Aerodynamic truck design earns U.S. Department of Transportation honors for Kenworth Truck Co.

LAS VEGAS--(BUSINESS WIRE)--June 21, 1995--Kenworth Truck Co. (Kirkland, Wash.) announced today that it is the recipient of the U.S. Department of Transportation's National Award for the Advancement of Motor Vehicle Research and Development.

The award was presented to Kenworth in recognition of the trucking industry's first aerodynamic heavy duty truck -- the T600A, originally introduced in 1985. The Kenworth announcement was made at the International Truck Show in Las Vegas.

The DOT award recognizes research and development which has led to advancements, significantly changing the motor vehicle industry in the areas of safety, energy savings or environmental impact. "The T600A did this, and more," said Barry Langridge, Kenworth's general manager. "It literally changed the face of the trucking industry forever by creating a new generation of fuel efficient trucks which have saved billions of gallons of fuel. The 70,000 T600s built since '85, when compared to non-aerodynamic conventional models, will save an estimated 1.25 billion gallons during their useful lives."

According to Langridge, the T600A broke new ground in truck design with its aerodynamic design, improved forward view of the road, and reduction in splash and spray. "The T600A brought to the truck industry what the Ford Taurus did to the automobile industry," said Langridge. "It was the truck industry's first step in forward-thinking aerodynamic design, and estimates are it jumped fuel economy over what was standard in the market by 22 percent. That's like taking a car which averages 25 miles-per-gallon and improving it to just over 30 miles-per-gallon. For an industry where fuel is a major expense, this was a significant development."

According to Larry Orr, design leader for the T600A project, the T600A's contribution to the trucking industry didn't end with greater fuel efficiency. "The T600A design helped improve highway safety in two ways," he said. "First, thanks to the sloped hood, truck drivers have better visibility in front of the truck. Secondly, aerodynamic fairings reduced splash and spray by 45 percent. We've received a lot of letters from motorists and motorcycle clubs who have noticed a big difference when passing our vehicles."

By nature, said Orr, the truck industry is conservative. "The first drivers of the T600 took some ribbing for the truck they dubbed `Anteater,' because of its sloped hood," he said. "But we knew we had a winner. We figured people would want to save fuel. If they were really in the business to make money -- and most are -- they'd eventually turn to the T600A."

CONTACT: Michael Wasem, 206/392-2611