Driving multiple trailers becomes a pleasure with a well-balanced rig

It’s not until you do a few thousand kilometres of driving throughout our big, beautiful country, waiting your turn to pass trailers, hauling doubles and triples that you see up close the difference a well-balanced rig makes. 

You can see the drivers that are going to arrive home, or at the depot, exhausted from fighting to keep their rigs between the lines.

With unbalanced rigs, the back trailer is pretty much doing its own thing; swinging into the other lane, bouncing and jumping, and you remember that there are nearly 40 wheels here that you want singing along together, and not fighting each other. Imagine the lost rubber, fuel, worn driveline components and well – huge money lost, not to mention driver effort, and lack of satisfaction for these poor drivers.

When SRV Road Freight Services wanted to win the haulage contract for a global drink manufacturer, they needed to demonstrate how they were contributing to a smaller carbon footprint and Atlas Balance Rings was one of the key factors.

In the early days, Errol Cosgrove – owner at SRV – proved to himself that the wheel balance accessories could pay for themselves within the first set of tyres. Now, 130 rigs are fitted, and the cost benefits are numerous, with tyres achieving just over 240,000 kilometres per rig.

We spoke with workshop manager Matt recently, and he said some meticulous drivers will refuse to drive a rig that isn’t balanced throughout. From a problem-solving perspective, he said that the Atlas Balance Rings are the first thing they try. They solve the majority of driveability issues, rather than wasting unnecessary time and money diagnosing the issue. If it was up to Matt, every rig would come off the factory floor with Atlas Balance Rings already fitted.

With over 9500 trucks, buses and trailers fitted here in Australia, in New Zealand and South Africa, Atlas is confident in offering drivers and operators a 365-day money-back guarantee. You will recognise the following fleet owners who first tested with the balance rings, and then fitted out their entire fleets.

Collins of Adelaide started with one rig and has now fitted out 125 prime movers, getting an average of 220,000 kilometres per tyre. Blenners Transport in far north Queensland started with three test rigs and when they started getting over 200,000 kilometres on steers, they fitted out another 30 rigs this month. DRT Logistics from Werribee South in Victoria started fitting just the steers and have now fitted out over 40 of their rigs on the steers, drives and trailers, getting nearly 50 per cent extra tyre life. Wickham’s Transport in Warwick started with balancing two rigs and have just fitted out another 15. Palm Transport in Heathwood started with just two K200s and now have just fitted out over 40 of their rigs, eight of them this month.

Detour Logistics fitted out 46 Volvo and Scania rigs along with every MaxiCube trailer now fitted on the factory floor. Detour now gets an average of 260,000 kilometres on steers and just over 500,000 kilometres on trailers. 

Another great example is Qube Bulk in West Perth which first tested three Volvo quads. They now have 12 fitted out and are working through their 450-strong truck fleet. When they went from 70,000 kilometres per tyre on super single steers to 160,000 kilometres, on average, they ordered Atlas balance rings for 40 quads in one purchase. These rigs are hauling iron ore in W.A.

Tired of sky-high fuel and tyre costs? Atlas Balance Rings are designed to cut your running costs and improve your vehicle’s performance. Enjoy a smoother ride, better fuel efficiency, and longer-lasting tyres. Sceptical? Take the Atlas Balance challenge and experience the benefits risk-free.

For more information, visit atlasbalance.com.au or call 1300 228 527.