Back in 2013, we got a new Cascadia with a Detroit DD15 engine and 18sp Eton Auto box.
The Eton ain’t no iShift but it’s not too bad at finding the right gears.
With that box, the Jake’s work great, it gears down well giving max revs (2,300) for max braking.
In 2017, we get another new Cascadia with the Detroit DD13 and Detroit 12sp Auto, this is a far better box than the Eton in every way and gears down great on the Jake’s as well.
In June, we just got a W/Star with a DD13 and the same Eton 18sp Auto as the 5yr old Cascadia, it drives much the same going up & down the box but when you Jake it, it will not gear down until the revs get down to 1100rpm, then only goes to the next gear down, and again, won’t change down till the revs get down to 1100.
Now this is what happens until you get down to 9th gear, then it starts working properly.
I took it back to W/Star and they got a fitter to come out with me with a PC plugged in to change the parameters.
2 hrs of driving around, changing this and that didn’t solve it, he tried everything he could, so he said, he’d get in touch with Eton and find out how to fix it.
So, long story long, I came back in today and Eton’s answer is, that it can’t be changed and if I need more aggressive braking, them ram the stick into low gear.
I haven’t tried it yet ‘cause they’re sorting out other problems with the truck.
The fitter told me there are another 5 companies complaining about this same problem.
Whereas virtually everyone is moving forward, Eton, in 5yrs seems to have gone backwards with their technology.
It sounds pretty poor all round to be honest. I have ordered my new Peterbilt with Eaton Fuller 18spd manual so no such worries for me.
I am trading in a 2016 Volvo 780 with I shift which has done me well but I can’t wait all the same.
I have the Eaton 18 speed auto , Shifted terrible from new , Had the Eaton rep reprogram it , He loaded the “west coast program” as he calls it ( I’m in BC ) , Now apart from the odd harsh shift , I’ve been very pleased with it , Wouldn’t dream off going back to a standard . I have a low range which can be used for more aggressive downshifting and the Jake works great on the ■■■■■■■ 525 , Mine shifts down seamlessly , or I can just flick the lever manually , never miss a gear lol
Those Eaton ultrashifts are awful, the I shift in the Volvo and DT in the Freightliner are leagues ahead.
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Yes the Ultrashift’s are way behind the competition. A while back I was looking after a bunch of 26000lb gvw International rigid flatbeds. All were x Penske rental box vans, the boxes we sold on mostly for storage. All except one we ran had Allison automatic transmissions, the odd one being an Eaton auotmated gearbox. The changes were clunky at best and quite often changed down two gears at a time over revving the engine. Sent that to Atlanta first opportunity I had.
Its a pity Eaton got their knickers in a twist and prevented ZF from entering the U.S. market. Iirc there was a time limit to that court order!
I thought once Paccar started manufacturing the MX13 here they would of pushed to mate it with the then Astronic, and now TraXon the latest version of the 12 and 16 speed automated gearboxes.
Don’t hear much negative talk about them from Daf or Iveco, not that I have driven one lately.
The only complaint I have with my latest I-Shift is I can not shift up or down manually. Using the engine brake yes, it will drop down but only to decelerate. I miss the opportunity to make it get up and go, and keep the momentum up when necessary.
Probably should read the manual to see if the software will allow it to be operated through the one of the stalks!
Paul
Well, I just checked out the Paccar website to find out they are now building or have been since Oct 2017 a new built from the ground up 12 speed automated transmission, specifying its not a converted manual Transmission.
Anyone driven either a Pete or Kenworth lately with the new set up?
Paul John:
Well, I just checked out the Paccar website to find out they are now building or have been since Oct 2017 a new built from the ground up 12 speed automated transmission, specifying its not a converted manual Transmission.
Anyone driven either a Pete or Kenworth lately with the new set up?
