Daimler Gives Schneider Trucks With 2010-Compliant Engines
This story appears in the May 18 print edition of Transport Topics. Click here to subscribe today.
The two main truck and engine companies of Daimler Trucks North America said they have provided truckload carrier Schneider National with two more test tractors powered by 2010-compliant diesel engines.
A Detroit Diesel Corp. manager said the DD15 engines in the Freightliner Cascadia tractors have been updated to incorporate improvements based on results from earlier models.
“These customer demo units were the next phase of validation testing in our 2010 program. The significance of these CDUs are that they are using ‘production intent’ components in actual customer revenue service in real-world conditions,” said Detroit Diesel’s marketing director, David Siler.
As of Jan. 1, diesel engines sold in the United States must meet tougher standards for nitrogen oxide emissions, according to rules set by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
“By actually field-testing the technology, we are putting the units into real-life situations, which ultimately help Detroit Diesel engineers to identify every possible issue in advance,” Steve Duley, Schneider’s vice president of purchasing, said in a May 5 Daimler statement. “We are confident the experience we gain from CDUs will give us additional time to prepare for the transition.”
Based in Green Bay, Wis., Schneider ranks No. 9 on the Transport Topics 100 list of the largest U.S. and Canadian for-hire carriers, and is the second-largest truckload carrier on the list.
Daimler is using the selective catalytic reduction approach to the 2010 change and refers to its SCR system as BlueTec. The other technology in use is the third generation of exhaust gas recirculation, or EGR, the approach selected by Navistar Inc. for its International brand.
“We have been testing for 18 months and millions of miles, including customer demonstration units and in-house field tests, but we won’t name customers’ names,” said Navistar spokesman Roy Wiley.
“Paccar does not typically identify customers we are working with on vehicle or component test programs. We are engaged in active testing with 2010 engines but will not disclose the quantity or location of the test operations,” said Alan Treasure, director of marketing for Paccar Inc., the parent of Kenworth Trucks and Peterbilt Motors.
The two local operating companies of Swedish-based Volvo AB — Volvo Trucks North America and Mack Trucks — also have been testing, and since the Mid-America Trucking Show in March, they have posted YouTube customer testimonials on their Web sites.
“We have 30 of our trucks and our engines in customer fleets in the U.S. and Canada,” said VTNA spokesman James McNamara. “They have 2.5 million miles on them, combined, and no active regenerations on the diesel particulate filters.”
Spokesman John Walsh said Mack test vehicles have posted similar numbers but have tended more toward vocational trucks and low cabover refuse vehicles.
Overall, Detroit Diesel’s Siler said the two Daimler companies have 50 units that have been “rolling up mileage for months — some for years.”
“We look forward to delivering up to 30 additional customer demonstration units during the next two months. The next phase will consist of production pre-series units in the autumn just before the start of production,” Siler said.
