Daimler Trucks is preparing for the largest introduction of new vehicles in its history. The company says it plans to spend $3.2 billion over the next four years on what Daimler Trucks chief Andreas Renschler calls the ‘biggest product launch in our history’.
Mr Renschler was talking to press at the Mid-America Trucking Show when he spoke about the company preparing for the largest introduction of new vehicles that the company has seen. He didn’t elaborate any further on what products could be expected and when this would occur.
A timetable for the revamping of the Freightliner lineup has not been mentioned by Daimler executives but some of the models have not been updated for some time. However, in Europe it is clear that major changes are on their way for the Mercedes-Benz lineup. There have been several reported sightings of a new cab design undergoing testing on German highways.
When the new cab is introduced, probably in the lead up to the introduction of Euro 6 in 2012, there will also be a complete new engine lineup for the brand. The current V8 and V6 engines powering Mercedes will be replaced by the Daimler global engine. This will be derived from the same engine platform as the newly introduced Detroit Diesel DD 15 and 13, already available in the US and soon to appear on Australian roads.
No indication has come from Japan as to when any of the Fuso models may be replaced, but some of the heavy duty models have been around for a while and the introduction of a new cab could also be synchronised with a move to the new global heavy duty engine from Daimler.