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"People's Daily" New Year Goes to the Grassroots | Not Afraid of the Cold, Weichai People Forge the "Heart" in the Far North

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Release time:

2025-02-04

On the sixth day of the first lunar month, Hailar in Inner Mongolia was tightly wrapped in a cold of minus 28℃. As the sky began to show a hint of dawn, Zhang Peizhi, a member of the Weichai Power "Three Highs" testing team, started his work. He bent his body and walked against the wind in the snow, while the reporter squinted and followed closely behind, working alongside him to check the Weichai engine for issues. The biting cold wind was like sharp blades, whipping small snowflakes that stung his face. The reporter wore a mask, and the warm breath quickly condensed into frost on his eyelashes.

On the sixth day of the first lunar month, Hailar in Inner Mongolia is tightly wrapped in a cold of minus 28°C. As the sky begins to lighten, Zhang Peizhi, a member of the Weichai Power "Three Highs" test team, starts his work. He bends his body and walks against the wind in the snow, while the reporter squints and follows closely behind, working alongside him to identify issues with the Weichai engine. The biting cold wind is like a sharp blade, cutting into the face with small snowflakes, and the reporter, wearing a mask, finds that the warm breath quickly condenses into frost on his eyelashes.

　　The special conditions of continuous low temperatures in Hailar during winter make it an ideal place for testing the cold resistance of the heart of a car—the engine. The Weichai Power "Three Highs" test team is a "reverse migratory bird" team active here, working during the Spring Festival holiday, forging the "heart" in the extreme north, unafraid of the cold, just for perfection.

The reporter interviews members of the Weichai Power "Three Highs" test team in Hailar, Inner Mongolia.

　　"It's still not cold enough; it would be better if it were colder!" Zhang Peizhi tightens his cotton jacket and looks at the icy world before him, actually mumbling about being "too warm." The "Three Highs" test is the final checkpoint in engine development, testing under extreme environmental conditions such as high temperature, high altitude, and extreme cold to ensure the engine's high reliability. For the "Three Highs" test, the colder it is, the better it is for detecting the engine's performance.

　　The subject of Zhang Peizhi's test this time is the 13-liter methanol engine newly developed by Weichai in line with the national low-carbon strategy. To simulate real working conditions, they loaded 35 tons of sand into a 13-meter-long trailer to run the vehicle at full load.

　　Starting the vehicle in low temperatures is a challenge. This engine usually relies on gasoline to start, but now it combines Weichai's independently developed low-temperature starting technology. "Don't underestimate this technological improvement; it looks simple, but it's a major breakthrough, lowering the cold start temperature by more than ten degrees," Zhang Peizhi tells the reporter. A few days ago, when it was minus 40°C, they successfully started using this method. As soon as he finished speaking, the sound of the test vehicle starting broke the morning silence.

　　The heavy truck heads towards the S202 provincial road in Hulunbuir, and a day of testing begins. "Now we are doing the acceleration test, we need to turn off the warm air and increase the speed to 45 kilometers per hour." "Shift to 11th gear, floor the accelerator." Zhang Peizhi calmly directs his companion, Lao Liang. Lao Liang shifts gears skillfully, and the two work together seamlessly. Zhang Peizhi places his laptop on his lap, connects it to the engine ECU with a data cable, and keeps his eyes glued to the screen, monitoring the vehicle speed, throttle opening, and engine real-time status, not missing any slight fluctuations.

　　Frost quickly covers the car windows, resembling a thick layer of frosted glass. Zhang Peizhi reaches out to wipe a palm-sized area on the window, but soon, the frost rapidly spreads back. Under Zhang Peizhi's command, the vehicle repeats the acceleration tests in the second highest and highest gears three times each. A series of tests are compact and busy, and before they know it, it's noon. After a simple lunch at the test base, Zhang Peizhi takes a moment to rest in the car.

　　The test base has a 20-square-meter board room where many team members rest during lunch. The reporter sees Zhang Yuliang, a "post-00s" member, deeply immersed in data, reviewing the morning's tests. Another "post-00s" member, Gao Tianqi, is taking notes beside him; he just started working last year and can now independently drive heavy trucks for tests.

The reporter is filming at the "Three Highs" test site.

　　Even with electric heaters and electric fans in the board room, the cold cannot be dispelled. "If the vehicle breaks down and gets stuck, it's up to us to fix it." Liu Lei, the 34-year-old technician team leader, tells the reporter while rubbing his hands for warmth by the electric heater. A few days ago, a test vehicle's air system was "sealed" by the severe cold, and it couldn't shift gears. He and two technicians took turns working outside in temperatures below minus 30°C for 18 hours, returning to the car to warm up whenever they couldn't stand the cold. "That day, we spent the night in the car; it felt particularly long." Liu Lei shifts the topic, "It's a good thing to encounter problems early; solving the issues exposed during the testing process provides more assurance when the product is launched on the market."

　　At this moment, the deputy team leader of the test team, Shi Xiangdong, walks into the board room, shaking off the snow from his hat and clothes. He had spent the previous three years celebrating the New Year in Hailar, and on New Year's Eve, when he video-called his child, the child asked, "When will you come back, Dad?" He always replied, "I'll be back in a couple of days." When he finally returned home more than a month later, the child cried and said he was a "big liar." Fortunately, he had bought Russian chocolates and Northeast nuts in advance, which made the child smile again.

　　There are many such stories. In the freezing days of the northern border of the motherland, the members of the "Three Highs" test team use their dedication and efforts to forge the "heart" of major national equipment.

　　On the way the reporter followed the vehicle, Weichai Power test vehicles frequently passed by, with snow splashing from the wheels. These vehicles use clean energy powered by methanol and natural gas, and each vehicle is equipped with many new technologies, representing a new height in the industry: a 16-liter natural gas engine that breaks through the bottleneck of high braking technology, an 8-liter engine that solves the power shortage problem of gas cargo vehicles, and new technologies in the engineering machinery field that eliminate the Venturi tube.

The Weichai Power "Three Highs" test team is on duty during the Spring Festival holiday, forging the "heart" in the extreme north.

　　Behind this is a vivid embodiment of self-reliant and self-improving technological research and development. Over the past 20 years, the Weichai Power "Three Highs" test team has collected and calibrated millions of sets of data, allowing Weichai engines to reach world-class levels in various indicators, turning the once "bottleneck" list into a list of scientific and technological achievements. The roar of heavy truck engines echoes across the vast snowy fields, from 8 a.m. to 5:30 p.m., except for a brief lunch break at the test base, Zhang Peizhi has been following the vehicle back and forth on this provincial road. He meticulously checks the performance of components, from spark plugs, seals, to sensors.

　　"Today we tested the engine's cold start, power, and economy. The engine's performance is excellent and fully meets our expectations." After the test, Zhang Peizhi stretches lazily. Due to an unexpected damage to the passenger seat backrest, he had to sit upright all day. At this moment, although his face is filled with fatigue, his eyes reveal satisfaction.