TRUCKMAKERS NEWS * USA - Navistar invests in new engine architecture

Warrenville,ILL,USA -Penton Media - Fleet Owner, by Sean Kilcarr - Feb 23, 2011: -- Truck OEM Navistar International Corp. is developing new engine architecture with a Michigan-based company that will result in a powerplant that is far lighter than current models, uses 50% fewer parts, and produces much lower exhaust emissions, all with the use of conventional components, materials, and manufacturing processes... Navistar is working with EcoMotors International of Allen Park, MI, to commercialize what the two companies call a “breakthrough” engine architecture design for the truck market via a turbocharged diesel model... Using EcoMotors’ “opposed-piston, opposed-cylinder” architecture, or “opoc” for short, Navistar expects to produce light-weight engines that further reduce emissions within the next several years... EcoMotors, founded in 2008, said its engine design can be used in many forms, including cars, light trucks, commercial vehicles, aerospace, marine, agriculture, auxiliary power units, and generators – basically in any equipment currently powered by conventional gas or diesel models... The two primary investors in EcoMotors – Khosla Ventures and Microsoft founder Bill Gates – see in this technology a chance to reduce harmful exhaust pollutants without sacrificing engine power...