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MO TRACTOR
Page 28
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Winner:
SCANIA 0114 44t
Others: Oaf 05CF 40t Mercedes-Beni Actros 38t MAN F2000 401 Foden Alpha 441 Volvo FM12 301
ontrary to belief, not all operators want a 500hp-plus three-axle top-of-the-range truck to haul pallets of dry goods up and down the motorways, with a one-bedroom cab for kipping in five nights a week. This year's Used Truck Test has seen the stable bread-and-butter fleet tractors on display showing no loss in comfort and productivity.
Once again, it's worth highlighting that CMs Used Truck Test is non-comparative but, for the sake of editorial, we have to award a first prize. In the 2002 winners' enclosure for used tractors is the Scania R114 6x2 tractor with a 380hp engine tested in September. This was Scania's first offering and T988 FFR, a classic fleet tractor, had already been snapped up by the time CM published the report.
The reason it just edged out the rest of the competition was its overall performance. It did not break the fuel record on the route but it did achieve an impressive 8.1mpg—more importantly, it was the first truck to do the test at 44 tonnes. Even more impressive was the 380hp engine, way below the much-touted 10hp per tonne perceived industry ratio, a brave decision by Scania.
On the open road, it provided a comfortable and smooth drive whether we were weaving through tight A-roads or trunking along the motorway. The driveline showed no signs of weakness but the extra weight meant that it slowed up on the hills against lighter, more powerful trucks on previous tests.
Just behind the Scania, and in no particular order, came several good-quality fleet tractors designed for 44 tonnes but plated at 38 tonnes.
Independent dealer Hanbury Riverside put forward an MAN F2000 6x2 26.414 plated at 44 tonnes, one of a batch returning from the Hanbury Davies fleet. CM was running with its old 41-tonne Fruehauf trailer, so top weight was denied us, otherwise this truck would have set the pace for the test.
Mercedes-Benz Actros
The truck's reputation for consistency and toughness was underlined with a decent fuel result that held up well on the tough A-road section. Rated at 403hp and restricted to 53mph, it was not the quickest around the route but it more than made up for it by handling tough assignments with ease and looking near-new, despite clocking up 364,000km on container work.
The fleet theme started with Daf, which allowed CMto run an 850F 380hp 4x2 tractor with a sleeper cab in March around the used truck test. It produced one of the best rides and fuel figures since the test was created-8.26mpg running at 38 tonnes. One of the most familiar sights on the road, the Daf 85CF provided more than enough comfort, durability and performance to explain its popularity.
The Foden Alpha 3000 6x2 405hp sleeper cab tested in November 2002 is still fresh in our minds after producing a hard-working performance at 44 tonnes. While Foden still carries the tag of a bespoke specialist and is not synonymous with the big fleet market, the test proved that it can produce solid vehicles for both camps. The timing of the test also coincided with the company announcing the imminent launch of its Used Truck department. It was also sold even before we fuelled up at Hinckley.
Mercedes-Benz vehicles have been a stalwart of the Used Truck Test's early days and continued 2002's fleet theme with the 4x2 Actros with a sleeper cab and 354hp engine specced for 38 tonnes. Although superseded by the Axor, the Actros 1836 was a perfect example of the sort of vehicle major fleet operators run on own-account work at reduced payloads—a truck that, when launched ahead of its time, showed that fears of the electronic age were groundless, to the point that all truck manufacturers have endorsed the technology.
Closing 2002 was another fleet classic—Volvo's FM12 380hp 4x2 tractor. An automatic first choice for operators since its launch in 1998 it was, like the Oaf 85CF and Scania R114, a notable member of CM'S test line-up. The journey flew by not because we set new land speed records but because the comfort of the drive was first-rate. It's not often CM can sit back and let the truck do the work, but it's possible that this truck would have made its own way round the 274.5-mile route.