UD Trucks and Australia Post Commit to Allison Transmissions



Allison Transmission, a global manufacturer of medium- and heavy-duty fully automatic transmissions for commercial and military vehicles, and UD Trucks are partnering to produce an automatic option for trucks in Australia.

UD Trucks has offered Allison’s automatic option in its medium-duty trucks in Australia for more than 12 years.

The new UD Croner medium-duty trucks will be available in two models: the 4×2 PK and the 6×4 PD, both with Allison 3000 Series transmissions coupled with UD’s 280 hp eight-litre GH8E engine.

Australia Post, which a fleet of road-registered trucks, has been among the first companies to purchase a large number of the new UDs. They have taken delivery of 40 new UD Croners for postal and parcel delivery operations across both Australia Post and its associated StarTrack brand. Together, Australia Post and StarTrack operate a fleet of 2,100 light- to heavy-duty trucks, deliver more than 3 billion items a year, operate a network of more than 4,000 post offices and 15,000 street post boxes, with a staff of more than 50,000 people.

Terry Bickerton, national fleet manager for Australia Post, said the decision to purchase UD Croners was influenced by the availability of Allison Automatics as standard equipment.

“Australia Post does not buy manual trucks, and we introduced Allison Automatics into our operations because of their reliability, safety benefits and lower maintenance costs when compared with manual vehicles,” Bickerton said.

Designed for severe, high start-stop duty cycles, the Allison fully automatic transmission uses a torque converter for launching, so there is no mechanical clutch to wear out. Extended service intervals consist of just oil and filter changes.

“Our drivers have given us feedback that automatic trucks help reduce work fatigue and are easier to operate in metropolitan areas,” Bickerton said. “The Allison Automatics make it easier for our drivers to concentrate on maneuvering their truck in city traffic by removing the need for them to worry about gear changes. They also deliver improved transit times in heavy traffic environments because they allow the truck to accelerate up to a safe operating speed faster and with greater efficiency.”

Allison Transmission is a manufacturer of fully automatic transmissions for medium- and heavy-duty commercial vehicles and medium- and heavy-tactical U.S. defense vehicles, and also is a supplier of commercial vehicle propulsion solutions, including electric hybrid and fully electric propulsion systems.


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