THE ELITE SUPPORT >> SPRING 2013 VOL. 2, ISSUE 1 WE HAVE YOU OUR #1 PRIORITY [D PAGEI 24F ] FERENCE IS YOU REMEMBERING Kyle Deatherage [ PAGE 36 ] St. Louis, MO COVERED 747 E. Taylor Ave. St. Louis, MO 63147 (314) 381-3800 (800) 325-8809 8016S tV.e Pteeratnes rMse,m M. PO kwy. St. Peters, MO 63376 (636) 978-3870 (800) 985-0380 5D00e2c Cautnudirf,f ICL t. Decatur, IL 62526 (217) 877-0152 30M0 Eo. rAtsohnlan, dIL St. Morton, IL 61550 (309) 263-4240 (800) 397-4292 M6t2. 1V Se. r4n5toh nS,t .IL Mt. Vernon, IL 62864 (618) 244-2545 (800) 786-2545 S29p8r1i En. gSfinigeelrd A, vIeL . Springfield, IL 62703 (217) 525-1280 (800) 786-1280 DEDICATED TEAM OF PROFESSIONALS 2280T Froormy,o IsL a Rd. NEARLY $10M IN STOCKED PARTS INVENTORY Troy, IL 62294 (618) 667-3454 INDUSTRY-BEST TRAINING CENTER (800) 669-3454 NIGHT & WEEKEND HOURS (INCLUDING 24/7 SERVICE & PARTS AT TROY) 2 HOUR EXPRESS ASSESSMENT SERVICE 2 ON-SITE BODY SHOPS FREIGHTLINER & TCI DETROIT’S 35 YEARS TOGETHER www. truckcentersinc .com Virtual Technician [ PAGE 28 ] [ PAGE 18 ] DID YOU KNOW TRUCK CENTERS, INC. HAS... 7 CONVENIENT LOCATIONS IN ILLINOIS & MISSOURI GRaving bEeen blesEsed for T43 yearsI in thNis At Truck CGenters, we takS e great pride in great business, enjoying multiple gener - having the best hours of service and ations of families actively involved at broadest parts inventory, which means Truck Centers, and with our fine cus - more uptime (and profitability) for our tomers and suppliers, one thing remains customers. It is not easy to staff the constant – this is a people -to-people 2nd, 3rd and weekend shifts but it is EXTENSIVE NIGHT business where long term relationships something that we feel our customers & WEEKEND HOURS make a difference along with the products deserve and we are pleased to do what and quality services that we provide. is necessary to work for them. Our ten road service trucks are another added We all know that we can never rest on our laurels or we service available to customers to mini - Hwill be passed by and become irrelevant in short order. mize downtime. For 43 I am more proud today than ever in my 43 years of years we have prided being a part of Truck Centers and Freightliner/ Western ourselves on having the Star because of the industry leading miles per gallon most meaningful service achievements and overall quality of the products that for our local and national Morton, IL we have the privilege of selling and servicing. DTNA transient customers. continues to push engineering hard to further We will never waiver improve the industry leading MPG so that our huge fuel from that commitment NEARLY $10M IN Springfield, IL cost savings edge will only continue to get better and to you, our customer. STOCKED PARTS Decatur, IL better and the new DT12 transmission will really INVENTORY TO enhance our advantage. Boasting the largest MINIMIZE YOUR St. Peters, MO Freightliner Dealer DOWNTIME Troy, IL Not only is Freightliner recognized as the premier Training Center is an choice for customer satisfaction for On-Highway and asset to TCI as well as Vocational Class 8 truck segments in the J.D. Power our customers because and Associates rankings for 2012, but our superior hours of service, loca - our technicians are thoroughly trained Mt. Vernon, IL tions and quality of service have also resulted in commendation within and certi fied to work on your trucks and St. Louis, MO 2 ON-SITE their Dealer Services category. We are NOT satisfied stopping here! We the industry’s latest technological BODY SHOPS are part of the 95 dealers that are currentl y certified as part of DTNA's updates. Additionally, our Training Elite Support National Program, which has meaningful actions for a pre - Center is available for customers to utilize mier customer service experience as well as our recognized 2 Hour with private instruction courses to prop - Express Assessment service that guarantees customers receive a prompt erly train their mechanics on various diagnosis and parts check at over 380 locations to minimize downtime. It facets of equipment maintenance and seems that we are starting to see alignment efforts take root amongst repair. Freightliner dealers to work cooperatively together to improve our cus - A NATIONALLY- tomer’s experience and pushing us even farther ahead of the competition. Thank you for allowing us to continually RENOWNED earn your business 24 hours a day and TRAINING CENTER Detroit’s new Virtual Technician software is now dramatically shortening the 7 days a week! diagnostic time for those hard-to-find issues and alerting the cus - tomer immediately of the potential failure as well as the closest dealer Sincerely, location with parts in stock to make the necessary repair. This is just one of many innovations that DTNA continues to pioneer to make your job John Hopkins easier and more efficient. Chairman/CEO 