Detroit Diesel Making Progress for Introduction of New Rating for Australian Heavy-Duty Engine

DETROIT, Sept. 21 -- In an effort to continue supporting a rugged and demanding Australian trucking market, Detroit Diesel is putting a significant amount of testing and development effort into a unique 1,850 power rating for the Series 60(R) heavy-duty diesel engine. The engine will be fully compliant with the country's emissions certification standards -- ADR 80.1 -- which take effect January 1, 2008. This is the first time Detroit Diesel has offered such a tailored product for the Australian market.

The development program for the new engine includes building a number of test trucks to be delivered to select customers in the Australian market for reliability growth testing. However, the 1,850 rating program leverages all of the testing and engineering activities being conducted to support the EPA '07 launch of the Series 60 in the NAFTA market. By start of production of the NAFTA version of the Series 60, Detroit Diesel expects to have accumulated 14 million test miles (approximately 22.5 million kilometers) through reliability growth testing and a comprehensive customer demonstration program.

"Given the heavier loads that are required to haul freight across Australia, we knew we had to focus on introducing an 1,850 lbs. ft. of torque for Series 60 customers in this demanding market," said Kevin Dennis, Manager, International On-Highway Sales. "And it made a lot of sense to leverage the extensive work being put into the EPA '07 program for this program too, which is exactly what we are doing. Additionally, we are looking at running up more than 600,000 miles (approximately one million kilometers) of testing in the Australian market alone over the next 12 months as we work to bring the ADR 80.1-compliant Series 60 to these customers."

Detroit Diesel first introduced its Series 60 engine into the Australian market in 1989 and since then, more than 15,000 Series 60s have been put into operation in the continent. The Series 60 has long been known for its reliability, durability, strong service network, and fuel economy leadership in Australia.

Detroit Diesel is a leading manufacturer of on-highway heavy-duty diesel engines for the commercial vehicle market offering a complete line of engines from 170 to 515 horsepower for the on-highway and vocational markets. Through its facility in Detroit, Michigan, Detroit Diesel is engaged in the design, manufacture, sale and service of these products, in addition to supporting alternative and hybrid engine strategies for the commercial truck marketplace. Detroit Diesel is a subsidiary of DaimlerChrysler AG, a member of the DaimlerChrysler Truck Group and an affiliate company of Freightliner LLC.