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Foden launches new Cat ATAAC
Page 12
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• Caterpillar has stepped up its assault on the UK truck engine market by supplying its air-to-air after-cooled (ATAAC) 14.6-litre 3406B diesel to Foden for its 4000 Series tractors and rigids.
The 3406B will be available rated at 261 or 317kW (350 or 425hp) at 1,800rpm. Equivalent torque figures are 1,830 and 1,966Nm (1,350 and 1,9661bft) at 1,100 and 1,200rpm respectively. Foden will rate the engine up to 2,100rpm, for heavy haulage and arduous off-road applications.
The straight-six ATAAC engines supersede the previous 261 and 298kW (350 and 400hp) air-to-water chargecooled 3406B units. The 261kW version offers just over 2% more torque than its air-towater predecessor: its 317kW stablemate develops 6% more power and 5% more torque. In particular, the ATAAC engines are claimed to give better low/ mid-range throttle response. According to Caterpillar, the extra power of the new engines (built at Cat's Mossville, Illinois, plant) is combined with improved fuel economy and reduced emmission levels in anticipation of tougher antipollution legislation.
Foden already offers 201 and 223kW (270 and 300hp) ATAAC versions of the 10-litre 3306B Caterpillar engines in its eight-leggers and lightweight tractors.
The 3406B follows Cat's high-torque/low-revs design philosophy, and comes with a full-range governor, adjustment-free fuel system, one-piece cylinder head, geardriven water pump and copperbonded bearings which, says Caterpillar, "eliminate the need for mid-life main end cylinder bearing replacements".
The ATAAC system consists of an air-to-air heat exchanger mounted in front of the truck's normal radiator, which reduces the temperature of the compressed inlet air from the turbocharger to within 20°F of ambient air temperature before it enters the cylinder head.
Caterpillar's UK truck engine sales accounts manager, Kevin Scott, claims that the ATAAC 3406B engine offers more power and torque across a wider rev range than its competitors from Cummins, Perkins, Scalia or Mercedes. At the press launch of the new engines, he asserted that "we see our 350 ATAAC engines as the UK fleet tractor engine of the future". Cat has traditionally sold far more 10-litre engines to Foden, but with the trend to higher power it believes that the new 14.6-litre ATAAC engines, in particular the 261kW version, will help boost its sales. Currently 60% of all Foden tractors and 75% of eight-wheeled rigids are sold with Cat engines.
The ATAAC power units come with a 160,000km/24month parts and labour warranty: the block, crankshafts and con rods are covered for an extra 482,000km/36-months. Extended 482,000km/36-month and 644,000km/60-month warranties are available for £520 and E850 respectively. The 3406B is some 2900 more expensive than the equivalent 14-litre Cummins in the 4000 Series, and weighs about 250Kg more.
All ATAAC engines fitted in the Foden 4000 Series come with an exhaust brake as standard; a Jacobs engine brake is available on demand. Initially UK-spec 3406B ATAAC engines will be restricted to 317kW, but Cat has not ruled out the possibility of a more powerful version in the future. In the US, the 3406B is rated at up to 448kW (600hp) for military use. 0 Caterpillar's OEM accounts manager, Jurg Bachelin, says that while Foden is the only UK truck builder offering Cat engines, the next manufacturer to fit a Cat "will probably be AWD".