New C13D Engine for Off-Highway Equipment unveiled by Caterpillar

At ConExpo 2023, Caterpillar revealed a new platform for diesel engines that is intended to boost power density, torque, and fuel efficiency for a variety of off-highway vehicles. Early OEM pilots will have access to the C13D engine in 2025, and production is expected to begin in 2026. It is intended for machinery like trenchers, agricultural tractors, harvesters, and self-propelled sprayers, as well as woodchippers, material-handling tools, and huge industrial pumps.

Dustin Childers, Global Marketing Manager, Caterpillar Industrial Power Systems Division said, “It is not about bringing new technology to the forefront. It's about applying that technology that Caterpillar has been investing in for decades to new applications.” The Cat C13D platform gives OEMs the chance to downsize the engine and simplify design, assembly, and supply chain needs across a variety of applications by offering equivalent power and torque to Caterpillar's current 13, 15, and single-turbo 18-liter engine platforms. Also, this consolidation may lessen end users' technical training, maintenance, and part complexity.

According to Childers, the 6-cylinder Cat C13D engine platform has eight power ratings ranging from 456 to 690 horsepower and produces a maximum torque of 3,200 Newton metres. "It's got a higher power-to-size ratio than really anything else in the market today," he said. "It's the same or better performance than the larger engine platforms that we have," claimed Childers.

When compared to the C13D's forerunners, all eight power ratings will be available on a common core engine, allowing OEMs to lower their inventory and integration costs. Moreover, the all-new rear gear train, sturdier core architecture, and common rail fuel system reduce noise by up to 3 dB. Furthermore, factory-installed cooling and aftertreatment modules for the engine will be offered to lower installation and validation costs.

The C13D engine platform, according to Caterpillar, has been designed to provide the performance, toughness, packaging, and ease of maintenance required by both producers and users of off- highway equipment.