We’ve got some T680s , although I hanging onto my Volvo for dear life , the KW drivers say they are painfully slow pulling away and you have to leave lots of time .Also with then , they will not idle for more than 2 minutes if the temp is above 28F and below 78F , 'kin ridiculous relying on sensors to stop you freezing to death .Oh yeah ,and true to form they’re pig ugly 
New Petes with the Paccar have that no idle thing programmed in, it’s all to do with Smartway approval, [zb]ing California again! I just ordered a new one and I can’t get the tyres I want because of that mob poking their noses into everything. The idle thing can be bypassed by the PTO switch, unless it’s got a PTO and then you’re SOL if you don’t want to mangle your pump. I’m putting an APU on, best not to idle these new engines.
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Paul John:
Yes the Ultrashift’s are way behind the competition. A while back I was looking after a bunch of 26000lb gvw International rigid flatbeds. All were x Penske rental box vans, the boxes we sold on mostly for storage. All except one we ran had Allison automatic transmissions, the odd one being an Eaton auotmated gearbox. The changes were clunky at best and quite often changed down two gears at a time over revving the engine. Sent that to Atlanta first opportunity I had.Its a pity Eaton got their knickers in a twist and prevented ZF from entering the U.S. market. Iirc there was a time limit to that court order!
I thought once Paccar started manufacturing the MX13 here they would of pushed to mate it with the then Astronic, and now TraXon the latest version of the 12 and 16 speed automated gearboxes.
Don’t hear much negative talk about them from Daf or Iveco, not that I have driven one lately.The only complaint I have with my latest I-Shift is I can not shift up or down manually. Using the engine brake yes, it will drop down but only to decelerate. I miss the opportunity to make it get up and go, and keep the momentum up when necessary.
Probably should read the manual to see if the software will allow it to be operated through the one of the stalks!Paul
That “can not shift up and down manually.” can be sorted with the computer, the company we haul for have 2 Penske rentals, a Cascadia & an International and both of them have the Manual option disabled.
kgb33:
I have the Eaton 18 speed auto , Shifted terrible from new , Had the Eaton rep reprogram it , He loaded the “west coast program” as he calls it ( I’m in BC ) , Now apart from the odd harsh shift , I’ve been very pleased with it , Wouldn’t dream off going back to a standard . I have a low range which can be used for more aggressive downshifting and the Jake works great on the ■■■■■■■ 525 , Mine shifts down seamlessly , or I can just flick the lever manually , never miss a gear lol
Yep, like I said, the 2013 one works fine and that new 12sp Detroit box is very good, just this new 18sp Ultrashift is ■■■■, we tried it in Performace, then Economy, then ended up back in performance again, now I’m using Manual all the time going up the box ‘cause it’s holding the gears too long.
And speaking to the foreman in W/Star this week, he said that they have also dropped back the power of the Jake’s performance so they are not as powerful as in previous models.
neilg14:
Paul John:
Yes the Ultrashift’s are way behind the competition. A while back I was looking after a bunch of 26000lb gvw International rigid flatbeds. All were x Penske rental box vans, the boxes we sold on mostly for storage. All except one we ran had Allison automatic transmissions, the odd one being an Eaton auotmated gearbox. The changes were clunky at best and quite often changed down two gears at a time over revving the engine. Sent that to Atlanta first opportunity I had.Its a pity Eaton got their knickers in a twist and prevented ZF from entering the U.S. market. Iirc there was a time limit to that court order!
I thought once Paccar started manufacturing the MX13 here they would of pushed to mate it with the then Astronic, and now TraXon the latest version of the 12 and 16 speed automated gearboxes.
Don’t hear much negative talk about them from Daf or Iveco, not that I have driven one lately.The only complaint I have with my latest I-Shift is I can not shift up or down manually. Using the engine brake yes, it will drop down but only to decelerate. I miss the opportunity to make it get up and go, and keep the momentum up when necessary.
Probably should read the manual to see if the software will allow it to be operated through the one of the stalks!Paul
That “can not shift up and down manually.” can be sorted with the computer, the company we haul for have 2 Penske rentals, a Cascadia & an International and both of them have the Manual option disabled.
