The First to Offer Comprehensive Warranty for Primary Coverage of 2010 Aftertreatment Systems, Detroit Diesel Announces New Extended Service Coverage Packages

Detroit Diesel to Offer Choice in Extended Service Coverage (ESC) Plans



REDFORD, MI, - March 25, 2010 – Detroit Diesel Corporation today announced it will offer a new warranty system that will allow customers to pick the extended service coverage (ESC) package that best suits their specific business needs. The company offers the industry’s most comprehensive primary coverage of its engines, and was the first in the industry, and, to date, the only provider of comprehensive primary coverage of its 2010 aftertreatment system, known as BlueTec® emissions technology.



The comprehensiveness of the coverage and warranty packages are made possible through a new program, Virtual Technician™, the trucking industry’s first real-time remote diagnostic system, that will be offered as standard equipment on all 2010 Freightliner® and Western Star® trucks with Detroit Diesel® engines equipped with BlueTec emissions systems.



All Detroit Diesel engines come with a two-year unlimited warranty on parts and labor. Injectors are covered for 200,000 miles. Parts costs for major components are covered for five years or 500,000 miles.



The new ESC program offers four different levels of coverage, plus various deductible options and years of mileage combinations ranging from three to seven years and 150,000 to 500,000 miles. Options that allow major components to be covered for up to seven years or 750,000 miles are available also.



“Detroit Diesel developed the ESC packages to meet the differing needs of vocational and over-the-road applications,” said Amanda Phillips, marketing and communications manager at Detroit Diesel. “Our design of the extended warranty packages reflects the confidence we have in the new 2010 products and are the direct result of their successful performance over the millions of miles we were able to accumulate prior to launch.”



BlueTec, Daimler’s version of SCR emissions control technology, was adapted by Detroit Diesel Corporation to meet the specific demands of the North American heavy duty marketplace and represents the company’s latest innovation in clean diesel engine technology to be fully-developed and commercialized.



Proven after more than 30 million miles of testing, including two million miles of customer freight hauling experience, Freightliner and Western Star customers are pleased with the up to five percent fuel efficiency and performance of the Detroit Diesel DD15™ or DD13™ engine with BlueTec. The BlueTec powertrain systems have been specified in the majority of 2010 Freightliner and Western Star truck orders.



BlueTec is an aftertreatment system that uses diesel exhaust fluid (DEF) to reduce NOx emissions, thereby allowing the engine to be fully optimized for low emissions and high fuel economy. The system incorporates the enhanced performance of Detroit Diesel’s recently introduced DD15, DD13 and DD16™ big bore engines, as well as the already proven ACRS™ fuel system and an integrated engine-compression brake. Detroit Diesel will offer BlueTec technology in a variety of packaging configurations, including a unique 1-Box™ packaging design that is optimized for low back-pressure and uses an all-new, robust DPF material.



Allowing more than a decade for development, the 2010 BlueTec technology is one of the most extensively tested emissions technology systems in the company’s history. Detroit Diesel and Daimler Truck North America worked together with colleagues in Europe to apply the best of their experiences with SCR in Europe and EGR in the U.S. The extra time allowed for customer validation and performance refinement to meet the requirements of rigorous freight hauling as well as severe duty vocational applications. In addition, Detroit Diesel took leadership roles in the development of the new supply infrastructure for diesel exhaust fluid and on board diagnostic (OBD) sensor technologies that are distinctive to North American trucking.



Detroit Diesel Corporation is a leading manufacturer of on-highway heavy-duty diesel engines for the commercial truck market. Headquartered in Redford, Mich., Detroit Diesel is engaged in the design, manufacture, sale and service of these products, in addition to supporting alternative and hybrid engine strategies for the commercial truck marketplace. Detroit Diesel is a Daimler company, the world's leading commercial vehicle manufacturer.