Company to offer 15-liter engine in 2010
Navistar last month displayed at the World of Concrete in Las Vegas, Nev., its 2010 MaxxForce 13-liter advanced exhaust gas recirculation (EGR) engine. “Our strategy of 2010 emissions compliance through the use of an EGR-only solution is on track,” says Jim Hebe, Navistar senior vice president of North American sales operations. Navistar’s solution relies on advanced fuel injection, air management, electronic controls and proprietary combustion technology rather than selective catalytic reduction (SCR), which is the emissions solution other truck and engine manufacturers are using.
“We’ve been conducting rigorous testing and analysis in our engine labs and currently have 2010 prototype engines installed in more than 25 medium- and heavy-duty test trucks,” says Ramin Younessi, group vice president of truck and engine product development. “These test vehicles are on the road in real-world conditions, in fleets and in the hands of our customers.”
Meanwhile, Navistar plans to showcase its 15-liter MaxxForce engine for 2010 this month at the Mid-America Trucking Show in Louisville, Ky. Because Navistar remains the only heavy-duty engine maker not employing SCR technology to meet 2010 emissions standards, the company will not use Cummins SCR engines in the United States to meet 2010 emissions requirements, says Navistar spokesman Roy Wiley.
Instead, the MaxxForce 15 will use advanced EGR like the 13-liter engine. Wiley would not confirm reports that the engine will be based on a Caterpillar foundation, saying that the company would not comment on speculation prior to the announcement in Louisville.
Navistar’s Jan. 5 call with stock analysts to discuss fourth-quarter financial results sparked speculation about a possible arrangement with Caterpillar because the company’s presentation included a slide previewing the MaxxForce 15. That image showed some striking similarities to the design of Caterpillar’s C15 engine, although company officials declined to give any information about the engine.
During a Jan. 22 meeting with investment analysts at the company’s Melrose Park Engine Facility, Jack Allen, president of Navistar’s North American Truck Group, still refused to address the specifics of the 15-liter engine, referring everyone to the March unveiling. “But suffice it to say that this product will be consistent with our strategy of platform scale, of leveraging the assets we have, leveraging the assets our partners have, and we’re going to bring a world-class engine to the market in a very short period,” Allen told analysts.
The reference to leveraging partners’ assets bolsters the notion that the MaxxForce 15 might combine technologies from the two companies. In June, Caterpillar said it would leave the North American Class 8 truck engine market by 2010 but would forge an alliance whereby Navistar would build a Cat-branded severe service truck, and that the two companies also would work together on engines outside North America.
Allen affirmed in the Jan. 22 analysts’ meeting Navistar’s commitment to have both 13-liter and 15-liter engines by 2010 “without any product offering gaps,” but he also predicted that more truck owners would shift from 15-liter engines to 13-liter engines to get better fuel economy and lower weight while still being able to get up to 475 hp.- Avery Vise and Jill Dunn
Detroit Diesel previews BlueTec
Detroit Diesel’s 2010 engines will offer two packaging options for its BlueTec selective catalytic reduction (SCR) aftertreatment system, Daimler Trucks North America (DTNA) announced last month at the Technology and Maintenance Council meeting in Orlando, Fla. The company said its test trucks already have logged 12 million miles using BlueTec technology, which is already in commercial use in Europe. “Since early 2005, Daimler alone has produced more than 200,000 trucks and buses around the world using this proven technology,” says Mark Lampert, DTNA’s senior vice president of sales.
Most Daimler Trucks customers for the DD13, DD15 and soon-to-be-released DD16 will see a one-box configuration that combines a dual compact diesel particulate filter (DPF) and diesel oxidation catalyst (DOC) with a single diesel exhaust fluid (DEF) mixing tube and dual compact SCR catalysts, says Dr. Elmar Boeckenhoff, senior vice president of engineering and technology for DTNA. Advantages of the one-box configuration include lower weight and improved fuel economy as a result of lower exhaust gas flow restriction that means less exhaust back pressure, Boeckenhoff says.
While the one-box configuration is ideal from an efficiency standpoint, it isn’t practical for all applications. A two-box configuration allows the DOC and DPF to be separated from the SCR aftertreatment components, Boeckenhoff says. “This configuration allows us to offer aftertreatment packaging for virtually every installation challenge you might think of.”
Overall, Daimler and Detroit Diesel engineers say pre-production testing up to this point has shown increased fuel economy of 5 percent for its SCR-equipped trucks. Even after taking into account the increased costs of purchasing diesel exhaust fluid (DEF), the company confidently is predicting fleets still will see overall fuel economy increases of 3 percent compared to pre-2010 engines. Michael Jackson, general manager of marketing for DTNA, says a typical 23-gallon DEF tank will allow a driver to go from Los Angeles to Maine and back without a refill.
