[PDF] Press Release: CO2 Milestone Reached in the U.S.: Daimler Commercial Vehicles Impress During Extensive Test Drive [http://www.lifepr.de?boxid=318564]

1. Contact: Tel.:
Raimund Grammer +49 (0)711-17-53058 Press release
Katja Bott +49 (0)711-17-84020
Date:
May 31, 2012
CO2 Milestone Reached in the U.S.:
Daimler Commercial Vehicles Impress
During Extensive Test Drive
• New Freightliner Cascadia Evolution:
Up to 7 percent less fuel consumption
• Daimler’s US truck brand Freightliner is leading in
terms of Greenhouse Gas 2014 (GHG14) regulations
• A glimpse of the future: Cascadia technology platform
reaches outstanding fuel consumption of 10.67 miles
per gallon (22 l/100 km)
• Successful long-distance test run with natural gas truck
Stuttgart / Washington D.C., U.S. – Daimler’s U.S. commercial vehicle
subsidiary Daimler Trucks North America (DTNA) once again demonstrates
its innovative strength in the field of environmentally friendly technologies:
In Washington D.C. – in the presence of U.S. government representatives
and the U.S. Secretary of Transportation Ray LaHood – DTNA CEO Martin
Daum presented the new heavy-duty truck Freightliner Cascadia Evolution,
which will become available on the U.S. market starting next year. When
compared to the current model (EPA 10 Cascadia), the new truck consumes
up to 7 percent less fuel.
These fuel savings were confirmed by an independent agency (Automotive
Testing and Development Services) in the course of a one-week drive across
the U.S. under real-life conditions. The 2,400-mile (almost 4,000 km) route
led from San Diego, California, to Gastonia, North Carolina. During the test,
Daimler Communications, 70546 Stuttgart/Germany

2. the two heavy-duty semitrailer trucks – weighing approximately 34 tons or Page 2
76,000 lbs. each – traveled at an average speed of 62 mph (around 100
km/h).
According to Martin Daum, two key factors led to the positive result of this
Evolution of Efficiency Tour: “The tremendous fuel savings of the new
Freightliner Cascadia are primarily due to the new Detroit DD15 engine as
well as the aerodynamic measures. The fuel efficiency drive was a unique
opportunity for us to conduct a test under real-life conditions of our latest
technologies and the tremendous fuel saving potential they offer to our
customers.”
The DD15 engine of the Detroit brand, which is part of Daimler, is a
turbocharged inline six-cylinder engine with 14.6 liters of displacement. As
with all Detroit engines, it is equipped with Daimler BlueTec technology,
which reduces emissions to near-zero levels and even falls below the EPA 10
emissions standard for the NAFTA region (comparable to Euro VI).
Freightliner trucks comply with Greenhouse Gas 2014 regulations
Already at the beginning of this year, the Environmental Protection Agency
(EPA) certified the Daimler commercial vehicles subsidiary’s complete
portfolio of long-distance trucks, medium-duty trucks, and vocational
vehicles of the Freightliner and Western Star brands as fully compliant
with the Greenhouse Gas 2014 (GHG14) regulations.
This means that DTNA is leading in the U.S. commercial vehicles industry.
The company already meets the standards set by the EPA and the National
Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), which will not go into effect
until the beginning of 2014. These regulations aim to permanently reduce
Daimler Communications, 70546 Stuttgart/Germany

