LOUISVILLE, Ky. — For the second time in three years the Peterbilt 330 has taken top spot in the J.D. Power and Associates Medium-Duty Truck customer satisfaction study.

“Our medium-duty vehicles consistently exceed customer expectations in a wide variety of configurations and applications,” explains Nick Panza, Peterbilt general manager and Paccar vice-president. “And we are particularly pleased that our key medium-duty product, the model 330, rated high in areas of importance to our customers, including vehicle performance, downtime, drivetrain, design and styling.”

During the second half of 2001, J.D. Power contacted more than 1,500 owners and operators of conventional mid-range trucks purchased in 1999 and 2000.

“When the answers were coded, tabulated, analyzed and compared, the Peterbilt model 330 came out on top,” says Harold Krivan, senior partner and executive vice-president of J.D. Power.

Peterbilt as a company isn’t prepared to rest on its customer satisfaction laurels mind you. Just moments before the J.D. Power presentation, the Texas-based truckbuilder announced two new TruckCare Preventative Maintenance programs — bring the total number Class 8 truck owners have to choose from to five.

The first, Custom PM, has been designed for fleets with their own existing maintenance facilities yet still need to outsource some maintenance tasks.

“(They) are able to augment their own service strategy with the Peterbilt dealer network’s full range of support services,” says Dan Sobic, Peterbilt assistant general manager. “They specify the service work they need, pay only for those services, and benefit from TruckCare’s centralized record keeping, priority scheduling and consistent inspections.”

The second plan, Managed PM, will see Pete take an active role in its customers’ maintenance programs.

“(It) utilizes the Peterbilt dealer representative in a consultant role, helping customers cost-effectively maximize vehicle life and performance,” says Sobic. “The dealer representative assists in all aspects of fleet maintenance management, such as spec’ing of new vehicles, optimizing maintenance intervals and tracking warranty coverage to recover expenses.”