Daimler India Commercial Vehicles announces battery-electric truck eCanter for India
BASF Plastics support immersion cooling in high-speed hybrid car

Freightliner produces 1 millionth Cascadia Class 8 truck

Freightliner, a brand of Daimler Truck North America LLC (DTNA), celebrated a significant milestone with the production of the 1 millionth Freightliner Cascadia—the first Class 8 truck in North America to reach the seven-figure mark.

IMG_0682

Fourth-generation Cascadia


What started as an idea to develop a truck with new aerodynamic, lightweight, and uptime-improving features has since evolved through four generations of the platform. It has earned its status as the market-leading Class 8 commercial truck through continuous innovations designed for driver comfort, increased safety, and reduced fuel consumption. Notably, since its original introduction, the Cascadia has improved its fuel efficiency by more than 35%.

The Cascadia continues to be a trailblazer for innovative features in the industry, and the foundation for transformative projects at DTNA. As an example, the Cascadia is serving as the vehicle base for the SuperTruck initiative, the multi-year co-funded project by the Department of Energy (DOE) that investigates next-generation technologies for heavy-duty commercial trucks and potential product integration into series production trucks.

The battery electric Freightliner eCascadia, which launched in 2022, has today driven more than 6 million real-world miles with customers across more than 50 fleets in the US. DTNA also designed an autonomous-ready Cascadia with redundant safety features, which include braking and steering for a truck tailor-made for autonomous driving functionalities and prepared for the integration of any virtual driver.

Currently, the autonomous-ready Cascadia is being tested as a self-driving truck in real-world operations by Torc Robotics, an independent subsidiary of DTNA since 2019, setting standards for safety on the road.

Key product developments throughout the history of the Freightliner Cascadia:

  • First Generation Cascadia debuted with the Detroit DD15 (2007): Introduced the all-new Cascadia with the heavy-duty Detroit Diesel DD15 engine platform, which offered excellent performance, improved fuel consumption, and industry-leading power.

  • Second Generation Cascadia ‘Evolution’ launched (2012): Unveiled the second-generation Cascadia series engineered to increase fuel efficiency. The launch included the introduction of the Detroit DT12, an Automated Manual Transmission (AMT) that combined the operational ease of an automatic with the efficiency of a manual transmission.

  • Detroit Connect introduced (2013): The introduction of Detroit Connect brought the first OEM-provided, factory-installed connectivity suite to the Cascadia.

  • Detroit Assurance launched (2015): Detroit Assurance offered as the first OEM-designed proprietary suite of safety systems, fully integrating the Detroit powertrain with safe driving innovations for a higher level of safety and performance in the Cascadia.

  • Freightliner Inspiration Truck debuted (2015): Utilized the Freightliner Cascadia as a framework for the first licensed automated commercial truck.

  • SuperTruck I unveiled (2015): Freightliner, DTNA, and its project partners exceed program goals and demonstrate more than 115 percent improvement in overall freight efficiency over a 2009 baseline truck.

  • Third Generation Cascadia launched (2017): The third generation Cascadia brought advanced aerodynamics, improved safety features, connectivity advancements, and driver comfort enhancements to meet the evolving needs for fleets and drivers.

  • Fourth Generation Cascadia with SAE L2 capabilities introduced (2019): Becomes the first heavy-duty truck in series production in North America with automated feature enhancements capable of both lateral (steering) and longitudinal (acceleration/deceleration) control.

  • Right-hand drive Cascadia launched (2019): Right-hand drive versions of the Freightliner Cascadia became available in international markets like Australia.

  • Freightliner eCascadia production started (2022): The battery electric truck, which was initially revealed in 2019 as a customer test vehicle, enters series production.

  • SuperTruck II launched (2023): Continued improvements are made in efficient freight design and aerodynamics through the SuperTruck program, co-funded by the DOE. The U.S. Department of Energy also announces funding for the Freightliner SuperTruck III program, slated to be unveiled in 2027.

Comments

GdB

A hybrid or HEV truck would be so much more reliable and lower maintenance, plus offering downhill regenerative braking for not just lower maintenance, but less toxic brake dust and runaway truck mega accidents, while recovering the energy. Gearboxes with shifters and clutches are obsolete.

The comments to this entry are closed.