3. the green-house gas emissions of heavy- and medium-duty trucks. The EPA Page 3
believes that through the new GHG14 regulations, trucks and buses of the
model years 2014 through 2018 are projected to reduce oil consumption by
530 million barrels and greenhouse gas emissions by 270 million metric
tons.
A glimpse of the future: Freightliner Cascadia technology
carrier measured with 10.67 miles per gallon
During a test drive with a technology carrier at the proving grounds in
Uvalde, Texas, DTNA demonstrated that the fuel consumption of a heavy-
duty semitrailer truck can be reduced even further through ideal airflow
and additional technical fine-tuning.
For the test drive, the new Freightliner Cascadia Evolution was equipped
with a Detroit DT12 automated transmission, low rolling-resistance wide-
base tires, and a trailer specifically designed by DTNA with aerodynamic
aspects in mind. This technically and aerodynamically optimized
combination of a tractor and a trailer (total weight: approximately 34 tons)
traveled exactly 1,000 miles at an average speed of 60 mph (97 km/h). The
resulting fuel consumption was 10.67 miles per gallon, or approximately 22
liters per 100 km.
Shaping Future Transportation: 2,700-mile test run with CNG truck
DTNA presented another impressive test result in the area of alternative
drive systems. For the first time, a natural gas-fueled Freightliner Cascadia
completed a tour from San Diego to Washington D.C. (approximately 2,700
miles), interrupted only by refueling stops every 350 to 500 miles. The CNG
truck (CNG = compressed natural gas) only used public gas stations to
Daimler Communications, 70546 Stuttgart/Germany

4. refuel, thus impressively demonstrating that alternative drive technologies Page 4
represent a real alternative even today. In light of this success, Daum
promised that DTNA will keep pushing forward in the field of alternative
drive systems and continue to cooperate closely with government agencies
and form strategic alliances with other economic sectors. “We want to live
up to our leadership position by promoting environmentally friendly,
resource-conserving, and sustainable transportation solutions,” he said.
Daimler Trucks and Daimler Buses have been pressing ahead with the
development of environmentally friendly technologies since 2007. The
leading commercial vehicle manufacturer consolidates these activities in its
worldwide “Shaping Future Transportation” initiative, which aims to turn the
zero-emission commercial vehicle of tomorrow into reality through efficient
and clean drive systems and alternative fuels. The initiative involves the
sparing use of resources and the reduction of emissions of every kind, while
guaranteeing maximum traffic safety.
About Daimler Trucks North America
Daimler Trucks North America LLC, with headquarters in Portland, Oregon,
is the leading medium- and heavy-duty truck manufacturer in North America.
Daimler Trucks North America – a Daimler company – produces and
markets Class 4 - 8 vehicles under the Freightliner, Western Star, and
Thomas Built Buses nameplates.
Further information from Daimler can be found on the Internet at
www.media.daimler.com
Daimler Communications, 70546 Stuttgart/Germany

5. Page 5
About Daimler
Daimler AG is one of the world’s most successful automotive companies. With its divisions Mercedes-
Benz Cars, Daimler Trucks, Mercedes-Benz Vans, Daimler Buses and Daimler Financial Services, the
Daimler Group is one of the biggest producers of premium cars and the world’s biggest manufacturer of
commercial vehicles with a global reach. Daimler Financial Services provides financing, leasing, fleet
management, insurance and innovative mobility services.The company’s founders, Gottlieb Daimler and
Carl Benz, made history with the invention of the automobile in the year 1886. As a pioneer of
automotive engineering, Daimler continues to shape the future of mobility today: The Group’s focus is
on innovative and green technologies as well as on safe and superior automobiles that appeal to and
fascinate its customers. For many years now, Daimler has been investing continually in the development
of alternative drive systems with the goal of making emission-free driving possible in the long term. So
in addition to vehicles with hybrid drive, Daimler now has the broadest range of locally emission-free
electric vehicles powered by batteries and fuel cells. This is just one example of how Daimler willingly
accepts the challenge of meeting its responsibility towards society and the environment. Daimler sells
its vehicles and services in nearly all the countries of the world and has production facilities on five
continents. Its current brand portfolio includes, in addition to the world’s most valuable premium
automotive brand, Mercedes-Benz, the brands smart, Maybach, Freightliner, Western Star, BharatBenz,
Fuso, Setra, Orion and Thomas Built Buses. The company is listed on the stock exchanges of Frankfurt
and Stuttgart (stock exchange symbol DAI). In 2011, the Group sold 2.1 million vehicles and employed a
workforce of more than 271,000 people; revenue totaled €106.5 billion and EBIT amounted to €8.8
billion.
Daimler Communications, 70546 Stuttgart/Germany