It’s hard to imagine that an integrated set of truck roof and side fairings, along with redesigned mirrors, can improve a highway tractor-trailer’s fuel economy by as much as 12%. Yet that’s exactly what Peterbilt Motors Co. claims its new “aerodynamic package” can do.

Available on Peterbilt Model 386 and 384 highway tractors, as well as a retrofit package that can be installed by dealers on some other models, the new aerodynamic offerings result from over a year of lab and field tests, including customer-testing by Wal-Mart Inc.

At a special ride-and-drive event at Peterbilt’s headquarters in Denton, TX, chief engineer Landon Sproull said that the aerodynamic package cuts overall tractor-trailer drag by 24% by adjusting the airflows over the top and sides of the vehicle. With every 2% improvement in drag-improving fuel economy there is a 1% boost in fuel economy, he said – a savings of $5,600 in fuel per year per truck, assuming fuel at $2.30 per gallon and the truck logging 130,000 miles annually.

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