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Truck companies seeking to sell trucks to China have hit the Great Wall: no Indian truck has the type of performance or horsepower required to ply on China's highways.
The heavy-vehicles sector in China has been racing ahead at a pace of more than 30 per cent for the last two years and has reported a sales growth of 34 per cent in the first three-quarters of this financial year.
Unlike the Indian steel industry, which has proved itself to be globally competitive in the Chinese steel market, the truck industry has failed to meet the global norms.
A top source in an Indian truck company said the performance requirement on China's highways was too high.
"A 10-14 tonne truck is expected to ply at 80-100 km per hour on the Chinese highways. We estimate that to achieve such speeds, trucks would require horsepower in excess of 300 hp, with transmission and braking systems to match," the source said.
"We have given up all hope of selling trucks there for now," he admitted on condition of anonymity.
A source at another major truck firm said, "Our trucks range does not offer engines in the above-300-hp range. But then we are not looking at the Chinese market either."
However, the companies have not given up hope. "We are looking at joint ventures to fabricate truck cabins and chassis assembly and sub-assemblies," said an official of an Indian truckmaker.
In other words, Indian companies would not be able to provide engines, transmissions and braking systems.
Existing collaborations between Indian truck makers and multinational engine companies have access to engines of higher horsepower, but these have restrictive clauses that prevent export of the engines, truck industry sources said.
"The same problem is being faced by the Indian defence department, which does not have engines to power battle tanks of the Indian army and this is an indication of the obsolete technology that is in use," they added.
The Indian truck industry makes engines that offer only half the required horsepower. The highest power models made in India have engines with 200-235 hp capacity.
Even these trucks are sold with such high loading capacities that they cannot ply at speeds in excess of 45-50 km, a transport operator pointed out.
At higher speeds, braking and safety norms are seriously compromised, he said. "Trucks under our ownership used for long hours at high speeds have suffered from burnt-out engine valves and related problems."
China has more than a lakh kilometres of world-class highways that stretch deep into the interiors of the country from the ports and coastal industrial zones.
Typically, these highways charge a toll and offer a two or three lanes in each direction of travel without a single stoppage or red light along the entire distance.
They are lined with a single row of steel impact railings on each side and a double row of steel retaining rails in the centre separating up and down rails. The highways do not have a single road or pedestrian crossing along the entire distance.
Pedestrians and slow traffic are provided with underpasses, while major towns and industrial zones are accessed through exits and approaches.
Tolls are high, according to Chinese operators. The other problem, according to them, is that the highways have to shut down at times owing to fog or ice.
Also, the equipment used in tackling these problems are inadequate. Other developed countries reportedly have a large number of ice-clearing machines and comprehensive road lighting systems for safe transport.