Work trucks traditionally have been all about function over form, rarely getting the focus and attention to detail of their on-highway counterparts. A vocational tractor is a tool like any other, and tools don’t have to be pretty to be effective. You rarely grab the hammer you want — you get the one you need.
The vocational market represents about 30% of all Class 8 truck sales, and about 70% of Western Star’s truck sales are vocational trucks. But with the introduction of its newest model – the 49X in September – the company included a little ball gown with its ball-peen.
Western Star spent five years designing and engineering the all-new 49X from the ground up, agreeing that the new model had to meet seven benchmarks established from the start: Operator comfort, maximum uptime, best-in-class safety, a proven powertrain, purpose-built, durability and ease of upfit.
I was able to test those benchmarks on a test drive this week in Madras, Oregon, putting a few models through some very real-world paces: navigating loaded and unloaded dump trucks through a working quarry, and a heavy-haul tractor through about 50 miles of mountain passes.
Operator comfort. Driver comfort and ergonomics don’t get the same level of attention with work trucks as they do on their over-the-road counterparts, but Western Star went all-in. The 49X’s dash is pulled forward and wings around the driver’s right, a fairly common long-haul design feature that allows operators to keep their hands on the wheel and eyes on the road. All my switches – PTO, traction control, diff lock and a host of others – were within easy reach.
Western Star also beefed up the HVAC unit, which easily knocked off the upper 30-degree chill in the Madras stone quarry. The backlit controls enable improved visibility in the dark.
