Most big rigs in the U.S. have tanks that range in capacity from 120 gallons per tank up to 150 gallons and depending on the radius of operation, may have one tank for shorter hauls or two tanks for longer ones. For fleets that are weight conscious, they often choose to run just one tank allowing for more payload since each tank of fuel weighs around 1,000 pounds. Single-tank operations are also more suited to short-haul fleets where the truck is starting from the same location each day allowing for refueling to occur at the fleet terminal using lower-cost diesel. Longer distance fleets tend to run two tanks with the higher capacity 150-gallon tanks offering the highest mileage range and best options to purchase fuel at the lowest possible retail price. Fuel tank capacity versus useable capacity Even though a tank’s capacity is listed as 150 gallons, for example, not all of that fuel is useable. Drivers are always advised to only fill their tanks to around 95% capacity or just to the top of the neck under the filler cap and not use all of the fuel down at the bottom of the tank. Most professional drivers never run their engines past a quarter full on the fuel gauge. Here are a few reasons why:
What does it cost to fill up a big rig? At today’s retail diesel prices, which are around $3.00 per gallon according to SONAR (DTS.USA), a truck with one 120-gallon tank would cost around $360 to fill up or $900 for the longer-haul trucks with two 150-gallon tanks. How far can a big rig go on a tank of fuel? A truck with one 120-gallon fuel tank could travel around 600-miles assuming a fuel consumption rate of 6 mpg. Longer distance trucks with two 150-gallon tanks could travel up to 1,500-miles at 6 mpg and as far as 2,000-miles for trucks that use the latest aerodynamic technology to reduce wind resistance (which routinely achieve 8 mpg). What about fuel tanks on other continents? Europe Trucks in Europe are subject to stricter overall length regulation and as such are mostly cabovers (the cab is over the engine rather than behind it like the long-hooded trucks in the U.S.) Shorter wheelbase European trucks tend to have a smaller tank on one side (120-gallons) to allow for the emission treatment fluid tank and a larger one on the other side (200-gallons) – total tank capacity is around 320-gallons. Even though European trucks carry more weight per tractor-trailer combination (88,000 pounds vs 80,000 lbs), they also have the best fuel efficiency in the world and routinely achieve 6.8 mpg compared to the U.S. average of 6.2 mpg. Australia Because of the long distances between population centers and the fact that 80% of the population lives in just 3% of the landmass, Australian trucks have to carry a lot of fuel. Australia’s big rigs typically have six fuel tanks on the truck with a total capacity of around 600-gallons. In remote regions, road train truckers also install “belly tanks” under their trailers for additional capacity. Asia Most trucks operate in a short-haul radius and as such only carry 80-gallons of fuel at any one time. The road freight sector in Asia is also characterized by a truck fleet that is not fuel-efficient with fuel consumption rates around 25%, 20% and 10% higher than Europe, Japan, and the United States respectively. |