Navistar's SuperTruck II explores composites, WiFi to cut Weight

Lightweighting was one strategy pursued by SuperTruck teams during the first phase of the U.S. Department of Energy-sponsored initiative to improve heavy-truck freight efficiency by 50%. For example, the International Catalist features a “hybrid” front suspension that leverages lightweight alloys with composite materials, reducing weight and enabling an electronic ride height management system that provides dynamic ride height and pitch control for improved aerodynamics.

“Typically, air-ride front suspensions are very heavy, they're very soft to drive-but we've integrated a composite leaf spring and an air spring into one suspension,” explained Dean Oppermann, chief engineer for advanced vehicles and the SuperTruck program at Navistar. “We've been able to do it in a way that reduces weight of the system, maintains our ride height control, but also offers more stability with the leaf spring-type suspension.”