T he Mercedes-Benz Atego range arrived in a blaze of media
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glory three years ago with Horst Zirmner, then head of the manufacturer's Trucks Europe business unit, stating that only the "new tailored vehicle" could ieet the needs of a changing market. The tego, he claimed, set new standards in -gonomics, safety, comfort and economics. The 7.5-tonne Atego 815, more so than the gger, more powerful 817, is a direct replacetent for the 814 Eco Power. The pair share :tle more than the five-speed ZF gearbox, te badge and suspension-induced momenan on corners and roundabouts, but the irrent 815 has built up a decent reputation r reliability and body versatility. It is slightly ?avier and costs more than several other 7.5nners, but many operators have come to )preciate its wider cab, high level of stanird fittings and useful range of options.
Our example of the breed, S396 KRF, is iced at P5,75o (ex-VAT) which is less than e recommended CAP price for an immacute Atego Sr5 with a box, but above book price r one in average condition. Ategos are just arting to enter the second-hand market, and more arrive prices are bound to drop.
• roduct low-down
,96 KRF has clocked more then 197,500km, of them with Maincrest Hire of Liverpool, -dch is a subsidiary of Northgate Vehicle ire. It was first registered on 17 October .98. Many rental vehicles come with a large, id probably colourful driver history, but aincrest Hire put this vehide out to a single stomer and it was looked after on a two-year ntract-hire repair and maintenance deal. The overall condition of S396 KRF is good th few rough edges: it has undoubtedly red better than many similar vehicles by .ving just one rental customer. Apart from e duff-lock being replaced after 166,000km e major components have proved reliable. It's fitted with Mercedes-Benz's own Euro-2,
4.25-litre, charge-cooled, DI four-pot OM 904 LA diesel. Maximum power is a claimed i52hp (HAW) from 2,300-rpm with 580 Nm (42811) ft) of torque at I,200T,5oorpm. The engine has
electronic management. Underneath the test driver's flask of tea, Daily Comic and pasty is a five-speed ZF S5-42 synchromesh gearbox.
The chassis-cab is fitted with a Boalloy box body and Ratcliff tail-lift with a onetonne capacity. Both look as though they have seen plenty of action, as the paintwork looks a little worn around the edges. The body has six floor-lashing points and sidewall load restraint rails, while the tail-lift has two fold-down ramps.
Bottom line
The weather for this Used Truck Test was pretty good with the sun shining through sporadic cloud and a light south-westerly wind. There were no holds-up around the route and we arrived back at the start by mid-afternoon, avoiding the A5 tail-backs that are generally encountered in heavier vehicles.
The overall fuel figure for the trip was 16.75mpg (16.62mpg on the motorway) at an average speed of 49.6mph. Much of the motorway section was completed at 70mph with the rev counter up into the yellow band driving the fuel economy clown as we battled the head wind. Whether you prioritise on speed or economy all depends on the job, but 7.5-tonners are usually in a hurry.
On the A-Roads through Cymru our Atego returned 17.32mpg at an average speed of 46.2mph. Perhaps this is a clue to its preferred terrain as it made short work of the hilly sections on the A483 and Dinmore Hill—the latter was from a standing start, which wa s most impressive.
On the road
This is the first 7.5-tonner we've taken round our Used Truck Test route so one thing we were expecting was a faster passage. The journey took about six hours, which was more than enough time to get familiar with The Finest 'Arvest by The Wurzels (well, it was the only tape we had). Despite having docked up almost 200,000lcm, S396 KRF still had good pick-up from a standing start and accelerated briskly through a relatively tight gearbox.
Thanks to its high-ratio drive axle it was happy to lug down in 4th and 5th gears on the A-roads with 3rd only needed when traffic held us up.
You'd expect first gear in any five-speed gearbox to be a bit short, and the ZF unit fitted in the 815 has an 18kt/1/h bottom-gear limit. But throughout the day we found that any attempt to pull away in second on the flat, while quite possible, was uncomfortable. If nothing else, using first will save the clutch from premature wear.
Travelling at 7omph still felt a little odd on the motorway because of the high revs—the noise levels also increased significantly. But once up to speed, S396 KRF had enough power to keep a consistent pace.
On the A-Roads we noted a tendency to roll with the bends and roundabouts. Although p 0 we attacked (sorry, negotiated) these well within the truck's capability, load movement and seasickness certainly sprang to mind in tighter situations. The 2.47r1 width combined with the mirrors meant that we were operating on narrow roads at pretty much the same angles as an 18-tonner, but rather more quickly.
Cab quality
It's rare to find a rental truck which has spent all its time with a single operator; that doubtless helps account for the excellent condition of the cab. The interior doesn't have that new sheen and smell, but if you were checking out a second-hand example anything better than its current state would make you think the salesman was hiding someth i rig drastic.
The S day cab has a bit more space than you might think at first glance. The middle seat folds down to offer ample storage space for paperwork and drinks, while along the back wall there are plenty of load compartments and netting to hold the collection of map books that are the stock in trade of multi-drop drivers.
The day cab should be about right for a driver and his coat, bag, paperwork and any specialist gear, but add a driver's mate and it could begin to feel a little crowded.
However, we could find little evidence that Maintenance checks this particular cab has been repeatedly are made easy by the overloaded or abused. lift-up flap on the grille.
The seats are not worn and the dash does not display any signs of mistreatment. The in-cab experience was surprisingly quiet, but on the Used Truck Test we always run with the windows up, relying on the vents to keep us cool in the summer.
CM verdict
Buying a second-hand 7.5-tonner can be a bit of a lottery because of the environment in which these workhorses live. With this in mind, if you were buying a second-hand 815 you'd want it to boast many of the attributes of S396 KRF. The Atego managed to return a decent fuel figure on the A-roads, handled extremely well and has obviously been well maintained.
What an operator wants and what the driver gets can be two different things, but this Atego 815 should help close the gap. It proved reliable and productive, and it was quick enough to satisfy the driver with plenty of cab space, even in an S-cab. If it's had one careful owner, grab it.
• by Kevin Swallow