TWO SUSPENSIONS

Ridewell has one all-new suspension just on the market and another one newly introduced to Canada after being available in the U.S. for the last three years. The latter aims at Ontario’s ‘SPIF’ legislation. All new tractor-trailers must now be built to ‘Safe, Productive, Infrastructure-Friendly’ standards and some time soon, possibly at the start of next year, Phase 4 will address straight trucks and their trailers.

The new Ridewell Model 209 46,000-lb suspension [pictured here] is aimed at tag-axle applications on in-city waste-hauling trucks. It’s said to take the driver out of the equation as far as weight distribution is concerned. It automatically equalizes weight on the drive and tag axle in a 60/40 ratio and can help save 1200-2000 lb compared to a traditional tandem-drive setup. Other benefits are said to include improved maneuverability due to a reduced turning radius. It’s exclusive to Crane Carrier but is expected to be available in the aftermarket for retrofit soon.

The Model 232 parallelogram self-steer suspension is for truck or trailer use in 8000, 13,000- and 20,000-lb capacities and is SPIF-approved for trucks — as Ridewell presently understands the coming legislation — in the 20K configuration. Available in the U.S. since 2007, it’s now come to Canada and is claimed to be both lighter and less expensive than a traditional self-steer axle/suspension combination. You get 12.5 in. of total axle travel with a ride height range of 8 to 15 in. Durable urethane bushings and available Kaiser kingpins are said to offer long service life.