The company say the vehicles unrivalled comfort and fuel economy are what led them to make the purchase.
Freightliner Australia have announced that Kreskas Bros trucking fleet, operating in Victoria’s Goulburn Valley, has bought two new Freightliner Cascadias.
Kreskas Bros has a mixed fleet of trucks that includes traditional cab-overs, Mercedes-Benz Actros and some recently arrived Freightliner Cascadias.
The company’s first experience with the Cascadia trucks was when the late John McCarroll, an industry icon and longtime friend of the Kreskas Bros team, took on a central role in the Australian test program for the new Freightliner.
‘Johnno’ drove a Cascadia test unit B-Double five days a week for 18 months and stored it overnight and the Kreskas Bros yard.
A Cascadia 126 in Kreskas Bros colours joined the fleet just months after the Cascadia was officially launched in Australia in late 2019 and soon impressed the team running as an A-Double between Shepparton and Melbourne.
One of the first things that stood out was the comfort of the advanced bonneted truck that has a spacious 48-inch sleeper cap and the latest ergonomic interior design.
“Anyone who drives it will tell you how comfortable they are to drive,” says Kreskas Brothers Transport fleet manager, Kevin Mutton.
“Keeping our drivers comfortable is very important to us, they spend a lot of time in the truck, so that is a really big positive.”
Another thing to standout early was the excellent fuel consumption.
“It’s clear that this is a very efficient truck,” says Mutton.
“After 290,000km we can say the Cascadia is clearly the most fuel-efficient truck in our fleet,” says Mutton.
Kreskas Bros Transport also values the safety features that are standard on the Cascadia, including a radar and camera-based Advanced Emergency Braking System (AEBS) that can automatically detect, and fully brake for, moving pedestrians in addition to vehicles.
A radar-based adaptive cruise control system and a lane departure warning system in addition to Electronic Stability Program and a driver airbag is also standard.
Kreskas Brothers Transport General Manager, Adam Katsoutas, explains why these integrated active safety systems are important.
“Safety is paramount for our team at Kreskas Bros Transport, so the kind of safety features in the Cascadias are very welcome,” says Katsoutas.
“This is a simple way that we can best protect our drivers and the wider community.”
The Kreskas Bros report the Cascadia has also proved reliable, which is especially important in the container haulage business where deadlines are rock solid.
“It hasn’t missed a beat,” says Mutton.
The Kreskas Bros Cascadias are under Daimler Truck service contracts, which ensure they are maintained at a Daimler Truck dealership by factory-trained technicians using genuine parts.
Just like the first Cascadia to join the fleet, the two new units are 126 48-inch sleeper models running the advanced 16-litre Detroit DD16 that pumps out 600hp and 2050lb/ft.
The brawny engine meets the GHG17 emission standard, which Freightliner says is stricter than Euro 6, and far cleaner than the currently-mandated Euro 5 engines in many other new trucks.
The Kreskas Bros Cascadias use Detroit 12-speed fully automated manual (AMT) transmissions that are able to predict the terrain it is travelling over to save fuel, according to Freightliner.