2 HR EXPRESS ASSESSMENT SERVICE www.truckcentersinc.com >> DRIVEN SPRING 2013 1 >> SPRING 2013 VOL. 2, ISSUE 1 Our ROADSIDE REPAIR 24/7 Mobile Service 7 LOCATIONS TNEWCS & FI EATTUREOS C Destination 06 News from TCI 32 2012 Tech Challenge Notes from Our General Managers Competition's Top Finishers Is YOU ... Industry News & Notes Remembering 08 Freightliner, Obama & More 36 Kyle Deatherage Great Man, Great Loss Wherever Service Awards 14 TCI Team Recognitions TCI Team Notables 44 What Makes the TCI Team Detroit’s Virtual Proud You Are. 18 Technician Managing Fleets Electronically 12 Days of Christmas and Efficiently 47 78 Prizes Awarded It’s Scholarship Time Cox Transfer, Inc. 22 The 3rd Annual TCI Scholarship 50 TCI Customer Spotlight Competition TCI Shows, Events Elite Support Difference 54 & Parties 24 TCI Stores Recently Revalidated Event Roundup Freightliner & TCI 58 TCI New & Used Trucks 28 35 Years Together What’s New & Pre-Owned Recognized by Daimler Trucks of North America Ask the Technician 60 Understanding Fault Codes 24/7 MOBILE REPAIR SERVICE Champaign (217) 685-0660 The same fast, friendly service that you expect Decatur (217) 877-0152 (309) 263-4240 from Truck Centers, Inc. but MOBILE! < < Morton Mt. Vernon (618) 244-2545 • Roadside Repair Service: B Service The written and visual contents of this magazine are protected by copyright. You may (636) 978-3870 not reproduce any articles online or in print without first obtaining written permission from St. Peters • On-Site Laser Alignments: 3 Axle Truck Centers, Inc. Please contact Michelle Petroff at [email protected] for (217) 525-1280 more information on the rights holder for the specific piece that you are interested in. Springfield • Fleet Maintenance & DOT Inspections St. Louis (314) 381-3800 MANAGING EDITOR: MICHELLE PETROFF | DESIGNER: FEE MCCASKILL Troy (618) 667-3454 www. truckcentersinc .com • Warranty Repairs 2 SPRING 2013 DRIVEN << www.truckcentersinc.com increase for immediate delivery - nothing we haven’t been used to in years past. The catch here will be to keep the vendors in a position to deliver quality parts to build quality trucks. On a more positive note, we have all been reading publications on what the next alternative fuel will be to help offset the use of diesel in our markets and whether that will be CNG, LNG, LNG/Diesel Combination or a Hybrid Application. Adding to the mix, we have been fortunate enough to be work - ing with one of our body distributors on a propane application. The engine is presently being installed in two of our medium-duty rolling glider kits with the installation performed by the modification center near the factory. We hope to have this engine in drive test mode immediately and then displayed at the Southeastern Convention and National Propane Expo in Atlanta, Ga., on April 13-15. Two finished units will actually be on display with a propane tank body as well as a independent chassis for better participant viewing. This seems to have become a hot topic in certain market segments. We would hope to share more of this opportunity for medium-duty applications as it progresses. Freightliner has also been very active in continually improving the fuel economy of our Cascadia to remain at the forefront. As I mentioned in our last publication, many of the new GHG features are now in full production at the factory. The Cascadia is establishing itself as the fuel economy WELCOME leader in the on-highway segment market and is building the reputation as the truck of choice by many fleets. We are excited to be a part of the [ Cascadia push! ABOARD However, we must not forget that our DTNA products, both Freightliner and Western Star, are making a strong presence in many other market segments including Vocational, Regional Haul and LTL markets just to mention a few. It has been a few months since our last correspondence and this writing Detroit is making a very strong statement with our DD13 & DD15 engines finds us welcoming Spring as the 1st Quarter of 2013 has established as well as our medium-duty offerings with the Cummins ISB and ISL itself as history. engines. Market share for the DTNA products in 2012 finished first in both the heavy- and medium-duty categories. The JD Power Survey for custome r Welcoming 2013 has brought some real challenges to Truck Centers and I satisfaction also rated also our products very high in both categories. So am sure to your businesses as well. The difficult business climate that we overall, it seems we are headed in a positive direction with our lineup. are experiencing has been fueled by the sequester and our government not being able to come to terms with each other, let alone the budget, in order We have also come a long way from the introduction of the EPA ’04 rules to move forward as a unified force instead of as a separated front.