Paccar's MX Now Being Developed for US EPA 2010

Steve Sturgess • Executive Editor

Underscoring the upcoming introduction of its own big-bore engine, Paccar recently hosted a press visit of its DAF facilities in Europe where the engine has been in production for more than two years.

The tour included the engine labs that have been significantly extended and enhanced, adding capacity and technology to prepare Paccar engines for the next emissions steps in both North America and Europe. Additional Paccar facilities visited included the site for production of the engines for current DAF trucks and the test track for an opportunity to drive the 12.9-liter that will power Peterbilt and Kenworth trucks here by the end of the decade.

The visit included an opportunity to see DAF trucks in production in the United Kingdom and in The Netherlands.

At the big RAI Centre show in Amsterdam, DAF showcased its hybrid truck effort with an announcement of a pilot program for the UK.

Of course, the 6-cylinder big-bore MX was not new to the Dutch show. It was introduced at the Hanover truck show late in 2004, entering production in May 2005. In the interim it has been used with great success by Paccar's European brand DAF to power nearly 35,000 cabover XF and CF heavy trucks. In many European markets where these international and regional haulers compete, a combination of Paccar quality and process and the MX engine's performance and reliability have propelled DAF to the No. 1 or 2 market position.

In production at the plant in Eindhoven in the Netherlands, the 12.9-liter MX is destined to come to these shores by 2010. Already it has been shown at last year's Mid-America and Dallas truck shows. At the latter, the engine was featured in both Peterbilt 389 and Kenworth T800 models. This time in the Netherlands, during the tour of the vastly extended engine research and development facilities in Eindhoven, we saw both a Kenworth and a Peterbilt with MX engines installed.

By the time the engines become options in the Paccar brands in North America, the 12.9-liter engine will be assembled here in a plant currently under construction in Columbus, Miss. While Paccar officials are being very close-mouthed about its introduction, a release in the 2009/2010 timeframe is highly likely. Introduction in 2009 would allow the engines to be introduced with EGR emissions technology which, based on the Kenworth and Peterbilt examples viewed in both the United States and in Holland, may well include series turbocharging. For the 2010 regime, the high specific output of the MX may mean it will also feature selective catalytic reduction as an exhaust aftertreatment. For Euro 5, which is a popular spec in Europe, the MX features SCR.

The introduction of the MX in the Paccar brands here is a widely anticipated move by Paccar. The engine is an entirely modern design with sufficient displacement to offer up to 510 horsepower and 1,850 pounds-feet of torque in its current European configuration. By hiking production to include Peterbilt and Kenworth, Paccar can maximize the investment in the engine while moving both North American brands towards a more vertical model, less dependent on engine suppliers Cummins and Caterpillar.

Also, having its own engine allows Paccar to be more sensitive to market demands and less captive to increased pricing from the engine suppliers or even to production interruption should one decide to withdraw from the marketplace come 2010.

Engine Specification

The 12.9-liter MX has wet cylinder liners to give more direct cylinder cooling and engine rebuildability. An in-block camshaft operates the valves and unit injection pumps, enabling a low engine height and fewer components - both desirable in its current cabover installation. Compact graphite iron for the block and cylinder head saves weight, yet adds stiffness and contributes to the engine's durability and low noise levels.

The one-piece, cross-flow cylinder head features an integrated inlet manifold and four valves per cylinder fitted in a 30-degree diamond position. The overhead and powerful engine retarder were developed by Jacobs.

The engine's SMART high-pressure fuel injection system was developed in cooperation with Delphi and is fully integrated into the cylinder block. Injection follows a multiple-event strategy with pre-injection and post-injection cycles for emissions control with low noise. The MX also features a Wabco air compressor and an integrated oil module with cartridge filter, oil cooler, spinner bypass filter and thermostat.

To date, Paccar has not decided on the technologies it will use to meet 2010 standards, said Alan Treasure, Paccar director of marketing during the engine laboratory visit.

"We're testing [SCR], but we're also testing every other technology," he said to my question about the two-stage, series turbocharging. "Even though they are using SCR in Europe, they are happy to work with us on an EGR solution," added Jeff Sass, Kenworth director of marketing, planning and research. "It's truly a global company."

Testing is ongoing at this new engine research and development center in Eindhoven. It has recently been expanded with 20 new emissions and durability cells to a total of 34 cells. This supports DAF engine production - there's a 9.2-liter as well as the 12.9 - currently running at a total 50,000 engines a year. The laboratory is so new that it had yet to be officially opened by fall 2007.

The new MX engine is a compact package weighing only 2,510 pounds as it is available in DAF's heavy-duty CF and XF models. In those trucks, it is mostly paired with the 12-speed ZF AS Tronic automated transmission, available in North America through ArvinMeritor as the Freedomline. This is the setup we were able to drive (see sidebar) at the DAF proving ground near Eindhoven in Holland. In North America, given the much slower acceptance of the automated transmission, the Peterbilt and Kenworth installations will likely feature a wide availability of different transmissions, perhaps even the manual 16-speed ZF alternative to the AS Tronic.