Cummins Westport Inc, a joint venture of Cummins Inc of Columbus IN and Westport Innovations Inc of Vancouver, British Columbia, has announced the commercial launch of a new low-emissions LPG (liquid petroleum gas) engine for mid-size trucks and buses.
The 195-horsepower Cummins Westport B LPG Plus propane engine has the same advanced technologies found in the Cummins Westport C Gas Plus and B Gas Plus natural gas engines. These features include drive-by-wire technology, advanced electronic controls, improved sensors, knock detection, and wider-range fuel capability. The engine will be offered in new vehicles built by Freightliner Custom Chassis Corp, Ottawa Truck, El Dorado National, and Elgin Sweeper Co.
Since December 2002, the City of Los Angeles Department of Transportation (LADOT) has been operating a B LPG Plus engine installed in 30-foot ElDorado buses.
The B LPG Plus engine is certified to emit 12% fewer nitrogen oxides and non-methane hydrocarbons and 70% less particulate matter than the coming 2004 ceilings established by the United States Environmental Protection Agency for heavy-duty trucks and buses.