Sterling Truck Corp. introduced a new chassis for its heavy-duty A-Line and L-Line products that is designed primarily to accommodate the needs of 2004 engines.
minimize those impacts and also give customers more options.”
The HX chassis boast a 10% cooling system increase to handle the higher heat generated by engines using exhaust gas recirculation (EGR) technology to reduce exhaust emissions, said Grogan.
It is also designed to handle catalytic converters used in the exhaust system of trucks equipped with Caterpillar's advanced combustion emissions reduction technology (ACERT) engine system.
Additional improvements include using frame rail inserts, instead of the outserts used on previous chassis, to provide a cleaner frame rail for mounting bodies. A new grid-by-grid pattern on the HX allows components such as fuel tanks and air dryers to share bolts and braces, increasing strength while reducing weight. “This assures a more consistent interface between external components on the frame rail,” said Grogan.
Cylindrical aluminum fuel tanks are standard on the A-Line and L-Line trucks in 23- and 25-in. diameters.
Sterling developed an all-new air cab suspension system for the HX, and is offering more options for front and rear suspensions. Front suspensions will include taper leaf springs rated up to 20,000 lb., and multi-leaf designs up to 23,000 lb. A maintenance-free version rated up to 14,600 lb. is also available.
A subsidiary of Freightliner LLC and DaimlerChrysler, Sterling unveiled the HX chassis during a ceremony at its St. Thomas, ONT-based truck plant celebrating the production of its 100,000th Sterling truck.
Rainer Schmueckle, president and CEO of Freightliner, noted that Sterling is being given more aggressive market targets for the future. He said that Sterling is expected to more than double its future production targets by attracting more vocational buyers among government, construction, fire and rescue, food and beverage, and LTL fleets.
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