - a compromise replacement for the R-model Pinnacle Rawhide - mission unknown, certainly not a RWI-600/700 Super-Liner replacement Titan - replaced the CL-700 (The Australian Titan looks 10 times better, why didn't Volvo go with that for the US?) Granite - a compromise replacement for the DM, RB and RD-600 Terrapro - a low budget facelift of the tired MR LE - An attempt at the dual steer market. Not a home run in the design department, not on target as the MR was (Unbelievable that it was NOT designed for integral AC - only an antiquated roof-top arrangement is offered) Missing Models (or the equivalent there of): RS-RL Value-Liner "II" (The Australian Trident comes to mind) RWI-600/700 Super-Liner "II" MH Ultra-Liner "II" COE for the U.S. AND global markets (where COE is the dominant heavy truck type) MC "II" low cab forward regional LTL tractor and straight truck chassis RD-800 DM-800 DMM-6006 RM-6006 / RM-4004 U Model "II" - a short hooded regional LTL tractor (Volvo Group gave the regional LTL business to the Volvo brand, the snub-nosed 113" BBC VNM, so the workers at New River Valley would have something to do) Mid-Liner MS "II" COE cab medium-duty Mid-Liner CS "II" conventional cab medium-duty Next Generation CF "II" fire apparatus chassis (for long-term sales agreements to major body manufacturers) MC "II" -based fire apparatus chassis (for long-term sales agreements to major body manufacturers) Mid-Liner MS/CS "II"-based fire apparatus chassis (for long-term sales agreements to major body manufacturers)

It appears to be the steel hood version of the same truck (The other having a fiberglass hood). Thanks for taking time out to share this.

Transport Topics / 5-30-2013 Con-way Truckload said it has purchased 525 new tractors from Kenworth Truck Co. and Navistar International Corp. The truckload carrier said it purchased 325 Kenworth T680 models and 200 Navistar ProStar units and that it selected the tractors based on input from drivers. Hundreds of drivers participated in product reviews and surveys, with a majority selecting the Kenworth T680 model, favoring the interior and increased width in the bunk, according to Con-way. The addition of the 2014 Navistar ProStars was based upon positive driver feedback on cab comfort, the truckload carrier said. The tractors are being delivered throughout the year, and the same amount of purchased tractors will be retired as they reach 500,000 miles, according to Con-way. Con-way Truckload is a subsidiary of Con-way Inc. which is ranked No. 3 on the Transport Topics Top 100 listing of U.S. and Canadian for-hire carriers.

For all those thrilled that America's most prominent truckmaker, Mack Trucks, is now nothing but a brand name owned by Sweden's Volvo Group, today's news will mean nothing to you. But in my mind, it is yet another sad day for America. Yet another brick and mortar United States company, Smithfield Foods, has been sold to a foreign company. America, in the past, led the world (and stabilized the world) with our economic might purely owing to our industrial might. Sadly, those days are being resigned to the history books. ___________________________________________________ WSJ / May 29, 2013 China's Shuanghui to Buy Smithfield Foods Chinese meat producer Shuanghui International Holdings Ltd. agreed to acquire Smithfield Foods Inc. for about $4.7 billion, striking what would be the largest takeover of a U.S. company by a Chinese buyer. Shuanghui agreed to pay $34 per share for Smithfield, the world's largest hog farmer and pork processor, marking a 31% premium to Smithfield's Tuesday closing price of $25.97. Including debt, the deal values Smithfield at $7.1 billion. Smithfield owns an array of household names, including Armour, Farmland and Healthy Ones, and is sold in 12 countries.

That's a real nice International, an Australian classic. But speaking of your load, I've never understood why Toyota doesn't sell the 70 Series Land Cruisers in the U.S. market. They're simple, rugged and significantly more affordable that the completely different 200 series Land Cruisers (and sister Lexus LX570) that Americans are familiar with. The 70 series Land Cruisers would pacify all those Americans who wish they could go out and buy a new Toyota FJ40 2-door hardtop, FJ40 pickup and FJ55 4-door station wagon. The 70 Series actually was the replacement for the 40 Series.

There is no relationship between this China truck and engine production specifically for the China market, and whatever (medium) truck plans Ford has for the U.S. market. China is no longer an inexpensive place to produce and quality control remains a problem. Ford is building in China for China because of prohibitively high truck import tariffs (which the U.S. also has).

