Caterpillar has a long and storied history of producing top-notch diesel engines. Caterpillar has a reputation for its construction and mining equipment, but they used to make engines for on-highway applications. You might be curious: Does Caterpillar still make truck engines? Despite previously making engines for on-highway applications, these engines have been discontinued.
We’ll talk about the SDP engine and why Caterpillar stopped building class-eight truck engines after the SDP’s creation.
Why Caterpillar Stopped Manufacturing On-Highway Diesel Engines
When emissions regulations changed, many diesel companies had to modify their engines, including Caterpillar. In 1990, a Clean Air Act amendment required diesel engines to produce lower emissions from 1994 models and onwards. Later emissions standards put stricter regulations on engines manufactured after 2004, and in 2000, new measures would affect engines built after 2007 and then place further, stricter requirements on engines manufactured in 2010.
It became difficult and costly for Caterpillar to keep up with these restrictions.
What These Changes Meant for Caterpillar
When emissions changes occurred, Caterpillar was the only manufacturer that went with ACERT (Advanced Combustion Emission Reduction Technology).
After building a few ACERT engines, Caterpillar quickly realized that on-highway applications were a race to the bottom. Caterpillar truck engines would require a greater investment upfront to keep them compliant with emissions standards. The manufacturing cost and ever-changing emissions standards made it difficult for Caterpillar to keep up, causing them to cease production of on-highway engines.
Caterpillar’s last on-highway engines were manufactured in 2010. The SPD engine is the last Caterpillar C15 and the final class-eight Caterpillar truck engine they built. Instead, Caterpillar decided to focus on their successful off-highway applications: a market where they saw more money.
Although rumors persist that Caterpillar will make “on-highway vocational vehicles,” Caterpillar hasn’t made an on-highway engine since the SDP.
Differences Between Caterpillar Engines
Look at the late Caterpillar E models, the 10W and 2WS, and you’ll notice these engines look the same as previous engines. They also contain the same hard parts as the first Caterpillar C15 engine.
Internally, though, several changes were made to the engine’s calibrations and almost all the engine’s hard parts. This engine is the first model that Caterpillar made major changes to. The next version of that engine would be the first C15 ACERT.
ACERTs and Caterpillar’s Newer Engines
The C15 ACERT, the BXS, included major changes, including valve actuators to control the combustion temperature, twin turbos, and free coolers.
The MXS and NXS engines came next. These two are nearly identical and have the same turbos, injectors, and pistons.
Next up was the SDP. Compared to the previous versions, the SDP saw significant changes, including a complete turbocharger redesign. It also changed the injector setup and redesigned the oil coolers. It also added an emissions system: the EGR, or clean gas induction.
Piston Numbers by Serial Number
Pistons in the Earlier Engines
The first engine was the 5EK. Several of the low-horsepower/very early engines had a one-piece aluminum piston. The higher horsepower engines moved to a two-piece system with a steel crown and aluminum skirt.
Changes to the Pistons in Later Engines
The pistons on the 5EK 6TS were very similar. When they went to the 1LW and 2WS, the pistons changed to arguably what is arguably the most popular piston: the 1807352, a two-piece piston system with a steel aluminum skirt.
Caterpillar used the forged steel model through the VXS, MXS, NXS, and SDP, which all used the same system.
Highway & Heavy Parts Can Help With Your Caterpillar Diesel Engine Needs!
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Our team of experts can help you diagnose your problems and get you the exact parts you need to get the job done!
More than that, you’ll benefit from our:
- ASE Certified Technicians on staff
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From diagnosis through delivery, we’re Highway & Heavy Parts!
Caterpillar Resource Library
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