Truck and engine maker Navistar is rolling out a new fuel efficiency package for its International ProStar highway tractor, dubbed the ProStar ES – a designation that stands for “efficiency specification.”
Available for order later this month, Navistar said its new ProStar ES will come with a “full aerodynamic package” combined with several drivetrain options and low rolling resistance tires.
In a conference call with reporters, Jodi Presswood, VP of the heavy-duty truck product line, said the new ProStar ES package offers up to 11% better fuel economy versus a 2010 ProStar model equipped with a 13-liter MaxxForce engine and 10-speed manual transmission.
“The ProStar ES represents the next level of fuel efficiency,” he explained. “We’re calling this an ‘ecosystem’ if you will to enable the most fuel efficiency possible.”
Presswood added that pricing is based on the combination of features a customer selects within the ProStar ES package offering. “But it’s more than just a product spec,” he stressed. “This is not a ‘static’ offering – what we’re rolling out today is what’s best available today. We’ll be continually upgrading this spec.”
He also noted that a three-year subscription to Navistar’s OnCommand system is being made part of the ProStar ES package as well: the OEM’s predictive diagnostic system that includes a portal that monitors vehicle performance in real-time to ensure maximum operating efficiency.
Presswood also noted that Navistar’s performance engineering team, which developed the ProStar ES, can be tagged to help further optimize the package with customer-specific specifications based on vehicle application and duty cycle.
Aaron Peterson, Navistar’s chief performance engineer, noted that the ProStar ES package addresses the three top areas of highway tractor operation where fuel economy losses are the largest: aerodynamic drag, rolling resistance, and engine mechanical losses.
He said the OEM worked with NASA at its Ames Research Facility to conduct wind tunnel tests on the aerodynamic package, in particular to ensure the aerodynamics delivered fuel savings even at greater wind “yaw angles,” mirroring the effect of crosswinds on the highway.
Several component offerings are being made available with the ProStar ES package, he added:
- The Eaton Cummins SmartAdvantage powertrain, which pairs the 15-liter Cummins ISX15 with the Eaton Fuller Advantage 10-speed automated transmission (AMT), to provide a 3% to 6% fuel efficiency improvement;
- Navistar’s proprietary 13-liter N-13 engine will also be offered with the Eaton Fuller Advantag10-speed AMT, again offering a 35 to 6% fuel economy boost;
- Low rolling resistance tires;
- Several axle configurations, including two 6x4 models – the Meritor 14X and Dana AdvanTek 40 – along with the Meritor FuelLite 6x2 model.
Presswood added that the ProStar ES will feature an “ES” badge on the hood as an identifying mark for the package.
“We have customers already running this spec today and they say it outperforms every other truck in their fleet, including other makes,” he pointed out. “We are confident in the performance of this vehicle, and that the ProStar ES will serve as an ever evolving and improving platform for the industry’s best fuel efficiency components and technology.”
