Heavy-duty vehicle emissions testing is becoming increasingly complex as powertrain diversity grows and regulations for NOx, greenhouse gas (GHG), and on-board diagnostics (OBD) continue to converge. Regulations such as California’s Advanced Clean Trucks rule — which calls for all new trucks sold in the state to be zero-emission by 2045 — are accelerating the development of battery-electric and hydrogen fuel cell commercial vehicles, while diesel engines and aftertreatment systems continue to evolve to meet tighter emissions limits.
The coming decade will require testing approaches that can adapt to rapid regulatory change, expanding technologies, and new in-use compliance expectations. With decades of experience supporting heavy-duty regulations from their inception, HORIBA works closely with industry partners to help future-proof testing strategies across engine, vehicle, and real-world environments.
Heavy-Duty Vehicle Test Cell at National Vehicle and Fuel Emissions Laboratory (NVFEL) in Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA.
We are heavily involved with ongoing research efforts and continue to help our customers future-proof their toolsets to create more capable engines, as well as testing and certification.
Engine technology changes also extend beyond aftertreatment. This is where regulatory challenges become more than the sum of their parts.
Manufacturers must meet both GHG and low NOx requirements—as well as new OBD regulation, which represents a significant cost to OEMs to prove their solution works in the field.
In-use regulations are also playing a large part. Both CARB (California Air Resources Board) and the EPA have proposed overhauls of in-use testing compliance tools to go along with low-NOx emissions.
Helping our customers improve test efficiency to meet upcoming regulation demands, like low NOx, is our main focus.
It is not just a matter of selling an off-the-shelf piece of hardware or software, but also the right set of in-use practices and correct test methods.
Heavy-duty chassis dynamometers, powertrain test systems, and in-use measurement approaches have become an important part of the development and regulatory picture.
Explore our testing capabilities:
Our industry-leading software tools, including the STARS Engine software, integrate seamlessly with test cells to ensure regulatory compliance and operational efficiency. These tools support the majority of commercial vehicle testing, whether in an engine dynamometer cell or an integrated powertrain test cell.
Despite zero emissions mandates, one thing in clear—it is essential to test both xEVs and IC engine-powered vehicles and will be for the foreseeable future. We will pivot as industry needs shifts from one technology to the other, over timeframes as short as 20 years or up to 40 years.
How does xEV testing change a heavy-duty testing environment?
It requires the ability to test battery packs, modules, electric motors, regenerative braking, and any other subsystems that would be involved in the recharge. Auxiliary loads that will be involved in the discharge must also be considered.
Hybrids present the highest level of test complexity, not only do they have an electrified powertrain, or at least a mild hybrid, that must be tested, they also require traditional IC engine testing.
Learn How HyEVO Advances Hydrogen Engine Testing
Explore how HORIBA’s HyEVO enables precise, low-concentration hydrogen measurement, improves safety, and streamlines workflows in hydrogen engine research. Read the full interview with KIMM researchers to see real-world applications and insights.
In the long-term, the heavy-duty industry will need to answer a few key questions.
These include, “how can we make heavy-duty vehicles both safe and fully autonomous”, and “what level of safety will the public demand and how do we meet that in a responsible way with timelines that are acceptable?” Functional safety will play a critical role in addressing these concerns.
HORIBA offers engineering consultancy, testing, and a Functional Safety Team to help customers test and implement these important technologies going forward with a sharp focus on safety concerns.
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