Fuel efficiency, performance and safety focus of Detroit Assurance 4.0

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – As part of the unveiling of its new Cascadia truck, Freightliner underscored the importance of fuel efficiency, performance and safety with its flagship vehicle, and are offering the latest version of Detroit Assurance 4.0 to emphasize this effort.

Detroit Assurance 4.0 offers customers several driver-friendly controls, an interactive dash display, as well as driver assist safety features like active brake assist, adaptive cruise control and lane departure warning.

“We are driven to find and develop the right solutions that maximize truck, powertrain and driver performance,” said Kary Schaefer, general manager of marketing and strategy for Freightliner and Detroit Brands, Daimler Trucks North America. “That dedication goes beyond fuel savings; it also centers on active safety systems like Detroit Assurance that protect everyone on the road.”

Assurance is integrated with the Detroit engine, transmission, braking system and dashboard to provide drivers with enhanced safety and collision mitigation technology.

There is also an optional video-capture feature that records safety related events for 20-30 seconds before, during and after an incident, which is available through the Bendix SafetyDirect web portal, which the company said would help inform fleet manager of possible driver training opportunities.

“There are so many challenges that drivers face on the road today, including the performance of other drivers and road conditions,” said Schaefer. “We will continue to improve our safety offerings to help drivers return home accident-free.”

I was part of a test drive that demonstrated Detroit Assurance 4.0 in action in a Freightliner Cascadia in Colorado Springs, Colo., Sept. 1, and along with providing a smooth ride, the vehicle, while utilizing the adaptive cruise control feature, was able to maintain not only a steady speed on various road grades, but also a safe distance from other vehicles on the highway, all with the driver’s foot off the pedals.

Even coming off the highway on an exit ramp, Assurance was able to continuously reduce the speed of the Cascadia, recognizing the slower moving vehicles ahead.

The truck was able to maximize its fuel efficiency by lowering its RPMs depending on the grade of the road, minimizing them while on a down or level slope and producing more power while traveling uphill to maintain the set cruising speed.

When the driver approached a vehicle from behind, Assurance was able to provide a notification when they were traveling too closely and reduce speed to back away and maintain a safe distance.

Fleets can set a following distance with the adaptive cruise control feature between 2.6 and 3.4 seconds in set intervals, depending on various driving conditions.

Assurance 4.0 tracks up to 40 objects simultaneously, up to 825 feet in front of the truck, while identifying the Top 6 vehicles by level of threat, with a speed, distance and time refresh rate of 200 times per second.

Coming standard is the radar system, with active brake assist, full braking on stationary objects, moving pedestrian warning, adaptive cruise control and tailgate warning. The camera system is option, which provides lane departure warning and video capture with Bendix SafetyDirect.

The Assurance 4.0 integrates into Freightliner’s new Cascadia equipped with a Detroit engine with either a DT12 or manual transmission.

Test drive in Freightliner Cascadia with Detroit Assurance 4.0.
Test drive in Freightliner Cascadia with Detroit Assurance 4.0.
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A university graduate with a degree in English, I have worked in the media and trucking industries as a writer, editor, and now as western bureau chief of Today's Trucking and TruckNews.com. I have several years of management experience in journalism, as well as hospitality, but am first and foremost a writer, both professionally and in my personal life, having completed two fiction novels.
derek@newcom.ca
@DerekClouthier


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