PacLease Offers Kenworth’s TruckTech+™ and Peterbilt’s SmartLINQ™ for On-Board Diagnostics
August 26, 2015
BELLEVUE, Wash., Aug. 26, 2015 – PACCAR Leasing Company (PacLease) has announced that it is making on-board vehicle diagnostics available on all new PACCAR MX-13 engine-equipped Kenworth and Peterbilt trucks. It will also leverage the technology to further enhance its PacTrac ® telematics offering. PacLease has been showcasing a Kenworth T680 with its PacTrac telematics systems, developed by PeopleNet, at the PeopleNet User Conference, which is concluding today in Phoenix.
Trucks equipped with on-board vehicle diagnostics, Kenworth TruckTech+™ and Peterbilt SmartLINQ™, will alert customers and local PacLease franchises on the proper next steps to take in case the truck needs to be serviced while on the road.
The introduction of TruckTech+ and SmartLINQ, significantly enhances our service capabilities, said Michelle Harry, PacLease’s director of marketing. “We’re very excited about being able to offer the value of the remote diagnostics from Kenworth and Peterbilt to our customers through our lease and rental programs,” she said. “This is really game-changing – allowing us to make better and quicker decisions on road maintenance and repairs for our customers. It’s another level of service which will further separate us from our competition.
“Utilizing this new technology allows us to communicate in real time with our customer in order to direct their truck to the closest PacLease location, or have the problem checked at the next scheduled maintenance interval,” Harry continued. “The goal is to prevent breakdowns on the road. Personnel at the PacLease location responsible for providing service on the trucks can remotely see when a truck is low on DEF, for example. They can then direct the driver to an authorized service location if the service issue requires immediate attention. Or, if a fault code indicates a problem that can wait for action, TruckTech+ or SmartLINQ can identify the issue and the PacLease service location will have it remedied the next time the vehicle is back at the facility.”
Since the TruckTech+ and SmartLINQ hardware is installed at the truck factory, leasing and rental customers wishing to upgrade to the full functions of a PacTrac Lite subscription, can do so without having to pay for the hardware installation costs.
According to Harry, PacTrac is an industry-leading telematics system that can improve productivity and uptime for PacLease rental and lease customers.
Harry said a growing number of PacLease customers are taking advantage of the full benefits of PacTrac. "Telematics is really becoming a must-have for progressive companies and we've seen significant growth in fleets that have spec'd their trucks with the system,” she said. “It’s a low-cost addition to the lease payment. We have available a wide range of options such as: recording and relaying driver performance metrics, messaging, Wi-Fi access, electronic logging, vehicle performance and lane profitability to fine tune future route planning. PacTrac also lets customers know precisely where their trucks are at all times.”
During development of SmartLINQ and TruckTech+, PacLease’s Dallas company store was involved with the testing of and providing feedback for the technology on Peterbilt and Kenworth rental trucks. “We were impressed with the results, and how it can make a difference in our service practices,” said Rick Tapp, PACCAR Leasing’s maintenance manager. “Now that the technology is in full production, we look forward to implementing it across our entire fleet.”
“The value of TruckTech+ is really a breakthrough in vehicle management,” said Sue Heise lease and rental administrator for Premier PacLease, which has 15 PacLease locations in four states. “It’s a great addition to work in concert with PacTrac – which we’ve been using in our rental fleet and with many of our lease customers. PacTrac has given us immediate information on the condition of our lease and rental vehicles and has allowed us to make real-time decisions with our customers to ensure uptime. What’s more, we run weekly and monthly vehicle reports to keep customers informed on idling percentages, plus mileage and mpg numbers. And, a secure web portal has allowed our customers to see exactly what’s happening with their trucks. This amount of communication has saved us from breakdowns and has kept our customers up and running.”
According to Denise Deal, assistant office manager for Palmer Leasing Group, “We’re excited about fully implementing TruckTech+ into the management of our PacLease fleet.” Palmer has nine PacLease locations with more than 800 lease and rental units. “We’ve always been very proactive in maintenance and providing customers with engine download information each time their trucks come into our locations. This, coupled with PacTrac, further extends that by providing real-time information and vehicle diagnostic – giving us unparalleled service to our customers once their trucks hit the road.”
According to Harry, PacLease has worked with PeopleNet for nearly 10 years. “With our partnership with PeopleNet, PacTrac continues to evolve,” said Harry. “We’re very much in synch to continually develop features of PacTrac to help our customers become more productive.”
About PacLease and PACCAR
PACCAR Leasing Company (PacLease) is one of the fastest-growing commercial truck leasing companies in the transportation industry. PacLease has independent and company-owned full-service leasing locations throughout the United States, Canada, Mexico, Europe and Australia. PacLease provides customized full-service lease, rental and contract maintenance programs designed to meet the specific needs of customers. A combination of reliable, custom-built trucks and complete service offerings allows customers to maximize the value of their transportation resources.
PACCAR Leasing is a part of the financial services group of PACCAR Inc, a global technology leader in the design, manufacture and customer support of high-quality light-, medium- and heavy-duty trucks under the Kenworth, Peterbilt and DAF nameplates. PACCAR shares are traded on the Nasdaq Stock Market, symbol PCAR, and its homepage can be found at www.paccar.com.