Automotive News / May 28, 2013 Jiangling Motors Corp. (JMC), Ford Motor Co.'s commercial vehicle joint venture in China, broke ground for an engine plant in Taiyuan City, Shanxi Province. The US$82 million facility will build Ford's diesel engines for heavy trucks to be produced at Jiangling's newly acquired Taiyuan Changan heavy truck plant. The plant will launch production in the second half of 2015. Initially it will build up to 10,000 engines a year. Last year, JMC acquired heavy truckmaker Taiyuan Changan Heavy Truck. The joint venture also will build Ford-branded trucks there. Ford joint-ventured with JMC in 1997 to build Ford Transit vans. Ford increased its stake to (a still modest) 31.5 percent in 2013. Located in east China's Jiangxi Province, the JV also builds JMC-branded SUVs, pickups, vans and light trucks. Ford also has a passenger car joint venture with Changan Automobile Co. in Chongqing. Note: When they say “diesel engines for heavy trucks”, they’re talking about the Ford Otosan “Ecotorq” engine, a 7.3 liter 260hp powerplant (24-valve in-line 6-cylinder – not a Powerstroke) in production at Ford Otosan (Turkey) since 2003. Obviously this 7.3L motor isn’t a heavy truck engine, and China is very much a heavy truck market with loads ranging from 97,000 to 155,000 pounds. Since JMC’s newly acquired Taiyuan Changan Heavy Truck unit primarily builds heavy trucks (MAN F2000-based trucks with updated Steyr-design engines), it would seem the Ford Otosan truck range will target China's large medium truck and “baby 8” market segment. At any rate, between Turkey and Brazil, and now China, Ford is cautiously becoming a global truckmaker again.

This reasonably modern looking plant hides its age and history well. The 125-acre former Buick engine plant on North Avenue in Melrose Park, Illinois was constructed in 1941 to produce Pratt and Whitney R-1830 engines for the Army Air Corps' four-engined Consolidated B-24 “Liberator” heavy bombers. After the war, International Harvester purchased the plant to manufacture engines for trucks, construction and agricultural machinery.

Fleet Owner / May 24, 2013 MELROSE PARK, IL. The $90-million investment Navistar has made to integrate its vehicle development and testing functions last fall into a single location here close by its Lisle, IL headquarters campus in suburban Chicago is already having a positive impact, according to company executives. Consolidating engineering activities around vehicle development and testing at Navistar’s historic (nearly 75,000 engines for B-24 Liberator bombers were built here in WWII) and sprawling (2-million sq ft currently) engine plant helps enable “a new focus on excellence in manufacturing,” stated Navistar CEO Troy Clarke. The result will be higher-quality trucks and engines coming to market that should increase the OEM’s market share. Clarke noted that Navistar’s current 14.5% share of Class 8 is less than half what it was before the company chose to not pursue SCR technology for its heavy-duty engines. With higher-quality products — including its own SCR-equipped MaxxForce 13L engine as well as the Cummins ISX 15L now reaching the market, Clarke expects International’s Class 8 market share will climb to as high as 18% by the close of the OEM’s fiscal year this fall. “We’ve taken decisive actions [to move ahead] on a broad front to gain adjustments in our cost structure,” Clarke told Fleet Owner. “Along with moving to SCR for MaxxForce and the ISX launch, we’ve reduced costs significantly through better management of all the processes. For us, it has to be about excellence in everything from engineering to purchasing to manufacturing. “What we are doing,” he added, “is building off a new [leaner] foundation and so now we can start to begin to gain back market share.” Steve Nash, director of operations for Navistar’s Test Center in Melrose Park, oversees testing and validation for all Navistar North American products. Since joining the OEM last year, he’s “led the creation of one of the few test centers in the commercial vehicle industry that can accommodate a full-size tractor or bus.” Nash was responsible for the project’s $90-million budget, managing the migration of existing Navistar test capabilities (primarily from Ft. Wayne, IN) “and building on those capabilities to strengthen product quality.” “The centralized capabilities here enabled the ProStar Plus tractor powered by the Cummins ISX 15 in the record time of five months. And the ProStar Plus with our MaxxForce 13 SCR-equipped engine was delivered in April — ahead of schedule.” According to Nash, vehicle development and testing has been greatly enhanced by via the new integrated facilities model. “We integrated the functions of our Fort Wayne [iN] Tech Center here, although we are maintaining the test track there. We also consolidated secondary development/testing operations here,” he explained “The result is we can handle prototype building and testing as well as field-testing operations here in one facility,” Nash added, “ and it is a short drive from the main campus” facilitating face-to-face consultation among engineers and others in the company. Nash said the Melrose Park operation now includes 56 prototype “build bays” with 50 build engineers, machinists and mechanics on staff as well as a 650,000-sq.-ft. test facility with 300 test engineers, technicians and operators on staff. In addition, field-testing operations involve facilities in Denver and central Ohio. He noted that the consolidation and the advanced facilities here enable the OEM “to better focus on key customer concerns: reliability/quality/uptime; the driver experience; initial design and visual impact; and of course, fuel efficiency.” Key vehicle development and testing capabilities in Melrose Park now also include: Body Development Lab— which runs such tests as frontal impact, roof strength, seat-pullShaker Test Lab—which can test and run up to four truck cab assembliesHot and Cold Chamber—tests at temperatures of -40°F to 130°FCorrosion Lab-- contains a ‘full vehicle’ chamberEngine Dyno Testing-- 50 engine test cellsAnd slated for Phase II of the project are: Completion of Climatic Wind TunnelNoise/Vibration/Harshness Test LabMuseumThe Melrose Park complex also continues to produce Navistar’s MaxxForce DT, MaxxForce 9 and MaxxForce 10 diesel engines.

