Medium Rigid – (MR class) Licence DoT
Unit of Competency: TLIC3003 Drive medium rigid vehicle
The Medium Rigid is the next size up.
This course is designed for drivers who wish to gain the necessary skills and knowledge to obtain a Medium Rigid (MR) Drivers Licence.
It is ideal for those seeking work in the transport industry driving either a truck or a bus.
All training is done through our RTO and once you have achieved the unit of competency your Medium Rigid Test will be carried out by a DoT Assessor in Kelmscott, unless otherwise stated.
An MR Licence is required for:
- Any motor vehicle with a GVM greater than 8 tonnes with two axles.
- May tow a single trailer (not a semi-trailer) not exceeding 9 tonnes GVM.
- Any motor vehicle under LR class
NOTE: You must have held a C Class (Car) licence continuously, for a least one year prior to doing a driving test
DoT MR Licence Information
Heavy Rigid Licence
HR TLIC3004 Drive heavy rigid vehicle
These units are covered:
- TLIC3004 Drive heavy rigid vehicle
- TLIB0002 Carry out vehicle inspection
There are three classes of Heavy Rigid – divided by gearbox type.
Open Class Heavy Rigid
The Open Class licence is done in a truck equipped with a “Road Ranger” gearbox. You will have to learn the skills of driving a crash gearbox and double de-clutching on all gear changes. The “Road Ranger” gearbox is standard on all trucks from the USA and large Japanese trucks.
The open class licence allows you to drive all Heavy Rigid Trucks.
Synchromesh Heavy Rigid
The next class of Heavy Rigid is a truck fitted with a synchromesh gearbox. The truck still has lots of gears, but it is much easier to change those gears than a “Road Ranger” Gearbox. Most European Heavy Rigid Trucks are equipped with a synchromesh gearbox.
The Synchromesh is a restricted licence in that you can only drive Heavy Rigid trucks and prime movers fitted with a synchromesh gearbox as well as those fitted with an automatic transmission.
Automatic Heavy Rigid
Finally the Automatic Heavy Rigid licence is a truck fitted with an Automatic gearbox and drives very much like an automatic car. Once a rarity, automatic trucks are becoming more common, for example Trans Perth Buses, concrete agitators and refuse trucks are mainly automatic these days. Most equipment on a mine site is automatic and many mining companies accept this licence.
With this licence you will be restricted to Heavy Rigid Trucks fitted with automatic transmission only.
For all Heavy Rigid Vehicles you must have held a C class (car) licence for at least 2 years.
All training is done through our RTO and once you have achieved the units of competency for the HR licence our RTO will also conduct the assessment. These courses are designed for drivers who wish to gain the necessary skills and knowledge to obtain a Heavy Rigid (HR) Drivers Licence. It is ideal for those seeking work in the transport industry driving either a truck or a bus, or within the mining industry.
Gearboxes
WHAT’S THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN NON-SYNCHRO, SYNCHROMESH AND AUTO GEARBOXES IN TRUCKS?
Once you decide you are going to go for your truck licence, you will need to decide what type of licence you require. There are three licence options as listed below:
Constant mesh, Road-Ranger, Unrestricted and Crash Box Gearboxes
All of the above are names which describe the non-synchromesh gearbox, the most common being the Road Ranger. When driving a non-synchromesh gearbox, in order to change gears the engine revs need to match the road speed for the gear change to happen successfully. This process is called doubling the clutch or double clutching. On the simplest level, the steps are as follows:
- Depress the clutch and disengage the current gear
- Let out the clutch to re-engage the neutral gear and then match the revs to
the gear that you want to engage - Depress the clutch and engage the next gear
18 speed road ranger gear pattern
Synchromesh Gearboxes
A synchromesh gearbox does not require the driver to double clutch as the gearbox has synchro rings which match the road speed and the engine revs which allows the gear to be selected. Many of the trucks doing local deliveries tend to use this type of gearbox as it is easier for the driver to operate and allows companies more choice when selecting drivers.
Automatic Gearboxes
More trucks are being manufactured and purchased with automatic transmissions due technological improvements over the last decade. Automatic truck gearboxes are slightly different to car automatic gearboxes in that they are, essentially, an automated manual transmission. This means that there is an automated shifter changing gears for the driver in the manual gearbox.
Ultimately it’s up to you which licence you choose to go for. If you choose to go for an unrestricted licence it will undoubtedly open the most doors for you, however training to drive a non-synchromesh gearbox requires more instruction and can be frustrating for some new trainees. If you have a particular industry in mind where you would like to work and would like to know what sort of trucks are used in that industry, KeenBros Truck Driver Training have years of experience and industry contacts that can help you make the most informed choice when deciding which licence is right for you.
