Sedgwick County in the Wichita, KS, area, is the first county to take delivery of the new Kenworth T470 trucks in time for the snow season.
“We’ve spec’d Class 7 trucks in the past for snowplow applications and they’ve proved to be too light for our needs,” said Rex Victory, equipment supervisor. “And, full-size Class 8s offer more than we need and at a higher price tag. The T470 is the perfect match between light and brawn – it’s in the sweet spot for us and we were thrilled that Kenworth introduced the new model and that it won the bid for our business.”
Sedgwick’s eight new T470s, which have a GVW of 33,000 lbs. for a heavy Class 7 vehicle up to 68,000 lbs. for a light Class 8 truck, purchased through Wichita Kenworth were spec’d with 345-hp Cummins ISL engines with automatic Allison transmissions with locking front and rear differentials for added traction in snow and sand.
“With the set-up we have in the Kenworth T470s, we don’t have to worry about traction any more when going out to the Arkansas river,” said Victory. “The automatic transmission gives us smooth gear changing whereas a manual can cause some spin, which can dig the tires into the sand. And the locking differentials we spec’d give us equal power to the front and rear wheels to maintain a good footprint.”
Sedqwick County maintains 680 mi. of road around Wichita and outlying areas covering about 1,000 sq. mi. The county has 23 Class 7 and 8 trucks with 22 of them equipped with snowplows. The T470s will use a PTO to power the snowplow. A 13-yd. dump body will handle 12-yd. sand spreaders.
The T470 is designed for heavy front axle applications, including dump, mixer, winch, refuse and snowplow.
