Designed for Reliability and Simplicity
70 Years of Reliability
B50 Life: 1.2 million miles
North America has some mean roads, from the scorching blacktop of the southeast to the frozen mountaintops of the Rockies. We design our engines to run through it all with minimal maintenance. The B50 life — an engineering term that means the point at which half the engines produced will still be running — of a Detroit Diesel engine is 1.2 million miles. That’s the highest in the heavy duty industry, and it means you should expect the same workhorse effort out of the DD15™ that you got out of the bulletproof Series 60®.
Go Farther Between Servicing
To run farther between oil drains (50,000 miles for long-haul), we increased the size of the oil pan to 47.5 quarts, as well as the size of the oil filter. And changing the filter is fast: it’s a simple screw-on within arm’s reach.
“It’s a good, smooth-running engine. Has good power, pulls hills good. Seems like a winner.”
— Steve Hougham, Fleet Maintenance Manager, 28 Years
Easy-Maintenance Rear Gear Train
The DD15 Rear Gear Train makes the turbo compounding possible. And its design might leave you wondering how you're going to get in there for maintenance and valve-lash inspections. So we built access plates that make maintenance quick and simple, and designed it with long intervals between valve lash adjustments.

Tried and True Turbo
With the addition of turbo compounding, we were able to return to the vastly simpler pre-EPA ’98 turbo. The non-wastegate-style turbo has fewer parts, a longer life, and a longer service interval.
The Only New Heavy Duty Engine: DD15
Detroit Diesel designed the DD15 from the block up with an eye to the future. Features like the more powerful and integrated Jake brake and the Exhaust Gas Recirculation (EGR) system have been integrated into the core design, rather than bolted on. We’ve even planned ahead for new EPA emissions laws in 2010 with design features that allow simple integration of a new After Treatment System.
Service Intervals *
| Maintenance Item |
Severe |
Short-Haul |
Long-Haul |
| Oil & Filter Change* |
25,000 |
35,000 |
50,000 |
| Fuel Filter Change |
35,000 |
50,000 |
50,000 |
| Valve Lash Adjustment |
30,000 |
45,000 |
60,000 |
* Please Note: Service Intervals change with driving conditions and loads. For
intervals that are more specific to your driving conditions, contact your
Detroit Diesel authorized service outlet.
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