Following a comparison between their buses equipped with a standard automatic transmission and one equipped with an Allison transmission featuring FuelSense® Max, Public Transport Enterprise No. 4 experienced fuel economy improvements of 11 percent.

The NefAZ З5299-30-32 with a fully automatic Allison T310R transmission utilizing a FuelSense® Max package was tested in real service for a city route. FuelSense is a set of unique packages of software and electronic controls designed to improve fuel economy.

“During two days of testing, the bus with the Allison transmission made eight rounds daily (309 km total), consuming 112 liters of diesel fuel,” said Ruslan Suleymanov, deputy service and warranty director for Public Transport Enterprise No. 4. “A NefAZ bus with the standard automatic transmission driving the exact same daily route consumes 11 percent more fuel. The test showed that the Allison transmission provides a daily fuel reduction of 16 liters. On average, fuel consumption decreased from 41 to 37 liters per 100 km.”

At the beginning of the comparison, the mileage of the NefAZ bus equipped with a Cummins diesel engine and standard automatic transmission was 223,045 km.  The Allison transmission was installed and the NefAZ bus has now accumulated an additional 110,000 km.  

“The Allison transmission only requires an oil change every 240,000 km and a filter change every 120,000 km,” said Suleymanov. “With similar mileage, the buses equipped with the standard automatic transmission requires two oil and filter changes.”

Another advantage of Allison transmissions is a prognostics system that monitors key diagnostics information and provides the driver with in-vehicle alerts. This eliminates unnecessary oil and filter changes, providing additional cost savings.  

“The shift selector digitally displays key data, including oil level and status and a lot more, which is very convenient for the bus driver and maintenance specialists,” said Suleymanov. “Furthermore, drivers reported that the NefAZ bus with the Allison is much more comfortable.”