Blue Tec will be available with the Freightliner Cascadia and a soon-to-be-launched classic and vocational style truck when the new emissions kick in on Jan. 1, 2010. The system also will be available on Western Star trucks on the same date.
– Jack Roberts
Pilot outlines DEF deployment
Pilot Travel Centers plans to roll out 25 bulk diesel exhaust fluid (DEF) dispensing units per quarter, starting in the third quarter of this year. All heavy-duty diesel engine makers except for Navistar will need DEF available for 2010 engines in order to make their selective catalytic reduction (SCR) emissions solutions work. Pilot announced late last year that it would offer bulk dispensing capabilities at fuel islands at more than 100 truckstops and that it would sell packaged containers of DEF at all 328 truckstops.
Patrick Deptula, director of design and construction for Pilot, said Feb. 8 that the company would begin ordering the equipment for bulk dispensing units in the next few weeks. The equipment will be state-of-the-art and designed to store, pump and transact DEF to customers in a variety of climates and conditions, Deptula says.
DEF distributors say supply won’t be a problem and that retailers will have options when purchasing the fluid: in bulk using underground tanks for distribution, in totes, in barrels or in smaller containers, such as 5-gallon or 2.5-gallon capacity. Distributors expect some retailers may move from smaller containers to bulk as demand for the engines increases over the next few years.- Jack Roberts
Meritor Wabco shows off disc brakes
On the tarmac at a small airport in Orlando, Fla., two fully-loaded Freightliner Columbia tractor-trailers locked up their brakes and came to a complete, smoking, screeching stop in the same distance as a Chevy Impala that was pacing them.
The dramatic presentation during TMC’s annual meeting was Meritor Wabco’s way of demonstrating the effectiveness of its new PAN 22 single-piston air disc brakes designed for North American commercial trailers. The new brake system is the product of a joint venture between ArvinMeritor and Wabco Vehicle Control Systems and is designed for commercial trailers with 22.5-inch wheels and axles rated to 22,000 pounds.
According to Jon Morrison, president and general manager of Meritor Wabco, the PAN 22 combines best-in-class braking torque output with low weight and long pad life. The overall low cost of ownership has contributed to the PAN family of brakes registering as one of the most cost-effective air disc brake systems available, Morrison says.
The brake system weighs only 79 pounds, including pads, and consists of only 18 individual parts, Morrison says. The brakes feature larger, thicker pads that result in longer pad replacement intervals, and its single-piston clamping unit design is proven technology that also is used in Meritor Wabco’s PAN 17 and PAN 19 air disc brakes, he says. “It’s a compact and efficient design that easily adapts to axles, wheels and suspensions. It compensates for taper wear and enables optimal pad wear utilization.”
Morrison says Meritor Wabco’s new brake family is an important step forward in highway safety that further closes the cost gap between air disc brakes and drum brakes. “It’s ideal for customers who want the outstanding stopping performance, directional stability and high fade resistance of an air disc brake, but at a lifecycle cost that adds value to trailers,” he says.- Jack Roberts
In Brief
Wal-Mart Stores will test two new types of heavy-duty commercial hybrid trucks and two different alternatively fueled heavy-duty trucks as part of its efforts to build a more sustainable fleet. The trucks include a full-propulsion Arvin Meritor hybrid; five Peterbilt Model 386 trucks with diesel-electric hybrid power systems developed by Eaton Corp. and Paccar; and four Peterbilt Model 386 trucks and one yard truck fueled by liquid natural gas.
Carrier Transicold said its ClearSky diesel particulate filter (DPF) has been conditionally verified by the California Air Resources Board for use with Carrier’s ComfortPro auxiliary power unit (APU). Verification is required for Class 8 tractors with 2007 or newer engines to use Carrier APUs with the ClearSky DPF throughout the state.
Webb Wheel Products announced an expansion of the development engineering capabilities of its research and development lab facilities in Cullman, Ala., where it designs, tests and produces drums, hubs and rotors for current and future medium- and heavy-duty commercial vehicle requirements.
Eaton Corp. says its UltraShift Highway Value (HV) transmission now is available as a data book option for Ford F-650 and F-750 Super Duty series trucks. The UltraShift HV is a fully automated transmission for Class 6 and 7 vehicles with diesel engines in the 195 to 260 horsepower range.
BorgWarner’s Cool Logic variable speed fan drives now are available as an option on International ProStar trucks.
A pocket innerspring mattress now is standard on lower bunks in all new Kenworth Class 8 sleepers.
