Mack Eyes Speed Limiters, Idling Curbs to Garner 2014 GHG Emissions Credits

ALLENTOWN, Pa. — Mack Trucks Inc. is likely to use technologies such as speed limiters and idling-reduction devices on its tractors to help its full family of vehicles comply with federal greenhouse-gas regulations set to take effect in 2014, a company official said.

While most of its trucks will not actually need the technologies, Mack will likely use them to earn credits in order to sell truck models that would not otherwise comply, David McKenna, Mack’s director of powertrain sales, told reporters in a presentation here.

“We’re going to concentrate on some areas where we can really generate some credits,” McKenna said June 20 at the Mack Customer Center. “And then in other areas where we know we can’t, it’s going to be a little more open.”

McKenna said he was not yet sure which Mack products would require credits. But the company might sell some trucks without speed limiters or anti-idling devices, which would utilize credits to meet the new rules, he said.

The regulations published in August by the Environmental Protection Agency and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration will reduce carbon dioxide emissions and fuel consumption by heavy vehicles by up to 20% when they take full effect in 2017 (8-15, p. 1).

Some parts of the regulations take effect in 2014. This first round of new rules were designed to be met with existing methods, while the 2017 limits were meant to spur development of new technologies, the agencies said when they announced the regulations.

Speed limiters help meet the regulations because they force trucks to use less fuel and emit fewer emissions at lower speeds, McKenna said.

He also said the speed limiters could be tailored to fleets’ specific needs.

“What the speed limiters do, in a nutshell, is they allow for an expiration,” McKenna said. After some point determined by the manufacturer, such as an expected life of 600,000 miles, the speed limiter will stop working by design.

The credits Mack would receive would be prorated based on the speed limiter’s expiration, he said. “So you get partial credit for that,” he said.

The upside to a speed limiter with a built-in expiration is that it could boost the resale value if the device is not working, McKenna said.

Mack may also build in flexibility to exceed the set limit, McKenna said.

“For a certain period of time every day, or a certain distance every day, we will allow the vehicle to exceed a set speed limit,” he said, calling the technology a “puff top” limiter.

Such devices give drivers limited ability to pass vehicles, including other speed-limited trucks, McKenna said. But in a similar fashion to the speed limiters that expire, “puff top” technology would reduce the credits Mack could earn.

Mack also is likely to install automatic engine shutdown devices to turn trucks off after idling for a period of time — another technology that would count toward compliance, he said.

Some Mack trucks currently use “smooth” cruise control technology, which adapts cruise control to hills in order to save energy, McKenna said. “That will contribute greatly to greenhouse gas credits for us,” he said.

Mack also will soon start selling natural-gas-powered vehicles, which will earn the company credits, McKenna added.

As the regulations encourage the use of alternative fuels, Mack also may look into using biofuels and hybrid engines, McKenna said.