Cummins Opposes Breaks From Clean-Engine Pact

Executives of heavy truck engine maker Cummins Inc. (CUM) said they would go to court, if necessary, to force competitors to abide by terms of a 1998 federal court consent decree that requires the group produce cleaner engines by October 2002.

Cummins is confident that its new engine designs will meet the terms of the decree that engine makers signed with the Department of Justice and the Environmental Protection Agency.

The decree was a result of EPA’s lawsuit charging engine makers with using so-called “defeat devices,” which activated pollution controls on engines when they were tested by the federal government.

However, the engines were programmed to shut off those emission controls when the truck was used commercially over the road.

Some other companies that are part of the consent decree have asked for a delay in meeting next year’s deadline.

Cummins says it can meet the 2002 goal, but Caterpillar has recently said it will not have an engine ready that meets the deadline. Detroit Diesel has also asked for a delay.

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