PORTLAND, Ore. — Freightliner says it is satisfied the Mercedes-Benz MBE 900 and MBE 4000 engines will be up to the task of meeting the 2007 emissions standards.

The company says its testing program for the new Mercedes-Benz engines is on schedule and both the MBE 900 and MBE 4000 will be offered in a wide variety of Freightliners commercial vehicles.

Freightliner officials say the company has been testing the new generation Mercedes-Benz engines for two years.

“I began heading up the 2007 MBE engine development program for the North American market in 2005, and we’ve come a long way since we had our first ‘B’ level prototype engines in our test lab,” said Dave Skupien, program manager for MBE engines in NAFTA. “Since then, we have invested a vast amount of time, money and resources in the program to ensure the MBE engines are fully compliant with EPA ’07, while also meeting the reliability and durability goals our customers demand. We look forward to the launch of the MBE 4000 and 900 next year.”

The new engines have been evaluated through the use of: test cell dynamometers; reliability testing; durability testing; and a customer demonstration program. The Mercedes-Benz engines will have accumulated more than 14.5 million miles before the start of production, the company says.

“When you think about the battery of testing Freightliner and Detroit Diesel conducts for its MBE engines, it’s truly remarkable and should give Freightliner, Sterling and Western Star owners a sense of confidence that the program will result in engines that not only meet market expectations, but surpass them,” said Larry Dutko, EPA ’07 program manager for Freightliner. “We are really pleased with what we are now seeing regarding the performance of these two engines, specifically in the area of fuel economy and performance reliability. We know how important it is for our customers to keep their operating costs down, so we are working hard to ensure the MBE engines provide a high degree of reliability and better-than-expected fuel economy for 2007.”