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<blockquote data-quote="Dustyroads" data-source="post: 582782" data-attributes="member: 22610"><p>Well, since someone else started this thread, I guess I can't help myself here but to get up on my soapbox. Safety and fuel economy play no role in the selection of what features will be placed on package cars. With only one notable exception that I will note, all of the package cars are built to our specifications. So, UPS management is responsible for those vehicle designs. </p><p> </p><p>Back in 2003, UPS replaced the P32's and P-500's with the Daimler-Benz powered Freightliner bodied package cars. They were equipped with a 5 cylinder desiel engine that consistantly got 20 miles per gallon under all driving conditions. They also featured a driver's airbag and a padded dash. They also were equipped with independent front suspension that made the cars very stable and managable under all conditions. These were the best driving package car in history, and also got the best fuel milage of any package cars in history. The reason that these trucks had an airbag and padded dashboards was that Dailmer Benz sells these same platform trucks to the public.</p><p> </p><p>Now, before some automotive manager or bean counter tells you how expensive to maintain these cars were, let's just talk about that. When we got the cars, automotive told the mechanics that they only had to change the oil every 10,000 miles and that they were under a 100,000 bumper to bumper warranty. The message that my mechanics got from that was that they didn't have to do anything to these cars. And they didn't. We'd send them to freightliner, and the would keep them for 90 days, the limit they could under the warranty agreement. Likewise, they would do the least they could. The cars ran in rural areas, on rough dirty roads, changing the oil every 10,000 miles was a foolish expectation. Most of them got about 150,000 to 200,000 miles on the first engine. We had one replaced before the 100,000 mile warranty. Curiously, on the second engines, once the cars were out of warranty, the maintenance on the cars improved, when we started doing the work in our centers. </p><p> </p><p>In 2009, all of the P47's were crushed and replaced with the new P-500 and P-57 series. None of these cars have airbags and all of them have metal dashboards. A word on that subject. Airbags save lives, it is an undisputable fact. Airbags cost money, about $1,500 per vehicle, another fact. No cars sold to the public in America can have a metal dashboard, nor can vehicles be sold to the public without an airbag. Ever wonder why we don't sell old package cars, well, it's against the law, the cars are too unsafe to be sold to the public. Is there any downside to having an airbag? Well, yes, it's that $1,500 per vehicle cost.</p><p> </p><p>The new P500 series package cars have a V-8 Chevy engine that gets 7-9 miles per gallon, depending on the wind. Fuel costs on rural runs have more than doubled. The wheelbase of the new car is so short that it wears the treads off the dual wheels as it "drags" them when one goes around corners. The solution: just remove the duals and run single inside wheels. The problem: the cargo area is 10 feet long and the cars are 9 feet and 11 inches tall. So, the vehicles are very top-heavy and unstable, particularly in truck traffic on the highway and in the wind. They are a crazy handful to drive on the Interstate. We've had two individuals who use them on an shuttle to the airport, a 150 mile roundtrip on the interstate, who have flatly refuse to take that work because the cars are so unstable on the highway. </p><p> </p><p>The Benz P-47 cars had lots of life left in them. They chose to crush them for an economics reason that had to do far more with equipment depreciation than safety or fuel economy. As for ups really caring about being green: hogwash.</p><p> </p><p>Ok, there, I said it.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Dustyroads, post: 582782, member: 22610"] Well, since someone else started this thread, I guess I can't help myself here but to get up on my soapbox. Safety and fuel economy play no role in the selection of what features will be placed on package cars. With only one notable exception that I will note, all of the package cars are built to our specifications. So, UPS management is responsible for those vehicle designs. Back in 2003, UPS replaced the P32's and P-500's with the Daimler-Benz powered Freightliner bodied package cars. They were equipped with a 5 cylinder desiel engine that consistantly got 20 miles per gallon under all driving conditions. They also featured a driver's airbag and a padded dash. They also were equipped with independent front suspension that made the cars very stable and managable under all conditions. These were the best driving package car in history, and also got the best fuel milage of any package cars in history. The reason that these trucks had an airbag and padded dashboards was that Dailmer Benz sells these same platform trucks to the public. Now, before some automotive manager or bean counter tells you how expensive to maintain these cars were, let's just talk about that. When we got the cars, automotive told the mechanics that they only had to change the oil every 10,000 miles and that they were under a 100,000 bumper to bumper warranty. The message that my mechanics got from that was that they didn't have to do anything to these cars. And they didn't. We'd send them to freightliner, and the would keep them for 90 days, the limit they could under the warranty agreement. Likewise, they would do the least they could. The cars ran in rural areas, on rough dirty roads, changing the oil every 10,000 miles was a foolish expectation. Most of them got about 150,000 to 200,000 miles on the first engine. We had one replaced before the 100,000 mile warranty. Curiously, on the second engines, once the cars were out of warranty, the maintenance on the cars improved, when we started doing the work in our centers. In 2009, all of the P47's were crushed and replaced with the new P-500 and P-57 series. None of these cars have airbags and all of them have metal dashboards. A word on that subject. Airbags save lives, it is an undisputable fact. Airbags cost money, about $1,500 per vehicle, another fact. No cars sold to the public in America can have a metal dashboard, nor can vehicles be sold to the public without an airbag. Ever wonder why we don't sell old package cars, well, it's against the law, the cars are too unsafe to be sold to the public. Is there any downside to having an airbag? Well, yes, it's that $1,500 per vehicle cost. The new P500 series package cars have a V-8 Chevy engine that gets 7-9 miles per gallon, depending on the wind. Fuel costs on rural runs have more than doubled. The wheelbase of the new car is so short that it wears the treads off the dual wheels as it "drags" them when one goes around corners. The solution: just remove the duals and run single inside wheels. The problem: the cargo area is 10 feet long and the cars are 9 feet and 11 inches tall. So, the vehicles are very top-heavy and unstable, particularly in truck traffic on the highway and in the wind. They are a crazy handful to drive on the Interstate. We've had two individuals who use them on an shuttle to the airport, a 150 mile roundtrip on the interstate, who have flatly refuse to take that work because the cars are so unstable on the highway. The Benz P-47 cars had lots of life left in them. They chose to crush them for an economics reason that had to do far more with equipment depreciation than safety or fuel economy. As for ups really caring about being green: hogwash. Ok, there, I said it. [/QUOTE]
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