Cummins Inc. introduced its on-highway engine product line that will comply with the Environmental Protection Agency’s 2010 emissions regulations during a recent industry event. Included in the lineup is a new engine model, the Cummins ISX11.9.
As it announced in August 2008, Cummins has shifted gears and will now rely on selective catalytic reduction on all its on-highway engines as an aftertreatment to neutralize NOx in the exhaust. Previously, Cummins had planned to use SCR only in its medium-duty product and intended to rely solely on enhanced exhaust gas recirculation (EGR) to deal with NOx in its heavy-duty product.
At the top of the lineup is the Cummins ISX15, which the engine maker said will offer improved performance and fuel economy – up to 5 percent better – than today’s ISX engine. Key features of the ISX15 include the Cummins XPI high-pressure common rail fuel system, an enhanced cooled-EGR system, a single VGT Turbocharger and the Cummins Aftertreatment System that uses SCR and the diesel particulate filter introduced as part of the 2007 emissions change.
Cummins will maintain ISX15 ratings from 400 to 600 hp, with torque outputs from 1450 to 2050 lb-ft. The engine initially will be available in Volvo, Kenworth and Peterbilt products as well as the Freightliner Cascadia, said Lori Thompson, executive director of the Cummins OEM business.
Without naming Navistar, Jim Kelly, president of the Cummins Engine Business, acknowledged that one truck maker has elected not to offer an engine option that relies on SCR. He suggested, however, that Cummins never gives up on convincing the customer that it has the best product and that the truck makes Thompson listed are only those for which commitments exist today. “We don’t do anything if people don’t sell our engines [in their trucks],” Kelly said.
The new ISX11.9, which is aimed at vocational, day cab, regional and LTL linehaul applications, among others, shares numerous common components with the ISX15, including cooled EGR, VGT turbocharger, XPI fuel system, electronic controls and the aftertreatment system. The ISX11.9, which initially will be available only in Kenworth and Peterbilt trucks, will be offered with ratings from 310 to 425 hp and torque from 1150 to 1650 lb-ft.
One of the advantages of the 2010 lineup is improved fuel economy even when drivers aren’t as skilled or focused on driving for fuel efficiency, said Steve Charlton, vice president of heavy-duty engineering. “Our heavy-duty engines for 2010 have a large ‘sweet spot’ due to the low-temperature NOx conversion capability of the copper-zeolite catalyst, which means that these engines are extraordinarily driver-friendly,” he said. So even an inexperienced driver should see improved fuel economy and better performance over the 2007-technology product, he said.
