Author:charleen-clarke
Iβve been writing about electric trucks a lot this year. In fact, I hardly ever pen a Global Focus column that does not contain coverage of electric trucks β for good reason. Many of the major European truck makers β Daimler, Volvo, MAN and DAF β have blown their electric truck trumpets this year. However, the path to electric propulsion has not been smooth. And, to be perfectly honest, operators havenβt exactly rushed forwards to place their orders. However, I […]
By now you will have heard the news: the F-Max from Ford Trucks is the 2019 International Truck of the Year (IToY)! This announcement caused huge waves at the IAA last month … IToY has traditionally been dominated by the so-called Seven Sisters (the seven big European companies, namely Mercedes-Benz, MAN, Volvo, Scania, Renault, Iveco and DAF). The last time that the award was won by an βoutsiderβ so to speak was back in 1982 β when the Ford Cargo […]
The 2018 IAA was all about e-mobility and saving the planet. However, not all the solutions presented at the fair are ideal for Africa. Does this mean that transporters on this continent can forget about going green? Most definitely not, says Pierre Lahutte, Iveco brand president, in an exclusive interview with CHARLEEN CLARKE Imagine Coca-Cola exhibiting at a trade fair, but there isnβt a drop of Coke to be found on the stand β just water. Thatβs more or less […]
We have launched an all-new series in FOCUS, entitled Face to Face, in which we interview captains of industry. This time around, CHARLEEN CLARKE goes face to face with Gianenrico Griffini, chairman of the International Truck of the Year jury First of all, some background to you, please. I know that you are one of the most important commercial-vehicle journalists in Italy and also in Europe for that matter. I also know that you used to work as press officer […]
MAN has a treat of trucking innovations in store for visitors to the IAA this month. These are in addition to the bus, coach and van innovations that I reviewed in the last Global Focus column (youβll find it online). The undisputed superstar of the trucking line-up at the IAA will be the all-electric MAN eTruck. Based on the TGM, this 6×2 is being delivered to nine Austrian companies right now β and itβs a truly spectacular vehicle. I drove […]
Highway maintenance personnel take their lives into their own hands β quite literally β when working on German highways. As we all know, many highways in that country have no speed limit β meaning that these highways full of hurtling missiles. The consequences of this situation are dire; deaths are common. In fact, German researchers discovered that road service staff face a risk that is 13-times higher than equivalent workers (who are doing similar jobs, but not working on highways). […]
My dear friend, Jarlath Sweeney, editor-in-chief of Irelandβs Fleet TransportΒ magazine, brought this incredible vehicle to our attention. Sadly, itβs just a concept β but isnβt it cool? Itβs the Civic Type R Pick-up Truck, and it was built by a specialist team from the product engineering department at the Honda of the United Kingdom Manufacturing (HUM) factory in Swindon. Codenamed βProject Pβ, the Civic Type R Pickup Truck has been modified and developed from a standard road car to create […]
Regular readers of this column will recall that I visited ZF, in Friedrichshafen, Germany, last month in order to attend the companyβs Technology Day. We saw lots of amazing stuff β but this really takes the cake, doesnβt it? This is the Rinspeed Snap mobility concept. It is made up of a βskateboardβ in the form of the Intelligent Dynamic Driving Chassis from ZF. This is a platform specially developed by ZF for autonomous electric vehicles. Depending on the application, […]
We have launched an all-new series in FOCUS, entitled Face to Face, in which we interview captains of industry. This time around, CHARLEEN CLARKE goes face to face with Claes Nilsson, president of Volvo Trucks. You appear to be riding a wave of success right now? Yes. For us, as for many of our competitors, it is a very hot market. In more than 30 years with Volvo, I have never seen Europe and North America (which is very important […]
I have just returned from Berlin, where MAN gave journalists an exclusive preview into what the company has up its Bavarian sleeve for this yearβs IAA. I think it is fair to say that IAA visitors will be in for a treat. The location for the event was Berlin Brandenburg Airport β the German capitalβs new and as yet unfinished airport. Whatβs noteworthy about this airport? It has two things in abundance: lots of free space and lots of controversy. […]
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