IAR Recyclers Newspress November / December 2015

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Page 17 Recyclers News Press
contract competition were serviceability, handling in
confined areas, and overall economical operation. As
its name suggests, the Grumman LLV is easily capa-
ble of twenty years of operation. The original design
lifespan of the Grumman LLV specified by the U.S.
Postal Service was 24 years, but in 2009 this was ex-
tended to thirty years. The body and final assembly is
by Grumman, and the chassis (based on the 1983-05
S10 Blazer 2WD) is made by General Motors, with
the powerplant (2.5L I-4 TBI "Iron Duke" and, in later
production, General Motors 2.2L I-4 iron block/
aluminum head engine), instrument cluster and front
suspension similar to those used in the Chevrolet S-
10 pickup. The Grumman LLV entered service in
1987. The USPS purchased over 100,000 of these
vehicles, of which the last was purchased in 1994.
Approximately 140,000 LLVs are in the USPS delivery
fleet. A number were also sold to Canada, Mexico,
and several other countries.
Because the United States Postal Service owns over
100,000 Grumman LLVs, of which the oldest are
reaching the end of their lifespan, the USPS has been
looking into replacing or retrofitting the LLVs. In fiscal
year 2009, the USPS spent $524 million to repair its
fleet of Grumman LLVs, and estimated that it would
cost $4.2 billion to replace the entire fleet. In some
areas LLVs have been replaced with minivans, which
tend to be much more comfortable for postal workers,
especially in extreme climates. Canada Post also
adopted the Grumman LLV, but around 2008, it be-
gan studying whether to refurbish, upgrade, or re-
place its fleet. On March 18, 2010, Canada Post
and Ford Motor Company announced that Canada
Post would purchase a fleet of Ford Transit Con-
nect vans.
The LLV had a unique footprint. The front wheels
(based on the S10 2 wheel drive truck) had narrower
spacing than the rear wheels (using the rear axle from
the S10 4 wheel drive). The front of the vehicle also
had low ground clearance. While this had ad-
vantages, there were trade-offs. The vehicle was test-
ed successfully in warmer climates, but when actually
used in places with substantial snowfall, they became
difficult to control and were poorly adapted to those
conditions.
In January 2015, the USPS released solicitation RFI-
NGDV for the Next Generation Delivery Vehi-
cle. Potential bidders had until March 5, 2015 to sub-
mit comments and pre-qualification responses. The
USPS was to then select companies to receive the
RFP for prototype development.
According to reports, in 1984, Grumman Olson de-
signed and developed the now famous USPS Long
Life Vehicle (LLV), which earned Grumman the larg-
est non-military vehicle contract in U.S. History. At
that time, Grumman Allied, the parent company of
Grumman Olson, was contracted by the USPS to pro-
duce over a $ billion prime order for more than
150,000 LLV’s.”Grumman, and now Morgan Olson,
have provided continued support to the USPS to keep
the aging fleet on the road well past the 20 year
planned life of the LLV.”
References:
Next Generation Delivery Vehicle for Postal Service
What Happens to the Old Fleet?