The opinion that trucks cannot be fast is erroneous. Among these cars are those that are initially developed to set record speeds for acceleration and movement. Moreover, they are in mass production. That is, anyone can freely purchase them and use them specifically for transporting cargo! True, for some it will still be necessary to make some adjustments to the structure of the power apparatus.
The fastest jet truck
For the last 10 years, the fastest truck has been considered the Shockwave, built on the Peterbit base, which has a 36 thousand horsepower jet engine. But this record has long been broken! We are talking about a Hawaiian Eagle, equipped on a 1940 Ford base. Now it is owned by a certain Shannen Seidel from Hawaii. The machine is equipped with 2 independent jet engines of 6000 horsepower each. And it weighs almost 1.5 times less than Shockwave, which allowed the car to reach higher speeds.
The current recorded record for the Hawaiian Eagle (it is also officially listed in the Guinness Book of Records) is 655 kilometers per hour. The car often participates in international truck exhibitions under the name “AfterShock”. At the same time, the owner of the truck has long ago posted on YouTube a detailed diagram of how you can independently equip the same vehicle with a detailed description of all the technical nuances and components.
Theoretically, anyone could make such a truck in their garage. But you need to understand that using it on public roads is prohibited.
The largest: BelAZ-75710
The creation of Belarusian engineers from 2013. Today the car is the largest dump truck on planet Earth. The miracle of technology is driven by as many as 6 engines, with 4 electric motors scattered 1 on each wheel and having a power of 810 horsepower. They are powered by 2 more turbo diesel engines with an output of 2300 hp each. In total, at the time of 2022, 3 such cars were assembled at the BelAZ plant. Each sold for $2 million. The company is currently creating a fourth dump truck.
It is also worth mentioning that the 75710th entered the Guinness Book of Records, transporting a load weighing 863 tons, with an optimal working load of 503.5 tons. The dimensions of the machine are 20.6x9.7x8.1 meters.
Truck with the fastest acceleration
As expected, the truck that accelerates to 100 kilometers per hour the fastest is the Tesla Semi prototype with a motor from the Tesla Model 3. And all thanks to electric motors that provide instant start and reach maximum power within 0.7 seconds after start. Without a trailer, it accelerates to 100 km/h in just 5 seconds. And with a load of 36 tons (which is the maximum for this truck), the same acceleration will take just under 20 seconds.
The cost of these cars is also surprising. Tesla Semi in modification with a small battery pack will cost 150 thousand dollars, with a large one - 180 thousand dollars. The power reserve on a full charge is 482 and 805 kilometers, respectively. But it’s almost impossible to buy a Tesla Semi now. The automaker has already collected thousands of pre-orders from major logistics companies. And until these contracts are completed, private purchases of the truck are temporarily closed.
The largest tractor: Nicolas Tractomas
Surely every car lover has at least once heard about the brand of trucks and tractors called Nicolas. These cars are made in France. And it is this company that owns the record-breaking tractor. The famous Tractomas was born back in 2005. The cost of each copy is 800 thousand euros. The first batch of these trucks consisted of only 4 units and was purchased by Rotran. Of course, today there are much more existing samples.
The machine stands on five axles and has dimensions of 12.6x3.5x4.5 meters. It is driven by a powerful 27-liter Caterpillar unit with an output of 912 horsepower and a torque of 3460 Nm.
Fastest production truck
In this category, for ten years in a row, the favorite has remained the Scania R730, modified with a 16-liter gasoline engine with 730 horsepower. The manufacturer claims that the maximum possible speed that this truck can reach is 200 km/h. But in practice, drivers managed to get 227 km/h.
Currently, production of the Scania R730 has been discontinued, so you can only buy used variations. In the USA, the average cost of a car on the secondary market is only 30-40 thousand dollars. And all because it is considered irrelevant (fuel consumption is too high, not all roads can be driven). But the manufacturer is still providing service for this model.
Longest highway train: Mack Titan
It's only when you see the Mack Titan in front of you that you begin to understand the true meaning of the term "truck train." The hitch was assembled in 2016 in the USA, in Queensland. The train consisted of 113 trailers, the total weight of which reached 1,300 tons. In order for the train to move, it was necessary to use a Mack Titan tractor with a 600 hp diesel unit. The unusual connection stretched for 1.47 km. The car entered the Guinness Book of Records as soon as it drove 150 meters along the highway.
Fastest diesel truck
And this is Phoenix. Built from the International K-7 by Carl Heap. The standard engine of the tractor was replaced with a 6-cylinder Detroit Diesel 16V92 engine, with a total volume of just over 24 liters. And this design is complemented by 2 compressors that supply the fuel mixture under pressure into the combustion chamber, as well as 4 superchargers that provide a constant flow of air necessary for burning the fuel. The power plant provides power of about 4,000 thousand horsepower.
With its weight of 8.5 tons, the Phoenix managed to accelerate to 436 km/h, but first it was necessary to install aircraft tires on its chassis. No other could withstand such a load. It is worth recalling that approximately the same speed record was set on one of the most “advanced” production sports cars, the Bugatti Veyron.
Volvo
Volvo managed to achieve higher results, which released an iron monster called Mean Green. The design of the car in question contains a hybrid power plant, which contains a power of 2100 horsepower. The speed can reach 237 km/h - this is the maximum for this unit. Unlike its predecessor, Volvo is seriously considering the possibility of launching mass production of its high-speed trucks not for fun, but for cargo transportation.
