Looking Ahead

      Even as we investigate with the issue of whether the 2002 engines are causing problems with belts and hoses, belt and hose manufacturers are looking ahead to the next level. In 2007, the next round of emissions cuts will mean even more changes to engines.
      Everett Bowen with Gates Rubber says his company is already meeting with engine manufacturers to find out if the new engines will have higher under hood temperatures, higher coolant temperatures, higher boost pressures and air temperatures in the charge air cool system, more oil and exhaust gases in the air stream, etc.
      "What they're telling us is that even in '07, we're not going to see a real big change in the under hood temperature. They're talking about maybe 10 degrees change."
      Of more concern, he says, is the possibility of oil mist in the air stream, and acidic byproducts of the exhaust gas, meaning some possible challenges for the air hoses.
      FlexFab, which makes silicone hoses, has been doing the same.
      "What we're finding is that 2007 engines are going to run with higher boost pressures and temperatures," says FlexFab's Rod Ward. "Especially at shutdown, there will be more latent heat being given off from all those components. The turbocharger, the radiator, the intercooler, will all be giving off more heat."
      Ward predicts that hoses used in high-heat areas will be made of silicone and other elastomers with higher temperature capabilities, especially in the emissions control equipment itself and on the hot side of the engine where the manifold and EGR system are located.

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