UD Trucks celebrated its 80th anniversary of truck manufacturing by hosting an event for dealers and customers. The event showcased UD Trucks' current model range, including light, medium and heavy-duty trucks. Attendees were able to test drive the various models and learn about new features like telematics software. Being part of the Volvo Group has improved UD Trucks through shared technology and an expanded dealer network, transforming UD Trucks into a more refined brand while retaining reliability and durability.

1. year sees UD Trucks
celebrating its 80th
year of manufacturing
trucks. From humble beginnings, the UD brand has
developed a reputation for reliability and strength, and an
enviable following of loyal customers the world over.
While the brand may not be at the top of the sales charts
here in Australia for the moment, the current model line-up
definitely has a lot to offer the Aussie market. To celebrate
the company milestone, UD Trucks Australia threw a little
party of its own, and invited dealers and customers from
around the country to come along and experience just
what the current range has to offer.
For our local market, UD Trucks represents the light to
medium-duty offering from Volvo Group Australia. In the
years since the Volvo group took control of UD, the brand
has come along in leaps and bounds, and benefited in no
small way from the sharing of technology and components
among the group's brands. A far cry from the basic
Japanese trucks of the 70s and 80s, the modern UD fleet
now offers a range of refined and intelligent trucks, with
specifications available to suit most local and intrastate
tasks, from a ten-pallet rigid to B-double.
To showcase the range, UD Trucks invited guests to
the Mount Cotton Driver Training Centre, just out of
Brisbane, and encouraged them to get behind the wheel
and see for themselves just how far the brand has come-'
llli S OLDEST MANUFACTUR
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2. With nine different trucks available to drive, each a little
different in specification, the whole model range was
covered. This meant plenty of opportunity for customers to
experience models that may not currently feature in their
fleet, or simply compare the newer models to those they
already operate. With representatives from dealerships
around the country and senior UD staff including engineers
and technical specialists, all available to answer questions,
the drive day also gave operators the chance to have any
questions answered by those in the know.
There were three different drive routes set up on the
day, each relative to a different size of truck, with three
medium-duty trucks on one route, four heavy-duty trucks !
on another and two light-duty MK11 tippers on the third.
auon
This allowed a direct comparison between vehicles of
similar weight range, including the comparison between
automatic and manual models. With various body
styles also on display, all loaded to around 75% of their
respective GVM, there really was a truck to suit every
customer on the day.
As Jon McLean, Vice President UD Trucks Australia,
explained, "This has been a massive week for us. With this
event, initially we thought about celebrating the UD 80-year
milestone, but, because we couldn't show all our products
at the Brisbane Truck Show, we thought we'd do it all here.
So we brought our sales force in, showed them the product
and had our VGA driver trainers show them how to get the
most out of the product. It was a great opportunity also to
invite our customers, because we haven't done this kind of
thing for a couple of years now."
And why wouldn't UD want to show off the
improvements made over the last couple of years?
The current UD product range contains quite a few little
gems; including the MK11 250, which is the only truck in
its class with a factory-fitted Allison automatic. Not only
that, but due to the effectiveness of the MK's cooling
package, UD is able to offer the longest warranty of any
manufacturer on the transmission, and service intervals
are greatly increased. With the factory-fitted tipper body,
the MK offers a payload capacity of over five tonnes,
enough to carry a small excavator or skid-steer loader to
and from the job site. Among the other surprises is the PD,
with a 280 hp engine and Allison auto transmission.
Where UD had previously installed the rear lazy-axle
here as an aftermarket fit, demand has led to the new
model having it fitted in the factory in Japan. With a
tare weight advantage of 300 kg over its competitors,
this model certainly has a lot to offer for those working
in local distribution.
-f.
.80 years
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3. • RIV
At the heavier end of the line-up, UD was spruiking
a new model, still in its trial stage. The CD 380, a 6x2 rigid
suitable for a 14-pallet body, was displayed towing
a 10-pallet dog trailer. Jon McLean was keen to point
out that this product came about through local
engineering input.
"That's a segment we've never competed in before,
but it's an opportunity we've been able to take through
local adaptation, and we'll be able to have that built in
Japan after trialling it here for the next six months or
so," he said.
Also on display were other Quon models, including a
380 hp 4x2 prime mover and a 420 hp 6x4 prime mover,
both towing single semitrailers. All of the Quon models
were powered by the 11-litre UD engine and driven through
the 12-speed ESCOT 5 AMT transmission, which is derived
from the Volvo I-Shift transmission.
Alongside the trucks, UD was actively promoting their
updated telematics software program. Each of the trucks
being driven on the day was fitted with UD's Fleetmax Plus
telematics, and each attendee given their own individual
ID tag to log on. This allowed for drivers to get real-world
experience with the telematics program, in many different
trucks, and measure their own performance capabilities.
With staff on hand to show operators all the functions
available through telematics, it made for a great
demonstration and plenty of conversation between
customers throughout the day. It may also have created a
little bit of competition between some drivers. This system
is unique to UD in Australia, and has been developed
locally and designed for simple operation without limiting
the information available. This system is standard across
the entire UD range.
The availability of telematics is just one of a raft of
features that is complimentary on each truck until the
end of the year. As part of the 80th birthday celebrations,
UD are also offering complimentary insurance for the first
year, complimentary reversing camera on rigid trucks and a
substantial upgrade to the audio system.
While UD may not lay claim to being the leader in
their market, it does concede some ground in the
number of model variants when compared to some
other manufacturers. Jon Mclean is happy to admit that,
but says, "The product we do offer is a very, very good
product. That's why we've done some of the local
development we are doing, to get us through to the Euro 6
launch in a couple of years, which will widen our range."
'.#
, ' • .
VCHLVO
II
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4. •ii i
Being a part of the Volvo group has done wonders
for UD Trucks. The benefits come in many areas -
driveline improvements, driver comfort, and, importantly,
the increase in the dealer and support network. With a
little local engineering to improve the range, and the right
people driving that local development, the UD product
is now much more refined and driver friendly. It's like the
Volvo group has taken the old Bonds Y fronts - functional,
affordable and reliable - and turned them into new micro-
fibre wear that still maintains the same values but uses
the latest technology to offer a better experience for the
end user.U}r
CSED
PowerTorque ISSUE BB 5 1
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01 Sep 2015
Power Torque, National
Section: General News • Article type : News Item • Audience : 8,000 • Page: 48
Printed Size: 3309.00cm² • Market: National • Country: Australia • ASR: AUD 18,617
Words: 1221 • Item ID: 445892572
Copyright Agency licensed copy (www.copyright.com.au)