How Daimler engineers boost the Cascadia's fuel efficiency

With today’s diesel prices, the best way to reduce fuel costs is to run new equipment. The Freightliner Cascadia’s fuel efficiency has improved an impressive 35% since 2007. The constant improvement of the nation's most popular Class 8 vehicle is thanks to Daimler Truck North America’s engineers and their incremental tweaks to the tractor’s aerodynamics and powertrain. In this episode, DTNA’s Greg Treinen, VP of on-highway market development, and Steve Collins, director of field sales engineering, describe the many small ways that DTNA made efficiency gains in the Cascadia—from bumper air ducts to combustion timing. Timestamps: 0:32 — How much has the Cascadia’s efficiency improved? 1:18: Aerodynamic and other improvements 4:48: Efficiency improvements in the Gen 6 Detroit engine. 8:07: The rise of integrated powertrain components. 16:01: New electrical architecture and computational power.