International Truck and Engine Corp., Warrenville, Ill., will deliver more than 1,700 International 4000 Series medium-duty trucks to the United States Postal Service, it was announced Monday.

Under the terms of the agreement, International will manufacture about 1,700 medium-duty trucks, which will be deployed this year by the USPS as the newest additions to its fleet of cargo vans. Utilimaster Corp. will act as subcontractor for the manufacture and installation of the van bodies, which will be in 18- and 24-foot configurations.
Dee Kapur, president of International Truck and Engine Corp.’s truck group, said the agreement renews a relationship between two organizations with celebrated histories in the transportation industry, and provides International with strong forward momentum heading into 2004.
"The U.S. Postal Service operates one of the most sophisticated transport and delivery fleets in the world, so we’re particularly pleased that our vehicles have been able to exceed their expectations for efficient, reliable operation and outstanding performance," said Kapur. "An order of this size also reaffirms our leadership position in the medium-duty truck market, where the International 4000 and 7000 Series vehicles have been steadily gaining market share."
The agreement between the two organizations also will allow the U.S. Postal Service to upgrade part of its medium-duty truck fleet to International DT 466 diesel engines compliant with stricter emissions requirements that went into effect on Jan. 1. The agreement calls for all 1,700 vehicles to be equipped with 2004 emissions-compliant engines.
The vehicles manufactured for the U.S. Postal Service also will offer International Diamond Logic Technology, the multiplexed electrical system that self-diagnoses problems in the operation of a truck or its equipment, and helps reduce overall repair troubleshooting time by as much as 80%.
International Truck and Engine is the operating company of Navistar International Corp., the nation’s largest combined commercial truck, school bus and mid-range diesel engine producer.
Additional information is available at www.InternationalDelivers.com .