Features That Make Freightliner One of the Safest Semi-Truck Brands

The next time you purchase a new truck there are several things you should consider. Things like purchase price, return on investment (ROI), dependability and a low Real Cost of Ownership (RCO) usually take precedence in the decision-making process.

One thing that often gets forgotten, but should be on the forefront of the decision-making process, is safety. With Freightliner’s dedication to offering many safety features on its truck models, it gives me “peace of mind” to be behind the wheel of one myself. Their research into comfortable living and working spaces, as well as their optional safety features, makes sure that when you buy a Freightliner, you are getting one of the safest trucks on the road!

Driver safety goes hand-in-hand with driver comfort. If you are not sleeping, working, or driving comfortably, you will experience a higher level of fatigue in your daily routine. As one of the safest semi-truck brands, Freightliner takes this into consideration when building their trucks. Several features of the Cascadia and Cascadia Evolution are offered with driver comfort in mind. Not all drivers are identical in size, so they made their seats two inches wider, taller and longer than most in the industry.

I know from personal experience that the insulated cab of the Cascadia and Cascadia Evolution cannot be beat for sound dampening. The quiet ride inside the cab is something I was not used to in my previous trucks. Now that I have adjusted, I much prefer the quietness of my Freightliner. It sure beats not being able to hear myself think while I’m going down the road!

Quality sleep is also an important part of driver safety which has not been overlooked in the design of Freightliner trucks. Not only does the insulated cab dampen the surrounding outside noise to help you sleep, but also the curved cab walls have been designed to reduce vibration noise. When not driving, the ample amount of interior lighting and spacious accommodations make it a virtual home away from home!

As part of their goal to be one of the safest semi-truck brands, Freightliner has you protected outside the truck as well. With the launch of Detroit Assurance^® on both the Cascadia and Cascadia Evolution, they have integrated a suite of safety systems that offer a new level of protection and control that is unsurpassed. Detroit Assurance helps to improve safety through advanced collision mitigation and an optional lane departure system. The collision mitigation includes a front bumper-mounted radar that helps spot objects ahead of the truck and a Video Radar Detection Unit (VRDU), which commands the ABS, transmission and other engine computers to help you avoid a collision. The addition of the optional windshield-mounted camera system for lane-departure warning helps alert the driver if he/she begins to drift out of their lane at speeds above 37mph, unless the driver disables the switch in areas where lane crossings are anticipated.

You might be asking yourself, “What about safety when something has already gone wrong?” As a truck driver, you and I both know it is not as much a matter of if, but more a matter of when something might happen. As drivers, we make certain to limit the threat of unplanned downtime with precautions like preventative maintenance and pre-trip and post-trip inspections. Unfortunately, there is still a good chance that something will happen to your truck during its lifetime.

In this scenario, Detroit Connect^® has you covered! By utilizing the following tools, you are well armed to maximize your fleet’s uptime capabilities!

Virtual Technician

Should you be going down the road and a code appears on your dash, Virtual Technician will let you know if it is a critical issue or if it is something that can be repaired once you get to your nightly stop.

Visibility Fleet Software

The Detroit^® Visibility software helps to keep you safe by using wireless communication and GPS to monitor your equipment. A fleet owner or designated representative can create detailed reports such as truck location, truck path, trip costs, idle time, truck activity, and fuel consumption data.

Zonar On-Board Tablet

The On-Board Tablet incorporates apps for HOS tracking, two-way messaging, turn-by-turn truck navigation, and RFID pre-/post-trip inspections to help improve truck and driver safety.

Everything that I just mentioned might be a lot of information, but it barely scratches the surface when it comes to Freightliner’s dedication to being one of the safest semi-truck brands on the road today. Their parent company, Daimler Trucks North America, was the first original equipment manufacturer (OEM) to offer safety options such as their Lane Guidance Warning. Other options such as Enhanced Stability Control (ESC) and adaptive cruise control are also important parts of the safety equation that have been proven to help reduce the number of accidents in their customers’ fleets.

With 38 safety options offered in their trucks, Daimler Trucks North America and Freightliner Trucks make me proud to be behind the wheel of what I believe is the safest truck available!

To learn more about what makes Freightliner one of the safest semi-truck brands on the market, contact your local dealer.

Features that make Freightliner one of the Safest Semi-Truck Brands was written by Jimmy Nevarez. For more, check out Team Run Smart!