The heavy-duty truck industry is fully equipped with pneumatic ABS and retarder safety devices, requiring multiple efforts


According to sources, heavy-duty truck companies began installing anti-lock brake systems (barometric ABS) on semi-trailer tractors with a total mass of more than 10 tons from April 2011 to implement GB7258-2004 safety requirements for vehicle braking. Coincidentally, not long ago, it was learned from relevant stakeholders of a retarder manufacturer that the company will focus on the truck market in 2011.

Corporate enthusiasm for safety devices has also been supported by relevant government agencies. In view of the recent road traffic safety and outstanding problems in vehicle production enterprises, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology and the Ministry of Public Security decided to take the safety performance of large and medium-sized passenger vehicles and trucks as the focus of recent production consistency supervision and inspection. ABS is an important inspection content.

The new version of “Motor Vehicle Operation Safety Technical Conditions” GB7258 is being examined, and the new version of GB7258 has further expanded the commercial vehicle models that require mandatory installation of ABS: all special school buses, dangerous goods transport vehicles and semi-trailer tractors, with a total mass of more than 12,000 kg. Trucks and trailers with a total mass of more than 10,000 kg must be fitted with anti-lock braking devices that comply with GB/T 13594; at the same time, passenger cars with a vehicle length greater than 9 meters, trucks with a total mass greater than 12 tons, and all dangerous goods carriers must be installed. Retarder or other auxiliary brake device.

For a long time, safety devices such as ABS and retarder have been forcibly promoted by the relevant national ministries and commissions, but the progress of development is still very slow. Can the introduction of new regulations change the status quo?

Price disputes are difficult to avoid

When talking about promotion barriers, whether it is an expert or a manufacturer, the first thing mentioned is the user's ability to bear the price. Commercial vehicle users, especially truck users, are sensitive to cost, and fitting safety devices will increase the price of the entire vehicle. This is directly related to the current habits of commercial vehicle users. Because many vehicle owners operate in a “quick and quick” manner (ie, invest in a lower cost car, continue to work in high intensity, and do not seek long-term service for the vehicle, but seek to return it as soon as possible within a short period of time), safety devices are even less important.

At present, ABS has been allocated on trucks, but there are still very few equipped retarders, even imported vehicles. Because ABS is relatively cheap, several thousand dollars are acceptable. Retarders have a minimum of one or two thousand yuan, and owners are not able to accept such gains. The person in charge of the transportation company bluntly stated that the addition of ABS to a car would not appear to cost more than four or five thousand yuan. However, if several dozen cars are installed, the cost will be high. As long as there is little conflict of interest with the cost, they can accept safety devices. In the case of rising costs such as oil prices, labor costs, and overpass costs, it is more difficult for commercial vehicle users to accept the installation of safety devices.

User awareness is worrying

From the relevant person in charge of the technical development department of FAW Jiefang Automobile Co., Ltd., it was learned that in 2004, FAW Liberal tried to install a retarder on a mountainous vehicle, but the user did not accept it. They once conducted research on a stone transporter in Fujian Province and believed that they need to install retarders on their vehicles. One or two vehicles that had done experiments earlier were equipped with retarders and the results were good. In the later period, the customer ordered more than 120 vehicles. Although we recommend fitting a retarder, the user eventually removes the retarder. It is reported that the user thinks that the retarder is not very practical and affects the passing and braking effects of the vehicle.

During high-speed taxiing, the retarder can ensure the smoothness of the vehicle, which has a greater effect on the passenger vehicle, and the heavy truck of the transported cargo has not yet reached the conditions for using the retarder in terms of both vehicle speed and technology. In the high-end passenger car, retarder is standard. However, trucks are heavy and have little effect.

In fact, ordinary vehicles need to be replaced once a month, and tires should be replaced every 10 months. In one year, the maintenance replacement cost spent on the brake pads, tires and rims was about 10,000 yuan. Relevant data show that after the installation of retarder, shoe replacement cycle can be extended 6-8 times, tire life can be extended by 30%, rims can be extended 16 times the service life. The purchase cost of eddy current retarder is high, but the cost savings are also considerable.

