IVECO 340.34AH
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It was noticeable how much less smoke the Euro-1 engines produce when starting from cold. The odd man out was the Iveco Maggie, powered by the long-serving aircooled vee eight Deutz engine which, along with the old TurboTech cab, is due for replacement before October this year. This is a practical vehicle for on/off-road work. The cab is mounted high in the chassis, which makes it a long way to climb up, but the low-slung bottom rung, suspended by two lengths of cable, can withstand any amount of knocks and gives easy secure purchase on entry. Inside there are few frills. The low engine cover makes the cab feel roomy: its few instruments are neatly grouped.
Dark grey trim, coveting all but the rear panel and roof, is oppressive but hard wearing. Quarter lights can be a useful aid to ventilation in hot weather but serve to indicate the cab's maturity.
The vee-eight Deutz engine has a distinctive and not unpleasant note but revs high for such a large unit. To make the most of torque and power for good progression through the gears it's best to keep the engine turning between 1,500 and 2,000rpm.
ZF's Ecosplit synchro gearbox has a long lever but the length of throw is shorter than we had expected. With 16 gears to choose from you're bound to find one for every occasion, but under normal driving whole gears can be skipped in the lower part of the box and there's little need to use the splitter, even in the higher ratios. The engine's high revs added to the efficiency of the exhaust brake which was used to good effect on downhill runs, making the service brakes redundant on many occasions. Front and rear steel suspension gives a firm ride with minimal roll.
The light, air-cooled engine has obvious advantages for a vehicle working in a tough off-road environment as well as contributing to a competitive unladen weight which, considering the specification of the steel bodies, may not come too high on the list of a French operator's priorities. It's a tonne lighter than either the Mercedes 3538 or MAN 41.372 but a tonne heavier than the Renault Maxter.
While the MAN returned the best fuel consumption with the slowest journey times, the 340-34 Iveco only showed a fuel advantage over the Renault while matching the journey time of the MAN.
Make: Iveco. Model: 340.34AH (UK: 300.34 "Maggie"). Outer axle spread: 6.40m. Engine: Deutz BF8L 513 90° vee-eight, charge-cooled. Capocily: 12.76 litres. Max power: 250kW (335hp) at 2,300rpm. Max torque: 1,182Nm (871114t) Gearbox: ZF Ecosplit 165130 16-speed synchromesh. Rear axle: 451090/1 hub reduction with cross-axle and inter-axle diff-locks. Ratio: 4.82:1. Tyre size: 13R 22.5 Michelin radial XZY front and XZH rear.
Fuel tank: 300 litres (66ga1). Chassis-cab weight 9.40 tonnes. Average fuel consumption: 52.05h/1006 (5.4mpg).
Average speed: 47.7km/h (29.7mph).