There are a few brands of Semi-trucks that dominate the market space in America.
What Is The Most Popular Semi-Truck In America? The most popular semi- trucks in America are Freightliner Trucks. Freightliner sells over 190,000 trucks each year. This is over 40% of the market share in America.
The features to consider when looking into a semi-truck include; Power, Fuel Efficiency, Design, Engines, and Reliability.
The Most Popular Semi-Truck In America
Freightliner Inc was founded over 75 years ago, and they offer trucks that can accomplish a broad range of jobs. Freightliner trucks come with many features and the company’s years of experience in manufacturing have made them the most popular selling semi-truck in America. They have trucks that specialize in On-Highway, Medium Duty and Serve Duty Jobs.
On Highway Trucks
Here are some of the features of On-Highway semi trucks by Freighliner.
- Offer day, sleeper and crew cab options
- Are built to handle all types of loads on regional trips
- Aerodynamically efficient
- 350-600 horsepower range
Medium Duty Trucks
Medium Duty trucks differ from On-Highway trucks in quite a few ways. They are used for many different situations. Here are some of their features:
- Can haul load transported by both trucks and tractors
- Have the ability to get you where you need to go faster. These medium duty trucks have even used as firetrucks and ambulances.
- Great for small business use and can be used for light to medium loads
- 200-350 horsepower range
Severe Duty Trucks
These trucks are similar in many ways to Medium Duty trucks but made for bigger jobs that require a little stronger of a truck.
- Made for the toughest jobs
- Can handle heavy loads
- 280-300 horsepower range
Freightliner trucks are put through a variety of tests in both the engineering phase and physically to make sure they are safe. The sleeper and day cab options of the highway model have the ability to use natural gas as an alternative fuel source. This allows these models to conserve more fuel and leave less of a carbon footprint.
Freightliner trucks run on a technology called Detroit Powertrain. This cutting edge technology makes the trucks run more efficiently.
Features of Detroit Powertrain Technology
- Engines, transmissions and axles all work together to improve efficiency
- Bumper mounted radar and a camera mounted on the windshield to protect the drivers
- Improves uptime on Freightliner trucks by reducing the time they are down for repairs. This makes the trucks more cost-efficient.
- There are dealerships all across the country making it easy to have repairs and upkeep done.
The Freightliner trucks have the most sales in the American market because of their fuel efficient design and lower price tags however there are a couple of other truck brands at the top of the list. Some of their competitors are also making great reliable class 8 trucks. Brands such as Kenworth and Peterbilt are becoming more popular among truckers because of their quality and design.
Kenworth Trucks
Kenworth trucks are popular for their clean classic design. They also come equipped with some of the latest navigational technologies and capable of using google applications. Kenworth trucks are currently ranked 3rd in new truck sales. Another selling point for these trucks in they are designed by a team of truckers and designed around a practicality model. These models however are much heavier than other brands and that can affect fuel efficiency.
Peterbilt Trucks
This manufacturer has been making Class 8 trucks for over 80 years and they offer the most trucks with alternative fuel options. Peterbilt trucks have become more popular in recent years among owners and operators because of their fuel efficiency, detailed style and advanced safety precautions. The aluminum body of these trucks make them ultimately lighter which aids in fuel efficiency. Some Peterbilt models even offer hybrid electric engines that are not available with most other truck manufacturers. While they are priced higher than some of their competitors Peterbilt claims they focus on lifespan and that their trucks will last longer than others on the market.
If you are in need of Heavy Duty truck or a Severe Duty truck these truck might not be the best option. Peterbilt only makes a couple of Heavy Duty trucks and they are mostly dump trucks. Some users have complained that their trucks are not ideal for heavy loads. This is why these trucks are more appealing to owner-operators rather than larger fleets who need to ship heavy cargo.
When considering the best truck brand and the type of semi-truck that is needed it is also important to look into the best engines for your semi-truck.
Selecting The Right Engine For Your Semi-Truck
Factors to consider when selecting the best semi truck engine include; fuel mileage, maintenance costs, and hauling power.
Fuel mileage factors include which size of storage tank you will need and how many miles per gallon will you get before needing to fuel up your truck on your routes. Another component is gasoline. Which type of gasoline will you use? There are two types of fuels used: natural gas and diesel gas.
Natural Gas
The trucking industry has focused more on environmental conservation and fuel efficiency in recent years by moving more fleets to using a natural gas engine over the last several years. The cost of natural gas is significantly less than diesel, however natural gas contains 20% less fuel volume than diesel causing truckers to fuel up more often. Natural Gas is also not equipped for heavy load and requires are larger tank with the fuel being less dense than diesel gas.
Diesel Gas
Most semi-trucks engines run on diesel gas. Diesel engines only deliver fuel to the cylinders for it to burn up on the start of ignition. This allows diesel engines to use less fuel than gasoline engines. Diesel engines only require maintenance every 12,000 to 30,000 hours. There are two types of diesel fuels; Diesel 1 and Diesel 2. Truckers usually rely on diesel 2 for normal driving conditions.
Maintenance costs areimportant to consider because they will make up a large part of the trucks operating cost. Engines that are more commonly available by truck manufacturers will have cheaper repair parts. Fueling time is another factor to consider. The longer it takes to fuel the truck will count towards hours of service on the driver’s logbook.
Hauling power is calculated by the torque and horsepower of the engine. Engine displacement is another factor in hauling power. The heavier the load the higher the engine displacement needed.
Popular Engines Manufacturers
Cummins Engines
Cummins Engines solely manufactures diesel engines, and they can be found in Heavy-Duty trucks including Freightliners. They build two types of diesel engines for heavy-duty trucks; ISX15 and ISX12.
Cummins ISX15 is the newest engine for heavy-duty trucks. ISX15 has the best fuel economy among all on-highway trucks. The horsepower of the ISX15 ranges from 400 to 600. This engine is also equipped with On-Board Diagnostics to monitor and calculate ideal fuel emissions system.
Detroit Diesel
Detroit diesel is another engine manufacturer that is also common among truck manufacturers. Its main engines they produce are the DD13, DD15, and DD16. DD15 is the most commonly used. Detroit Diesel is owned by Daimler who also owns Freightliner, and Western Star. The DD13 is better suited for lighter regional shipments and driving training. The DD15 had more horsepower and is more equipped for more heavy-duty trucking and longer hauls.