Kenworth and Peterbilt will roll out new drivetrain options later this year, with both brands turning to Allison Transmission’s fully automatic TC10 for their flagship models.
Announced at the Mid America Trucking Show last week, Paccar is adding the TC10 to Kenworth’s T680 and T880 models, as well as the Peterbilt Model 579 and 567.
The TC10 combines Allison’s torque converter with a twin countershaft gear scheme and ideal for distribution work where the truck is switching between highway and metropolitan conditions.
“We’re pleased to partner with PACCAR to introduce our TC10 in their vehicles,” said Heidi Schutte, Allison’s vice president of marketing and sales for the Americas.
“The TC10 combines the startability and continuous, uninterrupted power shifting qualities of a fully automatic transmission with the cruising aspects of a manual transmission.
General manager at Peterbuilt and Paccar senior vice president Kyle Quinn says the TC10 offering gives even more choice to customers.
“Peterbilt is pleased to partner with Allison to provide our customers additional choices that broaden the availability of driveline configurations to better match their application requirements,” Quinn said.
Both manufacturers are promising increases in fuel efficiency in the recently announced models to feature the TC10.
“Simply put, drivers don’t have to be experts at shifting because the TC10 shifts for them at exactly the right point to maintain vehicle performance and maximize fuel economy, thereby allowing the driver to focus their attention on the road,” added Scutte.
Overall, fleets adopting the TC10 and sharing data with Allison are reporting an average fuel economy improvement of five per cent when compared to other transmission technologies.