Thanks for the reply Neil.
I thought there probably is a way round it, but can not get our fitter/driver manager to hook the computer up for me. Every time I send it in for service I’m told he pulls up the history to see if anyone else has tampered with the ecu. Its not as if I need it in Florida and Georgia and probably seldom carry more than 15000 kg weight as its priority mail (parcels) that I carry. Now first class or any letter mail is a different story those loads are heavy.
I must admit, I like the I- shift and would prefer not to go back to a manual box.
I try to stay away from Volvo dealers, but on occasions when I do business with them they think your’e stupid, and then when you prove to them your’e not, they wont let you into their workshop. ■■■■■■■■■■■■■
Don’t get me started on Volvo dealers, in my experience they’re the biggest BOCs I’ve ever dealt with. Seriously, if they acted like they do over here back in England, their dealerships would be burned to the ground. $3000 for a starter motor replacement call out, $2800 to repair a leaking diesel tank, $1800 to replace a radiator they damaged while replacing the cylinder head, that’s on top of the general shoddy service you get, simple things like tightening nuts, bolts and screws are beyond them. I like the lorries, they’re not as good as the Euro built Volvos, but they’re still a good lorry, I’ll never buy another though because of the after sales service and I wouldn’t buy a wiper blade from my local dealership, I even snapped the $250 gift card they gave me after the radiator fiasco in half and threw it back at them.
I’ve got my remaining Volvo up for sale at the moment, I’m just waiting to find somebody I hate to sell it to [emoji23]
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Paul John:
neilg14:
Paul John:
Yes the Ultrashift’s are way behind the competition. A while back I was looking after a bunch of 26000lb gvw International rigid flatbeds. All were x Penske rental box vans, the boxes we sold on mostly for storage. All except one we ran had Allison automatic transmissions, the odd one being an Eaton auotmated gearbox. The changes were clunky at best and quite often changed down two gears at a time over revving the engine. Sent that to Atlanta first opportunity I had.Its a pity Eaton got their knickers in a twist and prevented ZF from entering the U.S. market. Iirc there was a time limit to that court order!
I thought once Paccar started manufacturing the MX13 here they would of pushed to mate it with the then Astronic, and now TraXon the latest version of the 12 and 16 speed automated gearboxes.
Don’t hear much negative talk about them from Daf or Iveco, not that I have driven one lately.The only complaint I have with my latest I-Shift is I can not shift up or down manually. Using the engine brake yes, it will drop down but only to decelerate. I miss the opportunity to make it get up and go, and keep the momentum up when necessary.
Probably should read the manual to see if the software will allow it to be operated through the one of the stalks!Paul
That “can not shift up and down manually.” can be sorted with the computer, the company we haul for have 2 Penske rentals, a Cascadia & an International and both of them have the Manual option disabled.
Thanks for the reply Neil.
I thought there probably is a way round it, but can not get our fitter/driver manager to hook the computer up for me. Every time I send it in for service I’m told he pulls up the history to see if anyone else has tampered with the ecu. Its not as if I need it in Florida and Georgia and probably seldom carry more than 15000 kg weight as its priority mail (parcels) that I carry. Now first class or any letter mail is a different story those loads are heavy.
I must admit, I like the I- shift and would prefer not to go back to a manual box.I try to stay away from Volvo dealers, but on occasions when I do business with them they think your’e stupid, and then when you prove to them your’e not, they wont let you into their workshop. [zb]!W—ers
Next time you go to the dealers and it gets hooked up, get your boss to tell them to add the manual option again.
Rental companies don’t want it added so it can’t be over revved.
My brand new Cascadia has a 10 speed Eaton / Fuller box of gears LOL, this country is so far behind in the trucking world.
The DT12 autoshift is available in the Cascadia Pat, exactly the same box as the Actros has. I don’t know if it’s more expensive, or whether your mob are scared of technology, but when I looked into buying a Freightliner they were pushing their own box over the Fuller alternative.
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