The latest confidence report released by the North American Council for Freight Efficiency and Carbon War Room explores the benefits and challenges of downspeeding for Class 8 tractors. When optimally applied, downspeeding improves fuel efficiency and lowers the operating RPMs of the engine under cruise conditions, while helping in other areas such as noise reduction and improved drivability.
The study team found that as a result of these changes to the powertrain, fleets can reduce fuel consumption by 2–3% because downspeeding allows the engine to operate at the most-fuel-efficient RPM when generating only the minimal horsepower required under cruise conditions.
The report also contains a confidence matrix that expresses the study team’s confidence in downspeeding, and offers recommendations for fleets interested in using this technology to improve fuel economy
