Expect to see a new truck coming from Navistar about every six months for the next two years.
The array of new truck introductions started this summer with the roll-out of the PayStar and will conclude (at least temporarily) with a new TerraStar in the summer of 2018. The new models will span from medium-duty trucks to extreme heavy-duty vehicles.
Much of the credit for the new product development goes to a $256-million cash infusion, the result of Volkswagen’s recent acquisition of 16% of Navistar, according to Navistar’s Josh Shaw.
“The VW deal strengthens Navistar’s financial position and enables further investment in future products,” Navistar’s Josh Shaw said at the Canadian Transportation Equipment Association’s Manufacturers Conference in Vancouver.
Among the news from Navistar:
• The Cummins ISL9 is a new engine option for the DuraStar and WorkStar models.
• Navistar will offer the Cummins B6.7 in the first quarter. With the B6.7 comes the new single module aftertreatment system that Cummins has introduced. The single-canister system offers up to 70% reduction in space and as much as a 30% reduction in weight, plus enhanced thermal efficiency.
“Even the larger canisters don’t result in much CA loss when run vertically,” Shaw said. “By combining the system into a single canister, exhaust systems resemble those of pre-2010 trucks, providing upfitters with more flexibility for mounting equipment.”
• Navistar will build a cutaway chassis in the Navistar plant in Springfield OH next spring. Initially a General Motors product, the medium-duty cutaway will be offered as GM and Navistar products in 2019.
“You can summarize what’s going on at Navistar this way,” Shaw concluded. “We have become profitable again. Our product quality has never been better. And we are investing in products and technologies to stay competitive and regain market position.” ♦