Fleet Management News & Business Info | Commercial Carrier Journal
Issue link: http://read.uberflip.com/i/772176
28 commercial carrier journal | january 2017 Working smarter, not harder In-house integration propels Kenworth, Peterbilt tractors BY JASON CANNON A s more OEMs lean on in-house engineering to boost uptime and fuel economy, vertical integration in today's truck has become as standard as air conditioning. With about 50 percent of all new Paccar trucks getting the company's MX engine this year, the truck maker has put new efforts into a proprietary rear axle for the 2017 model year. Jorge Medina, Peterbilt on-highway marketing manager, said Paccar's new axle can provide more than 1 percent add- ed fuel economy thanks to reduced weight and friction and a pinion through-sha design that helps optimize power flow for better efficiency. Kevin Baney, Kenworth chief engineer, said the design will make the linehaul-optimized axle "the most efficient out there." Laser welding of internal components helps reduce weight, as does a lower oil volume requirement. Together, those add up to a weight savings of around 150 pounds. e axle's ratios range from 2.47 to 3.70, with engine torque compatibility of up to 1,650 lb.-. and a multi-torque rating of up to 1,750 lb.-. I recently tested the new 40K rear axle in both a Peterbilt 579 Epiq and a Kenworth T680. It's admittedly not easy to evaluate only an axle. e aim of the Paccar unit is to boost the efficiency of MX-equipped trucks, so any benefit will show up on your fuel reports and back-office spreadsheets. Paccar's 2017 MX engine, however, is much more review- er-friendly, given the two 100-mile treks I took – one around Washington State for Kenworth, and the other around Den- ton, Texas, for Peterbilt. For the coming model year, Paccar is offering two different turbochargers on its engines – for horsepower ratings above and below 485. e MX-11, which was spec'd in a Kenworth T680 Ad- vantage day cab, featured an extra 100 lb.-. of torque and was rated at 430 hp with 1,650 lb.-. e 11-liter powerplant was able to nimbly climb several steep, long grades around Kirkland, Wash. e MX-13 gets an extra 10 horsepower for 2017 – up to 510. My Peterbilt Epiq featured 455 hp, which Anthony Gansle, Peterbilt on-highway marketing manager, said is the company's most common linehaul fuel-efficiency spec. By comparison, Central Texas doesn't offer much in the way of hill country, but the 13-liter MX powered the 70,000-pound gross weight like a champ through gusty winds and often dense traffic. Paccar's 2017 engines also will feature tuned and refined injectors and pistons, variable-speed oil and cool- ant pumps and a single-cylinder air compressor. Also new for the 2017 model year is a single-canister aftertreatment system that trims about 100 pounds while improving serviceability, thanks to the single-location in- tegration of the diesel particulate filter, selective catalytic reduction system and diesel exhaust fluid pipe. Uptime aside, efficiency also is the name of the game. Paccar has cast its chips on weight savings and for 2017 is asking its components to work smarter while not neces- sarily harder. T E S T D R I V E : P A C C A R A X L E S A N D 2 0 1 7 M X E N G I N E Paccar's MX-13 engine gets an extra 10 horsepower for 2017 – up to 510 – and the unit in the Peterbilt 579 Epiq for the test drive featured 455 hp. Paccar's MX-11 engine, spec'd in a Ken- worth T680 Advantage day cab, featured an extra 100 lb.-ft. of torque and was rated at 430 hp with 1,650 lb.-ft. Paccar said its new 40K rear axle can provide more than 1 percent added fuel economy.