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6x4 rigids
Page 56
Page 57
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This category became a two-horse race once we saw what Foden had put together. The M-B Axor represents the opposite end of the scale to Scania. It's much more about appearance and reputation, where the or has a lot of ground to make up, but it could be the start of a successful product if kerbweights and specification are anything to go by. It was slightly off the pace set by ScaniaS 6x4 up the hilIclimb and the Axcr's more functional cab and driveline didn't usurp the Swedes, but it did impress us. In the end Scania walked away with the honours but it didn't have everything its own way.
Artics
One is for off-road, deep quarries and landfill sites, the other is for aggregates and flat quarries. One was driven by two axles, the other by one with a mid-lift axle. One was red, the other... All right you get the picture. Comparing these two is difficult but the best cross-over was the driving experience and handling rather than relative payload and chassis weights. The Actros, despite its double drive, or possibly because of it, took less time on the route and up the hllIclimb, but after that it struggled to match the Foden Alpha in comfort and handling. Here the Foden scored well while Merc's Actros, more at home with one drive axle on the open highway, morphed well into an unfamiliar muckaway short-haul truck that would be ideal for waste disposal.
Muckaways
Of all the trucks up for the tipper test these two were probably the eas est to contrast and compare. Both came fitted with light muckaway bodies. The tale of the tape reveals that despite a 40-odd horsepower difference their chassis-cab weights are very close with the MTE Light body coming in a little heavier than Merc's Massey body. Out on the road Mercedes shaded the time trial and the hill climb but lost points on driveability and out testers overall opinion. That's why the Kerax edges out the Actros to take the honours in a very tight group.
Conclusion
With 15 vehicles to test there was no way each of our five testers was going to get to drive each truck so we broke the test down into four categories with each driver putting three vehicles through their paces. This meant no one truck was going to run away with the honours, although Foden and Mercedes-Benz did have representatives in three categories so either could have dominated. The lightweight 8x4 class brought high praise for MAN TGA's auto box with the big three from Holland and Sweden showing they still have a serious foothold on the medal positions. We were most impressed by Foden 's drawbar and by Scania's improved ergonomics. The Volvo FM12 kitted out by Alan McGuiness caught everyone's eye and our two adios were too different to gauge accurately. But in the end we all had our favourites... just like the real world.