Could Freightliner take the lead in fuel economy in the class 8 category? Over the last five years, they have been working with the Department Of Energy (DOE) through the SuperTruck program.

The SuperTruck program was launched by the DOE to improve the fuel efficiency and brake thermal efficiency by 50-percent while reducing greenhouse emissions. The DOE awarded four manufacturers multi-million dollar grants to research what types of improvements they could make. All of the manufacturers matched the grants dollar for dollar and multiple manufacturers have announced huge improvements.

Last year, Cummins and Peterbilt together achieved 10.7 MPG up from roughly 6 MPG on the latest version.

This year, Daimler Trucks North America (DTNA), who own Freightliner announced incredible results as well. They have achieved 115-percent increase in fuel economy (12.2 mpg hauling 65k GVWR) and they are reporting a 50.2-percent engine brake thermal efficiency.

“We are thrilled with the positive results, and are honored to have been part of the program,” said Derek Rotz, principal investigator for SuperTruck, Daimler Trucks North America. “It is our expectation that we will continue to review and refine what we’ve learned and achieved over the course of the SuperTruck initiative, and use that knowledge to bolster our leadership in fuel efficiency.”

What is amazing about this, is the number of current available technologies they were able to utilize. This isn’t some one-off custom truck that has a radical design. This is a prototype truck, but many of the key features making the fuel economy improvements  are things that can/will be offered. These include 6×2 optimization and the aerodynamic components found on the Freightliner Cascadia Evolution and the integrated Detroit Powertrain.

Strategies such as downspeeding with a custom engine rating and using the predictive capabilities of Intelligent Powertrain Management (IPM) components such as pre-loaded 3D digital maps to control shifting and eCoast events also increased efficiency and economy.

“By incorporating a mix of available technologies with future innovations, we were able to use the SuperTruck program to take the first steps in seeing what may be technically possible and commercially viable,” said Rotz. “We still have a long road ahead to determine ultimately what will be successful and what will achieve the greatest efficiencies.”

With this program, the DTNA team looked at the truck and trailer as a single package.  They created a highly aerodynamic package that helps to minimize aerodynamic drag on both the truck and trailer. The rolling resistance was also analyzed and a wider-based low-rolling resistance single tire was chosen instead us using the standard dual tires.

DTNA did look to the future for ways of improving economy as well. They analyzed electric auxiliaries, power steering and air systems, active aerodynamics, a long-haul hybrid system, waste heat recovery and trailer solar panels were some of the items assessed.

“Part of our process included taking a deep dive into different systems to analyze not only what might be possible, but obstacles as well,” explained Rotz.

Of ‘course even if some of these technologies do improve the economy, that doesn’t mean we will see them on future trucks. Some of the options they tested might produce a benefit, but at what cost. We will certainly be looking forward to seeing how DTNA utilizes this new knowledge and what types of offering they will be coming out with in the next generation of trucks!