Ready to go

March 1, 2006
CUMMINS Inc announced February 12 that its North American on-highway diesel engine product line is ready to meet the 2007 emission standards set by the

CUMMINS Inc announced February 12 that its North American on-highway diesel engine product line is ready to meet the 2007 emission standards set by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and California Air Resources Board (CARB). The announcement covered the company's heavy-duty and midrange products and was made prior to the start of the Technology and Maintenance Council's annual meeting in Tampa, Florida.

Cummins product line for 2007 features a highly successful emissions reduction approach. The engine line will be certified and compliant for 2007 with only incremental improvements. Cummins will continue to use its proven cooled exhaust gas recirculation (EGR) technology with the addition of exhaust aftertreatment provided by the integrated Cummins particulate filter and a crankcase ventilation system. This technology is consistent on all Cummins on-highway diesel engines for North America, including the heavy-duty ISX and ISM, as well as the mid-range ISL, ISC, and ISB engines.

Cummins 2007-model-year heavy-duty ISX and ISM engines will be available in limited quantities starting in September and will be in full production by early 2007. They will be offered with a full range of ratings (385 to 565 horsepower for the ISX and 200 to 325 hp for the ISM).

Cummins officials are particularly optimistic about the 2007 heavy-duty engines. According to Ed Pence, Cummins vice-president and general manager of heavy-duty engine business, “With more than 300,000 cooled-EGR engines on the road, and over 30 billion miles of experience, we are confident in the customer advantages provided by our 2007 engines and emissions solution. We believe Cummins is the only company with the key in-house technologies that enable the engine, air handling, and aftertreatment system to be totally integrated for optimal reliability, durability, fuel efficiency, and low cost of ownership.

“Our 2007 field testing is well ahead of schedule. Field tests have been jointly conducted with OEMs and end customers, so we are able to validate performance of the entire system in real-world conditions and duty cycles. Under all conditions, performance has been impressive.”

Steve Charlton, Cummins 2007 Heavy-Duty Program Leader, said, “At the heart of our engine system is our proven variable geometry turbo. And at the heart of our aftertreatment system is a DOC (diesel oxidation catalyst) and diesel particulate filter. The engine and aftertreatment perform as a system to meet the 2007 emissions standards and maintain fuel consumption comparable to current levels. Incremental improvements for the ISX and ISM for 2007 include an electric actuator for the VG Turbo which provides faster response and improved precision in adjusting airflow to the engine, improved EGR subsystem with a high-performance cooler, and a faster ECM (Electronic Control Module).”

The Cummins Particulate Filter works together with the engine as an integrated system (both are controlled by a single ECM). The filter removes particulate matter from the engine exhaust by passing the exhaust gas through a ceramic wall-flow filter. The particulate matter is collected in the filter and later oxidized to produce clean exhaust at the tailpipe. The particulate filter's primary mode of operation — over 85% of the time in most applications — is passive regeneration, which automatically occurs during engine operation.

As part of its complete aftertreatment solution, the Cummins Particulate Filter provides active regeneration if passive regeneration does not maintain low carbon loading. The ECM will initiate an active regeneration event so the catalytic reaction can take place. This infrequent event is completely transparent to the operator.

The Cummins Particulate Filter is designed to last the life of the engine. However, periodic maintenance will be required to remove the ash content. Service intervals will vary by duty cycle, but could be up to 400,000 miles (640,000 km) in most line-haul operations. The Fleetguard Enviroguard coalescing filter captures and filters crankcase emissions. It requires changing every third or fourth engine oil change. Oil and oil filter change intervals will remain the same in 2007.

Turning to the mid-range engines, the 2007 ISB will see displacement increase from 5.9 liter to 6.7 liter, providing more horsepower, more torque and, more importantly, more performance for customers. Jeff Weikert, Cummins 2007 MidRange Program Leader, said “Our 2007 midrange and heavy-duty field test units have already completed over 2.5 million miles in field testing that encompasses all altitudes, temperatures and conditions, and over 20,000 abusive test cell hours. We have shared our experience across platforms to create a very solid lineup. We believe customers will really like the increased performance of these engines.”

The midrange product line for 2007, including the enhanced ISL, ISC and ISB engines, will use Cummins' proven cooled EGR technology with the addition of exhaust aftertreatment provided by the integrated Cummins particulate filter and a crankcase ventilation system to deliver certified and compliant power. By using this common emissions solution across all on-highway engines, Cummins leverages its proven technology to meet 2007 emissions standards while at the same time delivering superior reliability and increased performance.

The entire Cummins midrange line will continue to use high-pressure common rail fuel systems, enhanced for 2007 with higher injection pressures to optimize fuel economy and increase performance. All engines will use the patented sliding-nozzle VG Turbo, which doubles as an exhaust brake with increased braking power in 2007. Also new in 2007, the VG Turbo features a new electric actuator with faster response and improved precision in adjusting airflow to the engine.

Enhanced electronic engine controls will increase the number of injection events per combustion cycle, so the ISB will continue its position as the fuel economy leader with the lowest total cost of ownership in its class. An automatic oil level sensor option eliminates the need for daily oil level checks. And, a new 18-quart oil pan option allows for standard oil drain intervals to be increased to 20,000 miles. The ISL, ISC, and ISB all share an enhanced electronic control module with greater speed, memory, and flexibility. The ISL and ISC both offer an optional compression brake.