Equipment Efficiency

Equipment Efficiency

Since 2010 with the introduction of SCR engines, the truck OEMs have been able to make every successive model year truck more efficient than the one preceding it. This decade plus of compounding gains in efficiency combined with increased adoption of fuel-saving technologies has saved the industry enormous amounts of fuel and put MPGs once considered to be in SuperTruck territory within reach of regular production level vehicles. New tractors coming off the production line are achieving higher MPGs than older trucks, but that efficiency can still be improved with the adoption of other technologies and practices.

The national average of all US Class 8 tractor-trailers was at 6.24 MPG in 2020, however, fleets in the AFFS achieved a fleet-wide fuel economy of 7.23. MPG. The Department of Energy SuperTruck 1 trucks saw fuel economy ranging from 10 to 12.5 MPG. Trucks in NACFE’s Run on Less 2017 achieved 8.5 to 11.5 MPG, while the Run on Less 2019 Regional results were 6.5 to 9.6.

The NACFE AFFS latest model year truck range from 7.2 to 9.5 MPG in 2021.

There continues to be a multitude of developments underway that are sure to continue the performance increases in efficiency of these trucks.