The big easy CM took MAN's Euro-6 TGX tractor with
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an XXL cab for a spin lay DI III YVVm11.11W1 icy EVER SINCE MAN revealed its face-lifted Euro-6 line-up ahead of the IAA Hannover Truck Show in September 2012, CM has been itching to get behind the wheel of the Bavarians' lorries.
The quick version of MAN's Euro-6 story is that on the outside of all TGX/S (heavy) TGM (middleweight) and TGL (light) models, the cab has gained revised grilles designed to ensure maximum cooling. Underneath the hood are common-rail diesels stretching from the smallest 150hp 4.6-litre four-cylinder in the TGL, through to the most powerful 480hp 12.4-litre in-line six in the TGS/TGX.
Mixing and matching To meet tighter emission standards, MAN has adopted a mix of SCR and EGR. All its engines rated at 220hp and above also have two-stage turbocharging with each stage equipped with a waste gate. Both are combined into a compact unit, ensuring exhaust gas energy is used effectively throughout the engine rev range.
The 150hp and 180hp four-cylinder Euro-6 engines used in the TGL have a single-stage turbo. Anyone looking for a big banger in the TGX for Euro-6 must wait until next year, when the new 15.2-litre six-pot replaces the Euro-5 D28 V8. The maximum rating will be more than 500hp. Although TGL and TGM get a reworked interior for Euro-6, inside the TGX/ TGS things haven't changed much. But the TGX cabin remains an impressive working envi ronment, particularly the tallest XXL version, which has masses of storage space. However, we think MAN's designers have missed a trick by not losing the centre floor console that houses the Tipmatic auto selector and the park brake — shifting both to the dash would free up floor space. When you sit on the bottom bunk you can still feel the hard edge of the pull-up towel-rail on the back of the legs.
Our Euro-6 encounter was on a rainy day in southern Bavaria on a mixture of local A-roads and motorway, with the former including some tough, twisting hill-climbs through the Alps. Our mount was a 480hp TGX 4x2 tractor with the largest XXL cab, coupled to a tri-axle trailer, running at 40 tonnes. Not surprisingly, the toprated 12.4-litre made an easy job of it.
While we're used to manufacturers claiming their larger displacement engines can pull down to 1,000rpm, in practice that's seldom the case. However, MAN's D2676 can. It frequently lugged down to 900rpm on the level and recovered without a murmur of protest. The speedy build-up of boost pressure, especially at low revs, supplied by its two-stage turbo, contributes to the D2676's good driveability, not least at lowspeed junctions and roundabouts. It's also wellmatched to MAN's (nee ZF) Tipmatic auto. Between 40mph and 45mph on A-roads, it's not unusual to find an auto box in a top-weight tractor 'hunting' between top and the next cog down, shifting between the two, forcing the driver to hold top in manual.
Great on all terrains In full auto, the 480hp TGX showed none of that; only when the road started to rise did Tipmatic want to change down. At between 1,400rpm and 1,160rpm, the 480hp D2676 pulled particularly hard, allowing us to storm up a switch-back A-road climb that seemed to last a long time. We can't see it having any trouble at 44 tonnes, whatever the terrain. On meandering minor roads we were also impressed by the precision and lightness of the TGX's steer ing, which comes close to challenging that found on Volvo's new FH.
We also appreciated the brake-blending function of the TGX's down-hill speed limiter. This is set by a short dab on the footbrake, before the engine brake takes over the retarding duties, holding the truck to the required speed, and doing it exceedingly well.
Yet for all its inspiring performance over the hills, long-haul drivers will really take to the big MAN on the motorway, where it provides an effortless drive.
The one issue we have with the TGX cab concerns the width of its A-posts (especially at the base) and the large mirror clusters and mounts. Together they create an obvious blind spot when you're approaching roundabouts, forcing the driver to move to see around them. And on the towering XXL cab, the extra narrow strips of glass on the cab sides above the doors need a blind or curtain to block out the sun.
Again, we hope MAN nails both these items on the next TGX/TGS interior makeover. However, notwithstanding those grumbles, CM sees no reason why MAN shouldn't continue to find favour with UK operators, especially when the going gets greener. • • The TGX XXL remains an impressive working environment