Rigmaster

[Johnny Mullet]

Our shop has recently installed the last Rigmaster on a fleet of 12 trucks. This product is a true "Standalone" source for saving diesel fuel on heavy duty highway trucks. This unit mounts on the frame rail of a heavy duty truck and is powered by a 2 cylinder diesel engine with it's own A/C compressor, alternator, heater unit, and remote control.

This product saves a trucking company money by reducing idle time on trucks while the driver can sleep in comfort using the power from the small diesel engine instead of the main power plant.

More info on the Rigmaster is found on the RIGMASTER SITE.

[AndrewJ]

Nice.

I was wondering when using a smaller "idling" engine would catch on. It's good to see some positive steps being taken in the trucking industry.

Oh, and for anyone who hasn't seen it, here's the much-ballyhooed Navistar Lone Star, a recently unveiled "highly fuel efficient" big rig.



Sure doesn't look terribly aerodynamic to me, but at least it's a start.

[Johnny Mullet]

The Kenworth T2000 was one of the most aerodynamic trucks made, but no longer produced. This same fleet of trucks we installed Rigmaster units on are 10 Kenworth W900 models, one T600 model and one T2000 model. The driver of the T2000 loves his truck because it not only has a "car like" interior, but gets the best fuel mileage compared to the W900 models.

[MetroMPG]

Don't some US states now prohibit idling of APU's and engines while parked (ie. sleeping)?

I thought that was one reason Firefly Batteries was marketing its "advanced" carbon foam lead acid batteries to the trucking industry first - so they could run the house loads overnight without needing to idle.

[meemooer]

How many gallons does that rigmaster use in 8 hours? and how does that compare to the trucks main engine?
I saw the Lone Star when i went to the M.A.T.S. in march, wow what a hot truck.

[roflwaffle]

The fuel efficiency of some rigs is crazy! 12mpg@50mph, for example. For comparison, the average car in the US gets ~16.something mpg, and weighs a couple tons... So, fifteen times the size but nearly the same mileage. Conspicuous doesn't do that difference justice.

[roflwaffle]

Originally Posted by MetroMPG

Don't some US states now prohibit idling of APU's and engines while parked (ie. sleeping)?

I thought that was one reason Firefly Batteries was marketing its "advanced" carbon foam lead acid batteries to the trucking industry first - so they could run the house loads overnight without needing to idle.

CA, and possibly Washington/Oregon/etc does IIRC.

[meemooer]

Originally Posted by roflwaffle

The fuel efficiency of some rigs is crazy! 12mpg@50mph, for example. For comparison, the average car in the US gets ~16.something mpg, and weighs a couple tons... So, fifteen times the size but nearly the same mileage. Conspicuous doesn't do that difference justice.

yeah but how often do you see truckers flooring it from every stop? don't they turn somewhere below 2500 RPM's?
Either way you are right though. I used to get high 12's in my ranger, with it empty

[ebacherville]

Originally Posted by roflwaffle

The fuel efficiency of some rigs is crazy! 12mpg@50mph, for example. For comparison, the average car in the US gets ~16.something mpg, and weighs a couple tons... So, fifteen times the size but nearly the same mileage. Conspicuous doesn't do that difference justice.

trucks are diesel.. thus the good MPG..

my big a$$ 1 ton dually long box crew cab diesel automatic pickup thats 16 years old, gets 20mpg.. 5mpg better than a new standard cab chevy short box 1/2 ton..

Also rigs are usually sticks .. that helps too.. however they have slower accelleration than my crx while hypermiling... while driving my crx i always get big SUVs on my butt when im doing 55 and they barrly by me and tailgate at starts and then floor it as the speed by me.. thats why there getting 16mpg.. people dont know how to drive for mpg.. truckers actually do for the most part.. they use gravity on hills and spped down and slow up the hills.. thats a very common trucking method.. they have 80,000 lbs of momentium built up there to use..

I really notice the lack of weight in my CRX effecting momentium vs my benz.. the Benz will coast in neutral far longer than the crx.. thats because its more than 2 times the weight traveling at speed.. takes 2 times more energy to slow it too.. Imagine if you car was 80,000lbs.. whatcould you coast up with that much weight behind you..

And finally.. trucks typically are all highway miles.. very very low percentage of city driving.. they easly bring there average up to hiway ratings when they do 1 million miles and only 50 k of that is in city stop and go. Not to mention thatmost trucks are always at opperating temp.. very seldom is the truck shut down and driven less than 30 miles then shut off.. helps increase the amout of time the vehical is at prime opperating conditions..

Just like if you hopped in your car and drove a entire tank of gas of in one sitting on the highway.. yous get some good numbers.