However, commercial vehicle users do not understand this. For them, safety devices such as ABS and retarder are of high-end configuration, and they are not necessary. Compared with ABS, retarder has a lower awareness in the user group, which directly leads to its high price and useless image is difficult to reverse.

Technical level to be considered

One important reason why security devices are difficult to promote is technical limitations. The safety device is not a stand-alone product and only if it is matched with the transmission and the axle can it function. If these parts do not meet the requirements, the installation effect will be greatly reduced. Relevant person in charge of the technical development department of FAW Jiefang Automobile Co., Ltd. stated that the retarder is generally installed in front of the transmission or between the transmission and the rear axle, which has an impact on vehicle layout and vehicle passability, and it currently has products such as ABS and retarder in China. The technology is not yet mature.

The domestic eddy current retarder technology is quite mature. Each unit is priced at 10,000 yuan. There will be no problems with eight years of use, and the structure is simple and easy to maintain. The technology of liquid turbine retarder in China is still not mature enough, quality and reliability still need to be improved, and maintenance is also more complicated.

In addition, the fitting of safety devices may also affect the weight of the vehicle. The eddy current retarder weighs more than 300 kilograms, which is contrary to the current pursuit of lightweighting trucks. And the device consumes more power and is not easy to install. The retarder manufacturers claimed that they have been researching and developing for light weight, adjusted their product mix, and actively adopted new materials and technologies.

Policy enforcement must be implemented

The industry generally believes that whether it is from actual demand or consumer awareness, allowing commercial vehicle users to accept safety devices such as retarder can not be easily achieved. Therefore, there are reluctance manufacturers who hope to issue relevant mandatory laws and regulations in the country, otherwise they will not be able to promote it on a large scale.

However, as commercial vehicle users themselves do not have the power to fit safety devices, if the policies cannot be strictly implemented and supervised, the effect will not be very satisfactory. This is despite the fact that the safety devices have not been ideally promoted. the reason.

In addition, due to the limitation of the rating of passenger vehicles, passenger transport companies are liable to implement the regulations for the mandatory installation of retarders. However, there are many self-employed people in the truck transportation market, which are scattered and difficult to manage. A transportation company stated that even if there are policies, people may not comply. The state requires mandatory installation. Even if we install it, we will not be willing.

It is based on this situation that OEMs are not enthusiastic about the promotion of safety devices. Some people even say that promoting a security device is as difficult as selling a suit to a person who never meets. There is no demand, and any marketing method does not work.

If mandatory promotion, on the one hand, in the case of domestic technology is not mature enough, it may cause foreign brands to rush to grab the market; on the other hand, domestic companies will be busy expanding their production capacity while ignoring the improvement of product technology and quality. This is not conducive to the healthy development of the industry.

Multiple efforts are the key

In fact, policy enforcement has not been ineffective. Although many users are still "not angry" with security devices, it is an indisputable fact that more and more users are paying attention to these devices. The National II or the National III is also a national push. Although it has experienced pain for a period of time, it has achieved good results. For safety devices such as ABS and retarder, users may not pay attention if they are not forced to install. Take passenger cars as an example. Before 2000, there were few examples of the use of retarders. Since the mandatory installation started in 2001, the safety performance of passenger cars has been greatly improved, and the acceptance of retarders by passengers today is also high.

In fact, users who have used the retarder can feel the effect of use. Judging from the current market conditions, many OEMs are not prepared to install retarders, but there are some end-users who wish to install them. We generally affect manufacturers by influencing end users. Reliance on strong push is not enough, but it needs more promotion. From the government, vehicle manufacturers to manufacturers should strengthen the promotion and promotion of the user's awareness. At the same time, it also hopes that the government can give some support to enterprises in fitting out safety devices: If the price of vehicles equipped with safety devices can be lowered, users will be more receptive. In addition, OEMs should actively cooperate with safety device manufacturers to develop test vehicles and strengthen matching efforts. Retarder manufacturers should do more to reduce costs and improve product quality. If you can reduce the cost, users are still more willing to accept.

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