TRIP TO PORTLAND, OREGON
Hello to all. On Monday, June 8th, I tooka shipment from Charlotte, NC to Portland, OR. I arrived in Oregon on Thursday the 11th.
While in Portland, I had the opportunity to visit the Freightliner Headquarters. I met with the cab design group. We discussed future ideas to make this great truck even better. I am impressed with the factthey keep wanting to make continuous improvements to an already seemingly perfect truck. I enjoyed meeting with the “product validation noise and vibration group”. These folks are simply amazing. They have successfully taken steps to make the cab of the Cascadia incredibly quiet. This group also continues in their research to perfect their product. I also enjoyed visiting Freightliner’s Testing Center. I observed the accelerated wear test. I watched them shake, jolt and rattle the cab and chassis. I can honestly tell you, the cab is “put to the test”. Throughout my walk of the test facility, I also viewed the testing of various truckcomponents. (Doors,latches,switches). Nothing escaped the torture of their testing. Finally, I took a tour of the “wind tunnel”. Freightliner is on a relentless mission to gain better fuel efficiency. I feel that having their own on site wind tunnel allows Freightliner to be on the cutting edge of aerodynamics. I also met with the transportation managers, personnel dept. and the supervisor of the test fleet. What an incredible day! I want to thank all the people I met for taking time out of their busy schedules to meet with me. I also appreciate the many tours throughout my stay. I am proud to be associated with these fine people at Freightliner. Thanks again.
FYI: My fuel mileage from exit 211 I-84 to Portland, Oregon and back was 7.3mpg. I weighed approximately 55,000 lbs. and crossed Cabbage Hill, Oregon, in both directions. The Jake Brake on the DD15 worked flawlessly as I descended Cabbage Hill. I didn’t need to use the foundation brake on this steep grade. As a matter of fact, I had to cut the power level back on the Jake Brake, as it was more than I needed. On the return trip up to CabbageHill, I had to back off the throttle because the DD15 had more power than what was needed to make the climb. Needless to say, I was very impressed with the results of this trip. I picked up a load in Oregon and I’m headed to Bridgeport, NJ. Until next time… be safe.
Henry
