AirFlow Truck Company StarShip Aero

[freebeard]

When I first saw this truck this morning eating breakfast I almost fell out of my chair. It looks a lot like my new rig.

Yes, but ours is much more handsome and manly!

That's what I was looking for.

But our truck will cost a whole lot less and get better MPG.

Better yet.

Originally Posted by jcp123

I see a problem doing drop and hooks with this, unless the entire fleet is comprised of these?

Because it looses the advantage of the matching trailer?

When I heard it has a curb-side entrance behind the seats, I thought of something I saw and (apparently) didn't squirrel away. It had an split-level entry, down between the axles, with a step or two up to the front cab or up to the berth in back. The was a shower stall opposite the entry on the off side. It was like a bachelor pad.

Ring any bells?

[elhigh]

Hey, Shepherd,

I remember reading in the trades a couple of years ago, Walmart was working on developing their own fleet of aero rigs to reduce shipping expenses. Are they working with you on this truck, or have they been in contact with you?

If you'd rather not broach the subject regarding corporate partners, just say the word and I won't speculate any further on this.

I don't remember who they were working with at the time and I'm still trying to enjoy my lunch rather than jump on the net and research it.

[Shepherd777]

Originally Posted by elhigh

Hey, Shepherd,

I remember reading in the trades a couple of years ago, Walmart was working on developing their own fleet of aero rigs to reduce shipping expenses. Are they working with you on this truck, or have they been in contact with you?

If you'd rather not broach the subject regarding corporate partners, just say the word and I won't speculate any further on this.

I don't remember who they were working with at the time and I'm still trying to enjoy my lunch rather than jump on the net and research it.

Hi elhigh -

Sorry for the belated reply. I've been busy building the truck.

Walmart worked with Peterbilt on a concept truck a couple of years ago in 2014 and they called it the Walmart Advance Vehicle Experience, or WAVE, truck.



I really, really, don't know what the point of this truck was. It is super impracticable. Unlike our new truck which will be roadworthy throughout the USA, the Walmart truck will never be on a public road. I call it the derogatory car-guy name of a vehicle that never hits the road: a "Trailer Queen."

It's not really aerodynamic. The tires are all exposed without skirts and there is no rear of trailer boat-tail device. And as anyone here at EcoModder knows, the rear of any vehicle is most important, regarding its aerodynamics.

It has a carbon fiber trailer, but the trailer that Strick Trailers built for us is over 1000 pounds lighter.

We had nothing to do with this truck and Walmart has not been in contact with me or my company.

I have three words that describe the Walmart WAVE truck to me: Whiskey Tango Foxtrot!

[freebeard]

"Colani. wanna-. be."

[seifrob]

Originally Posted by Shepherd777

... I have three words that describe the Walmart WAVE truck to me: Whiskey Tango Foxtrot!

Ahh! You Americans! Why do you use terms that poor Czech boy can´t find in his Oxford Dictionary of Contemporary Literary English ??

Godspeed to you (and your truck)!

P.S. I figured it out, of course :-) ( after while :-) )

[Shepherd777]

Originally Posted by seifrob

Ahh! You Americans! Why do you use terms that poor Czech boy can´t find in his Oxford Dictionary of Contemporary Literary English ??

Godspeed to you (and your truck)!

P.S. I figured it out, of course :-) ( after while :-) )

Hey seifrob -

Sorry, I forgot that we have an international membership here at EcoModder.

Glad that you deciphered the American lingo.

[Hersbird]

There are companies out there that will want a very unique looking truck to basically wave a flag saying how great they are for the environment. The more complicated the hybrid system and the more radical the looks the better. People will stop and point and ask questions, then they can make ads on TV with them in front of a mirror singing, "How Great Thou Art." Saving money will be secondary if factored at all.

[elhigh]

It's all about the money money money. If the truck costs twice as much, it will still be worth the investment. A three-minute lesson in ROI and ongoing expenses will have savvy operators banging your door down even as the old guard are shaking their head at your weird truck. Disregard them.

How great thou art, indeed. If operators use the vehicle as a standard up which they can run their flag, so what? So long as they make the choice, it's good.

I am itching to see this thing. Ever since the Bullet Truck and the screenshot of its consumption meter I've been over the moon that someone is really, seriously, chasing all the opportunities on a long haul rig.

[Hersbird]

I'm saying this truck is to conventional for some. Make fun of the Walmart concept but it will do what I say. It is not all about the money to a ton of companies out there, at least not all about the money involved in getting stuff from point A to point B. It is about creating an image that will later separate people from their wallets or direct special deals from the government to them or even direct penalties to their competitors. Walmart has the money and resources to say push for a 20mpg truck fleet mandatory for all companies with 100+ stores. You absorb a loss for awhile while competition folds under the pressure. Then you can offset paying $1 million per truck by jacking your prices in the absence of competition. The side benifit of a rolling freak show truck with your logo on the side and everyone knowing you are the company that lobbied hard to save the planet is just icing on the cake.

[seifrob]

Originally Posted by Shepherd777

...
Sorry, I forgot that we have an international membership here at EcoModder.

It's OK, I was only teasing you.