ST. LOUIS — Love's Travel Stops & Country Stores has installed Hunter Engineering Co.'s HawkEye XL alignment system at five of its travel centers around the country.
According to Hunter, the alignment system is designed for maximum speed, durability and ease of use for heavy-, medium- and light-duty vehicles, delivering accurate measurements in four minutes or less.
Love's did not say at which travel centers the new equipment was installed nor how many of its 647 centers offer alignment services.
The Hawkeye XLwas on display for the first time in the Hunter booth at the recent SEMA Show in Las Vegas.
The new system features "visionary" new camera technology with extra-long range and extra-large targets, expanded from Hunter's Hawkeye Elite alignment system.
The alignment system's lightweight, three-dimensional XL targets are highly durable, low-maintenance and non-electronic, Hunter said. The system's precise high-definition camera offers extra-long-range sight and captures measurements in a single rolling compensation and displays live alignment readings for up to three axles at once.
The Hawkeye XL can align 53-foot trailers and has a moveable camera beam and portable cabinet, allowing technicians to perform alignments on either the floor or a lift, in any bay.
The system is easy to learn — technicians need minimal training to use the technology – and durable, making it a low cost of ownership option for bays. That holds true even when the added complexity of working on commercial trucks, said Vice President of Marketing Pete Liebetreu to Tire Business at SEMA.
Love's provided a truck to display the Hawkeye XL at the show.
Eric Daniels, vice president of Total Truck Care for Love's, said the HawkEye XL aligner "will allow Love's to continue to grow offerings to serve our customers' needs."
The aligner can handle vehicles from Class 8 to passenger.
Chip Hiemenz, Hunter vice president, key accounts, said the technology "will give Love's another option in providing customers a world-class experience."
The XL offers optional fully integrated alignment with Hunter's L494HD alignment rack, or FIA-compatible turnplate kits to streamline processes. Standard self-centering adaptors fit wheel diameters from15 to 28 inches. Optional QuickGrip adaptors are available in both heavy-duty and passenger versions.