The state paid top dollar to get these RDs with all the special options and features they demand. But then sells them with just 50,000 miles when a good maintenance director could easily have these trucks run another 10 years - 50,000 miles. And they'll replace them with a Freightliner Business Class that isn't half the truck? A troubling waste of money.

The 2013 Peterbilt 320 is indeed a superb looking truck. The original model 310 was introduced in 1978 (same year as the MR), the successor model 320 came in 1987, and the 320's instrument panel got an upgrade in 2000. Introduced in 1978, the Mack MR was a game changer for the refuse industry. It came about in response to Crane Carrier Corporation's low cab forward "Centurion" refuse chassis launched in 1974. Mack President Henry J. Nave was so impressed with the industry-changing Centurion, the first vehicle of its kind designed specifically to meet the needs of the refuse industry, that he ordered Mack engineers to study and surpass it. Owning the Mack brand since 2000, Volvo has made no effort to invest in a much needed all-new cab and chassis replacement for the MR. Volvo dragged their feet and finally introduced the hideous looking “Terrapro” facelift in 2007. This low-cost, modest refresh of a nearly 30 year old truck, notable only for its tacky new appearance, has done nothing to impress the refuse industry. The MR (Terrapro) is long on the tooth now in terms of technology - the refuse industry would welcome a game-changing new refuse chassis that would revolutionize the business in the way the MR did in 1978. However Volvo has no desire to invest in that direction. Expect a new model featuring a low-mounted Volvo global cab on the Volvo chassis in the future (something like the pictures below).

Fleet Owner / May 22, 2013 NEW ORLEANS. The low-cab forward Peterbilt Model 320 has been updated with an all-new ProBilt interior that improves ergonomics, visibility and comfort, according to Peterbilt, which introduced the floor-to-ceiling redesign at the Waste Expo show. Among the most notable changes is a new dash with molded-in color for better durability. It features a large driver information display for critical vehicle data, backlit LED gauges and removable panels for easier access to electrical and HVAC components. Controls for a reworked HVAC system have been moved to the header, as have toggle switches for body devices and the audio system. A multi-purpose center console now sits between driver and passenger seats, offering multiple storage compartments and cup holders, as well as a USB charging port and a 12VDC charging outlet. Removable panels on the console also provide easier access to body controls. Throttle and brake pedal positions have been modified to improve comfort and safety, according to Peterbilt chief engineer Landon Sproull, who also pointed out the new interior’s symmetrical design for accommodating either left- or right-hand drive configurations. Other features of the new interior include a padded headliner for better thermal and acoustic performance, a 4-speaker audio system, tilt/telescoping steering wheel and heated seats. _________________________________________ Work Truck magazine / May 22, 2013 Peterbilt unveiled its all-new Model 320 interior during the Waste Expo show in New Orleans. The new ProBilt interior for Peterbilt’s low-cab forward vehicle features ergonomic improvements, system enhancements and improved overall visibility for maximum operator efficiency and comfort. “The Model 320’s new interior delivers unparalleled fit and finish and provides drivers a comfortable and productive operating environment for outstanding performance in this specialty market,” said Robert Woodall, Peterbilt Director of Sales and Marketing. “Inside and out, Peterbilt’s Model 320 performs the most challenging jobs with uncompromising durability and quality.” The Model 320 interior underwent a floor-to-ceiling re-design, beginning with the new ergonomic dash layout. An in-mold process embeds color directly into the dash for a durable, long-lasting finish, which virtually eliminates fading, scratching and peeling. Removable dash panels allow easy access to electrical and HVAC components. An improved HVAC system maintains reliable performance and consistent heating and cooling throughout the cab. The new header includes overhead HVAC controls and toggle switches for body devices and the ConcertClass audio system. The cab’s B-pillar has been re-designed to include cab corner windows for increased visibility. A lowered dash brow and a large, retractable sunshade that spreads the length of the front windshield also contributes to improved overall visibility. The new interior includes a large, multi-purpose center console. Removable panels allow for easy installation and convenient access to body controls. Storage space is abundant, with multiple large storage compartments, a space designed specifically for a small lunch cooler, driver and passenger side cup holders as well as a USB charging port and 12VDC charging outlet. The cab features the extensive use of contemporary LED lighting, including two directional dome lights in the header, as well as two over-the-door lights and one large light on the back wall. LED lighting reduces eye fatigue and power consumption and also provides extended bulb life. Additional features include: • Padded headliner for improved thermal and acoustic performance; • 4-speaker audio system; • Vertical-parked windshield wipers; • Header and over-door storage capacity; • Padded door panels with power controls for windows and mirrors; • Tilt/telescoping steering wheel; • Multi-function turn-stalk; • Heated seats; • Available in left-hand and right-hand drive configurations.