The fastest Soviet truck
In this category, the leadership is occupied by the little-known ZIL-113G. The model is based on the ZIL-114. Created for the transportation of units, components and fuel for servicing the cars of the “top officials” of the USSR in emergency conditions. The installed engine has a power of 300 horsepower and reaches a maximum speed of 170 km/h.
But this model did not go into mass production. In total, only 4 of these cars were produced, and all of them are now kept by private collectors.
Bottom line: of course, no one will buy such fast trucks specifically for transporting cargo for subsequent modification. They are a kind of museum exhibits and are created primarily to demonstrate technical excellence. But knowing about their existence is at least interesting.
Scania
Scania had to work hard to create its high-speed monster. The basis was taken from one of the truck models, which was amenable to fundamental changes and the use of innovative technologies. As a result, the power reached 1 thousand horsepower, the weight was 4.6 tons, and the acceleration speed to hundreds of kilometers per hour was only 5 seconds. The upper speed limit is at 210 km/h. This truck was not put into mass production, it is not destined to transport cargo and benefit society. But what a great company it turned out to be. At the moment, this is not the fastest truck in the world, since there are examples whose speed is much higher than what Scania was able to demonstrate.
Tractors and giants: the most powerful trucks in the world that impress with their performance. Part 1
- Mercedes-Benz Actros SLT
- Volvo FH16 750
- MAN TGX
- Ashok Leyland 4923 TT
- Scania R 730
- Tatra
- Mack Program
Trucks have always surprised us with their power and size, but even among them there are tractors that, with their threatening appearance, can strike fear into the entire neighborhood. Looking at these large-sized colossuses, even experienced motorists’ hearts skip a beat. They are equipped with roaring engines of incredible power, which are not installed even on super-fast sports cars. Today we will talk about the most powerful tractors in the world.
The most powerful production tractor: Volvo FH16
Everything that was described above is outright rarities. However, there are impressive creations of human engineering among truly serial tractors. We are talking about the fairly well-known Volvo FH16. The tractor was created in 2012 and is still in use today. The car is driven by a D16K power unit with a power of 750 hp and 3550 Nm of torque. The Swedes also know a lot about big powerful cars!
But there are also five legendary Soviet trucks that are still in successful use today.
LeTourneau Overland Train - a long road train
And I would like to call this creation a self-propelled “snake”. This monster was created back in the sixties, and was intended to supply the army with cargo. They had to be transported off-road, along destroyed roads. The development belongs to the American company LeTourneau. The unit consisted of twelve trailers, with a total length of one hundred and seventy meters. It was controlled by an electronic system; commands were sent to the steering mechanisms of the trailers from the remote control in the tractor.
II. The largest trucks
Caterpillar 797F
It's time to introduce the most heavy-duty trucks of our time, capable of working in the most difficult quarry conditions.
This model from an American manufacturer of specialized equipment was created on the basis of the successful Caterpillar 797B model with the addition of some technical innovations.
So the 797F has a more powerful engine, and the payload capacity of this giant is 345 tons. In addition, today it is the heaviest truck in the world with a manual transmission. With its enormous weight and length of 15 meters, it is a fairly maneuverable and fast car.
Terex 33-19 "Titan"
But this Canadian-made vehicle, put into operation in 1974, is already history, and at one time it was the most load-bearing in a large family of mining dump trucks.
The Terex Titan 33 transmission consisted of three axles, which made it stable on steep quarry slopes. At one time he could take 300 tons of rock into his body, and with a length of 20 meters, the Terex Titan was a fairly maneuverable dump truck. Today, one copy of the unique vehicle has survived, which is on display at the museum in the Canadian city of Sparwood, so we present a photo of the truck itself.
Belaz 75710
But in the post-Soviet space, the products of Belarusian automakers have held great popularity and leadership for many years. In general, several models of these trucks could be placed among the first ones. BelAZ-75 600 and BelAZ 75 601 are much larger than the other cars in this article. The 75 710 is the largest truck to date and its power and size can be seen in the photograph.
Description of the record holder
Not so long ago, 4 manufacturers were in the lead in the ranking of the largest cars: BelAZ, Liebherr, Caterpillar and Terex. Their carrying capacity is almost the same and amounts to 320-360 tons. However, in 2014, the BelAZ company introduced its new model BelAZ 75710 to the market, easily surpassing the leaders.
Its carrying capacity is 450 tons and it can easily transport the largest Airbus 380 aircraft, which weighs almost 280 tons. Not everyone will be able to move the BelAZ 75710, since its total weight is 810 tons. It is equipped with 2 diesel engines with a total power of 8,500 horsepower. Electric motors that drive the engines help set them in motion. The truck is capable of speeds of up to 64 km/h. This machine is used for quarry work and is capable of working in extreme conditions in the temperature range of -50 - +50 degrees. Thanks to tubeless tires, it is able to move on quarry slopes and rocky soil.
The average lifespan of this giant is about 5-6 years. It would seem that this is not enough, but if you take into account the stress that he experiences every day, it is clear that no one else can withstand so much. The vehicle is designed for 23-hour operation during the day. 1 hour is required for driver change, refueling and technical inspection. Over the entire period of operation, the BelAZ 75710 is capable of covering 600 thousand kilometers.
