Alcoa Expands Portfolio of Lightweight Truck Wheels
NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Alcoa Inc. expanded what it said was the industry’s lightest heavy-duty truck wheel, Ultra ONE Wheel with MagnaForce alloy, by launching wheel sizes 24.5 inches x 8.25 inches, 22.5 x 14 and 22.5 x 9.
Ultra ONE currently is offered in the standard 22.5 x 8.25 size. It was introduced in 2014, weighs just 40 pounds and is nearly 50% lighter than steel wheels of the same size, the company said.
Now introducing #UltraONE 24.5" x 8.25", 22.5" x 14" and 22.5" x 9" wheels w/ #MagnaForceAlloy. #TMC2016 #AlcoaTMC pic.twitter.com/GtdL7f4fWr — Alcoa Wheels (@AlcoaWheels) February 29, 2016
The new sizes expand Alcoa's portfolio of forged aluminum wheels. They will be available for order in North America on May 15.
The company announced the update here Feb. 28 at the Technology & Maintenance Council’s annual meeting.
Alcoa said fleets have increasingly converted to aluminum wheels that offset the weight of federally mandated pollution-control equipment. Lighter wheels also can improve fuel economy. When trucks burn less fuel, they emit fewer greenhouse gases. Replacing steel wheels with aluminum wheels on one American 18-wheeler offsets the annual carbon footprint of an average family of four in the United States.
