Issue link: https://read.dmtmag.com/i/55313
TRIED AND Cascadia quickly earns street cred as an aerodynamic leader on nation's highways photos and story by STEVE STURGESS TRUE reightliner's Cascadia is such a familiar truck on the road it's hard to remember what a startling sight it was when introduced in the summer of 2007. The huge grille opening, the sculpted doors, the visorless windshield, the pedestal-mounted mirrors, the stubby side extenders — all of it was new. And all of it was the result of extensive wind tunnel tuning of a finely wrought design. Ever since the introduction of Kenworth's T600 more than 25 years ago, truck manufacturers have been refining the aerodynamics of the conventional tractor. After all, a wind-cheating design has become critically important in truck design, since at speeds more than 50 mph, the effort in pushing the wind aside is the major contributor to fuel use. To develop the Cascadia, Daimler Trucks designed and built its own wind tunnel in Portland, Ore. More than 2,500 hours were spent testing, redesigning and retesting using full-size models to create the new truck. 22 | TRUCKERS NEWS | MARCH 2012 And since its introduction, the Cascadia has been back in the wind tunnel to make it possibly the most aerody- namic truck ever. The extension of the fender line into the doors is no styling exercise — though it does make the Cascadia distinctive from the side. The flowing lines help man- age the airflow along the cab and sleeper. Lately, the visor is back as an option, though it performs a useful function in helping move the air over the rooftop. The side extenders have grown a little to keep the air attached and flowing onto the trailer sides.