Be fuel smart - Part II

Published in Western Canada Highway News:
Engine makers are trying to help you reduce fuel consumption with more efficient systems. International Truck and Engine, for example, says it has designed a truck that is seven per cent more fuel-efficient than their nearest competitor.
“The ProStar is the most aerodynamic and fuel-efficient Class 8 truck on the road,” Roy Wiley says from International headquarters in Illinois, adding that wind tunnel tests conducted in Canada confirmed ProStar’s superiority.
International says the high fuel efficiency, which is mainly thanks to the truck’s aerodynamic design, means well over $5,000 in savings on diesel in a 190,000-kilometre year. That ain’t chicken feed.
“Clear and decisive fuel-economy leadership is great news for our customers,” declares Daniel Ustian, president and CEO of Navistar (International’s parent company). “The ability to save thousands of dollars in fuel with one truck over the course of a year is extremely significant, especially with the financial pressures placed on truck and fleet owners.”
Idling costs fuel, so it’s fortunate that engine makers have developed idle reduction systems. Kenworth’s patented Clean Power no-idle system was put in T660 trucks a while back, and this spring’s Mid-America Trucking Show in Louisville the company announced that Clean Power will become a factory-installed option for W900s and T800s as well. Kenworth states that Clean Power can boost fuel economy by as much as eight per cent in trucks with high idling times. That can mean saving thousands of dollars per truck every year. Clean Power adds $8,000 to $10,000 to a truck’s purchase price.
You might want to consider an engine performance module – or a “fuel-economy enhancing module,” as Hoff prefers to call it - like the ones made by DSG Canada. The Saskatchewan firm makes them for Cummins ISX and some Caterpillar engines, and prices them at $1,800 to $2,300. “With a 10 per cent fuel economy gain,” adds Hoff, “you pay for that in no time.” Hoff assures us DSG’s modules don’t interfere with manufacturers’ engine control modules.
Digital technology can also come in handy for improving fuel economy. Innovative companies like Langley, B.C.-based 4Refuel Canada have software to help you track fuel costs and increase fleet productivity. Its core program, Fuel Management Online, allows clients to access daily fuel-spending reports. A step up from that is an attachment that collects data from a truck’s engine on idling time, excessive acceleration, excessive speed and other things that jack up diesel consumption.