Our industry hasn’t yet completely adjusted to the introduction earlier this year of the 2007 EPA emission compliant heavy-duty diesel engines, and now we have news of a 2010 emission-ready engine.
Recently, Cummins Inc. an-nounced its technology approach for on-highway engines to meet the 2010 EPA emissions standards. According to the company, it has chosen to evolve its 2007 engine technology to meet the more stringent emission standards for reducing NOx using integrated technology comprised of the XPI high pressure common rail (HPCR) fuel system and what it refers to as the next generation of cooled exhaust gas recirculation (EGR), advanced electronic controls and its diesel particulate filter.
Cummins said it would expand its Heavy-Duty X platform in North America to three displacements with the introduction of an 11.9L engine and a 16L engine to complement its flagship 15L product. The engines will share a common architecture including the XPI HPCR fuel system.
The company says that its next-generation of cooled EGR is key to reducing emissions and NOx, which it notes will not add complexity to the vehicle. And the company states that the power, torque, fuel economy and maintenance intervals will stay the same.
This is an interesting turn of events, since some of the other major heavy-duty diesel engine makers have stated that they will probably be using EGR technology with the addition of selective catalytic reduction (SCR) and urea to achieve the 2010 emission levels. Cummins said, however, it will not need SCR for its heavy-duty engines, but that it would be using SCR and urea technology on its MidRange on-highway products to meet the near-zero 2010 emissions.
While this is interesting news, fleets are probably not as interested in how the 2010 emission standards will be met as they are in what the extra cost might be for them.
In recent years, as new technology has been mandated and introduced, fleets have had to pay more for trucks outfitted with the new technology needed to comply with EPA guidelines. As a result, they have often seen increased costs.
When the ’04 engines were introduced, for instance, not only were the sticker prices higher, but also some fleets reported reduced fuel economy and the need to shorten engine oil drain intervals.
As the ’07 engines have been slowly introduced into fleets this year, similar concerns have been voiced. Some fleets have noted that, other than an increased upfront cost, the cost-related concerns do not appear to be as great as anticipated. But in the hallways and conference rooms of the recent Technology and Maintenance Council meeting in Nashville, other fleet managers were heard to say that there are still some ‘07 engine performance concerns that need to be addressed.
The next three years are going to be interesting. Stayed tuned for updates.
