Cummins Says 2010 On-Highway Line Better Than Ever

LOUISVILLE, KY -- Cummins announced its 2010 on-highway engines are now in full production and meeting customers' expectations for better fuel economy and performance. Production of the 2010 engine lineup began in late 2009, swinging into full production in January.

More than 2,500 2010 engines have been produced so far at manufacturing facilities in Jamestown, N.Y., and Rocky Mount, N.C.

Cummins 2010 products will provide improved fuel economy, performance, and reliability compared with its previous products.

"The data that we are collecting from our internal product testing, coupled with the feedback from our customers, is validating that our 2010 engines are delivering on our promises, and there are cases where the results are even better," said Jeff Jones, vice president of sales and market communications.

So far, said Cummins executives at a Tuesday pre-show press event, fuel economy is at least 5 percent better than the previous engines, and performance is better than expected, as well.

FIELD TESTING

Cummins followed stringent product-testing protocol to get the 2010 line up successfully off the blocks, and ever since, engineers have been watching more than 200 engines perform out on the road using cutting-edge data-logging technology.

The Engineering Tools Datalogger (ETD) is a data recorder and transmission device that automatically transmits field-use data to Cummins headquarters. This unit has the capability of sending results for 240 different variables, from engine speed and exhaust temperature to GPS location, vehicle speed, torque, fuel usage, emissions, coolant temperature and more - including On-Board Diagnostics (OBD). This information is time stamped to provide a graphic picture of engine and aftertreatment performance at any point in the duty cycle and at any location.

ETDs have accumulated over 35,000 "truck days" of data covering 8 million miles of operation. Data has been compiled from North America, China and Australia.

Engine, vehicle, and trip information is encrypted and sent via modem to the on-highway engineering team in Columbus, Ind., where it is segmented and analyzed by Cummins engineering experts. Having real-world data from so many different vehicles operating in a variety of locations and duty cycles has allowed Cummins to test engine software and algorithms, make modifications and validate operating characteristics with greater speed and accuracy than ever before. The ETD has the capability of making calibration changes to the engine, including complete recalibrations of the Electronic Control Module (ECM).

The ETD capability has allowed Cummins to maximize passive regeneration in the Cummins Aftertreatment System as well as optimize Diesel Exhaust Fluid consumption for all types of duty cycles. It also provided Cummins with a critical window for early failure detection and resolution, even before the first 2010 production engines were released.

Cummins vice-president of heavy duty engineering, Steve Charlton, says the DEF consumption rates are exactly what they predicted when the engine was introduced at Mid-America in 2009.

"We're see consumption rates of between 2 and 3 percent, depending on ambient temperature, altitude, engine load, and a number of other factors," he said.

LEVERAGING CREDITS

While all Cummins on-highway product is certified to EPA 2010, the company will continue to run the engines on emission credits earned by its medium-duty engines. The reason, says Cummins, is simple: fuel economy.

"We're leveraging our emissions credits selectively across the heavy-duty line to get better, if not the best, fuel economy in class," says Jeff Jones, vice president of sales and market communications.

Cummins executives also had some news about diesel particulate filter clean-out intervals. While the EPA's original minimum requirement was 150,000 miles, Cummins says it published a range of 200,000 to 400,000 miles for its 2007-technology engines, but real-world fleets are going beyond 400,000 miles before the DPFs need cleaning. DPFs are also used on 2010 engines.

Cummins EPA 2010 engines have been tested, validated and are available in nearly 180 installations for on-highway vehicles. This vast range of on-highway applications includes heavy- and medium-duty trucks, school buses, shuttle buses, transit buses, recreational vehicles, motorhomes, motorcoaches, and fire-and-emergency vehicles.

The Cummins suite of engine offerings for 2010 will incorporate an enhanced cooled Exhaust Gas Recirculation system, a single VGT Turbocharger and the Cummins Aftertreatment System with Selective Catalytic Reduction technology. Together, this technology package delivers the near-zero emissions targets required by EPA's 2010 regulations.

The Cummins engine lineup for on-highway applications is on display at the Mid-America Trucking Show in Louisville, Ky., from March 25-27.