Hinduja Group, flagship firm Ashok Leyland, one of the biggest automobile manufacturer of commercial vehicle, has launched a new fuel efficient engine technology for its range of trucks, fitted with twin speed rear axles and other modifications that enhances fuel efficiency up to 10 per cent. Ashok Leyland provides services mainly in India, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka.

Operating six plants, Ashok Leyland also makes spare parts and engines for industrial and marine applications. It sells about 60,000 vehicles and about 7,000 engines annually. It is the second largest commercial vehicle company in India in the medium and heavy commercial vehicle (M&HCV) segment with a market share of 28% (2007-2008).

The latest line of haulage trucks put forth by Ashok Leyland boast a slew of upgrades aimed towards making their products more economical on the road. Innovations such as ‘Twin-Speed’ rare axle technology will be integrated in both 25 tonne and 31 tonne trucks, and also 6x2 and 8x2 options. Adding to it,"Ashok Leyland stated," that the twin speed technology will be on offer on some of the company's flagship models in the multi-axle range like the 2516IL, 2516XL, 3116IL and 3118IL, which are best suited for applications like market load, cement, tankers and general cargo and are already top performers in their class.

Vinod Dasari, Managing Director, Ashok Leyland said, “It is our constant endeavor to seek ways to improve our customers’ profitability and what better way than to reduce their burden on fuel cost. After all, fuel cost is the highest component in the cost of operating a vehicle. We are confident that our customers will find in this new technology an excellent value proposition. The package of such technology improvements will be extended to 4x2 haulage and buses as well, it added.

The commercial vehicle maker claimed that the new technology is ideal for an open highway condition that allows the driver to shift to fuel-economy mode while cruising.