From here, that's a nice looking truck. Appears to have been operated with care (e.g. despite the age, the body's not all banged up). With that body and wheelbase, the 12,000lb front axle would work. I'd rather it have the 14,300lb axle but its not a deal breaker.

Englishtown is a great place to see nice Autocars. Long before Chrysler launched its "Imported from Detroit" campaign................... you had "Mack Trucks and Autocar - America's best, American-owned, American-made in Pennsylvania" .

Does it have a low-sided contractor's dump body or a full-sided conventional dump body? We know it has the RA23 rear axle. Solid performer but for a large full-sided dump body, I'd have preferred the optional RA30. What's the front axle? Hopefully it at least has the 14,300lb axle or better yet the 18,000lb axle. The standard 12,000lb axle is more suitable for road tractors. Of course, much depends on the resulting load distribution based on how this truck was built (i.e. wheelbase, body mounting location).

It has a 23,000lb Mack RA23 rear with a CRD93A carrier. Did you glance at the RD-694P spec sheet that I attached to my earlier post? It has all the specs on the truck you're looking at. For a single axle dump, I'm more suspicious of the alleged 456,000 mileage figure.

Yes, the EM5 was sourced from RVI but there were no performance or spare parts availability problems. The 1997-launched EM5-250 and EM5-290 offered a large performance boost over the 1988-launched CM-400's E5-240. 8.82L MIDR 06.20.30 (Mid-Liner) 215hp @ 2300rpm 544ft.lb. @ 1500rpm 9.83L E5-240 (CM-400) 240hp @ 2000rpm 860ft.lb. @ 1200rpm 9.83L EM5-250 250hp 975ft.lb @ 1150rpm 9.83L EM5-290 290hp 1160ft.lb. @ 1150rpm The MS300T Mid-Liner tractor with the MIDR 06.20.30 and RVI 10-speed splitter transmission was a superb truck. They were extremely popular with customers owing to their reliability, and were seldom in the shop for other than servicing. Individual cylinder heads actually have several advantages. A cylinder head covering more than one cylinder imposes restrictions on the maximum potential for achieving efficient intake and exhaust flow, because provisions for cooling and clamping compromise cylinder head design. Since individual cylinder heads don't suffer from these obstacles, the head design can be optimized for rapid gas flow to achieve maximum fuel efficiency. Also, speaking of maintenance, it is far cheaper and faster to remove and reinstall an individual cylinder head, than a single cylinder head covering two to six cylinders. In year 2013 with Volvo in charge, I'd hesitate to buy a Mack with an EM5 now (unless it was in good condition). The parts are readily available from Renault via Volvo, but with Volvo's stick-the-customer parts pricing philosophy, I'd be afraid of costs.

Assuming you have 38 rears, is it an SS38 (rubber bushed trunnion) or SSB38 (bronze bushed trunnion)? If you have rubber, then you're being misled by the squeezed out distortion of the original dimensions. Don't go back with the Mack 10QK219P2 insulator. Upgrade to the Mack 10QK276 urethane insulator. The vastly improved service life is worth the addtional price. And always install the trunnion insulator with 20wt non-detergent oil, per the Mack service bulletin. You can also upgrade to urethane lower spring pads (10QK388) for significantly longer service life (The upper pads remain rubber). And don't forget to check the condition of your transverse torque rod.