In addition to offering reliability and durability, the
HD785-8 offers operators and maintenance staff the advantage of not requiring diesel exhaust fluid (DEF) or selective catalytic reduction (SCR) technologies.
“We achieve Tier 4 final regulatory compliance with two DPF canisters on the machine,” Witkowski says.
“There are lots of inherent issues with DEF, and the fact that it freezes up in cold climates and then needing heating systems inside the machines,” Heddle adds. “When people think of Tier 4, they think of DEF, but it’s not on the HD785-8. It’s a very mature truck. Very sophisticated and reliable.”
The haul trucks also come standard with an auto idle shutdown feature to help reduce idle times and operating costs.
“It automatically shuts down the engine if the truck is left in an idle state. The threshold can be anywhere from five to 60 minutes,” Witkowski says.
Additional maintenance-friendly features include an advanced monitoring system with onboard diagnostics with no laptop required; anchored tie of points (ISO 14567) around the machine for providing technicians locations to attach service lanyards; fast fuel fill coupler; ground level battery isolator; starter isolator and machine immobilization switch with lockout/tagout capabilities; a jump start receptacle; a modular radiator core system; and KOMTRAX Plus for remote access to maintenance and performance information.
“There are lots of service points in it. The HD785-8 is laid out very service friendly. There’s lots of room around the engine to access things – centralized grease points, ground-level servicing. Komatsu puts a lot of effort into this,” Heddle says. “This truck has very good wiring systems and hydraulic systems all well laid out for the operator to be able to access.”