Tomorrow is the first day of Fall, and now is the time to start preparing your operation for the cold weather ahead. Your drivers should know what is required to keep their trucks running in winter.
Fuel Additive Use during Cold Weather Conditions
Fuel additives to prevent jelling should be added anytime the ambient temperature is below 32. Power Service and Penray are popular manufacturers of fuel additives, and both companies have two different products available through Navistar and Idealease locations.
Power Service:
- The "Red Bottle" is Power Service 911 and is to be used ONLY when the fuel in a unit has been jelled.
- 911 is NOT to be used as a fuel additive that you would regularly put in the fuel tank to keep the fuel from jelling.
- Power Service Diesel Fuel Supplement + Cetane "White Bottle" will be added to the fuel at each fill when the ambient temperature is < 30 degrees F.
- This is the additive you should regularly use during the winter months.
Penray:
Winter Thaw Emergency Diesel Fuel Supplement
- Dissolves already gelled fuel fast and reduces clogging of fuel filters.
- Prevents ice crystal build-up in fuel lines and filters by disbursing moisture.
- Eliminates hard starting, pounding, and excessive smoking and helps improve combustion.
- 100% compatible with low sulfur fuel and fuel blends.
Winter Pow-R Plus Diesel Fuel Supplement
- ULSD compliant. Prevents gelling of diesel fuel.
- Prevents ice crystal formation.
- Reduces cold filter plug point b as much as 30ºF.
- Helps enhance cetane.
- Helps improve fuel economy.
- Utilizes HAFI® technology.
- Improves cold weather starting.
- Stabilizes and prevents corrosion.
- Helps reduce emissions.
- Helps improve lubricity
How to Make a Cold Weather Survival Kit
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Everyone should carry a Winter Survival Kit in their truck. In an emergency, it could save your life. Here is what you need:
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Tis’ Deer Season. "Oh Deer!"
It is Deer season, and now is the time to remind drivers of the dangers of animals on the roadway. The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety estimates that 1.5 million deer-related accidents occur annually. Deer are struck in three out of four accidents involving animals. Nationally, deer collisions with vehicles annually cause some $1.1 billion in vehicle damage, kill 150 people and injure another 29,000 people.
Cattle, horses, dogs, and bears also led to fatalities in collisions. Crashes with deer are most likely to occur in late fall during deer breeding, migration, and hunting season. Accidents with deer are likely to occur on rural roads with a speed limit of 55 mph or higher speed limits, in darkness, or at dusk and dawn. In 60% of the accidents involving human fatalities with animal-vehicle collisions, the fatality was caused not by the collision with the deer, but by failure to wear a safety belt. The animal-vehicle collision is the first event and often not the deadliest. What occurs to the vehicle after the initial collision is often the cause of the fatality, i.e. striking a fixed object or another vehicle(s). There is no feasible way to keep deer and other animals off the roadway. Deer whistles have been sold over the years to avoid deer collisions. I can personally attest that the whistles work. However, it is still up to the deer what action is taken after hearing the whistle. This may include standing still in the roadway or running directly at you; therefore, drivers must always be vigilant, especially in areas prone to animal crossing.
FMCSA Proposes Appeals Process for DataQs Submissions
The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration has published a notice seeking comments on a proposed appeals process for its DataQs submissions program.
DataQs is the online system for motor carriers, commercial motor vehicle drivers and other interested parties to request and track a review of federal and state crash and inspection data submitted to and stored by FMCSA that the requester believes is incomplete or incorrect. believe to be incomplete or incorrect. The DataQs system is available to the public at https://dataqs.fmcsa.dot.gov.
The proposed review process would provide users with an opportunity to have their requests reviewed by FMCSA after the request has been reviewed and denied after reconsideration by the state agency. FMCSA would include requirements for ensuring an independent review of all requests. The outcome of the FMCSA review would be deemed final.
Under the current system, a carrier, driver or other party may request the review of data within an FMCSA system and, if applicable, may provide supporting documentation. Based on the type of request, the Request for Data Review (RDR) is routed to the appropriate DataQs program office. This program office can be a state agency, FMCSA field office, or FMCSA headquarters. Most RDRs are assigned to the state MCSAP agency for review since that agency most often uploaded the data to the Motor Carrier Management Information System.
After a decision is made on the initial review of the RDR, the requestor may request that the RDR be reconsidered. But this RDR Reconsideration may be routed to the same program office as the initial review, even though sometimes that office might follow a different procedure and/or seek additional input.
FMCSA proposes that DataQs users would be able to initiate a request for an FMCSA appeal but only after the RDR has been denied through both the initial review and the RDR Reconsideration processes. All information and documents provided to FMCSA would be contained in the DataQs RDR itself. New facts or evidence could not be submitted at the time of this third and final appeal request.
The agency proposes to limit RDRs accepted for FMCSA appeal to requests that pertain to significant matters of legal interpretation or implementation of enforcement policies or regulations, and not mere factual dispute between parties. Additionally, RDRs submitted to the Crash Preventability Determination Program and petitions to the Drug and Alcohol Clearinghouse would not be eligible for an FMCSA appeal.
