EUROTECH CURSOR
Page 26
Page 28
Page 29
Page 30
If you've noticed an error in this article please click here to report it so we can fix it.
IPrice as tested: £61,802 (ex-VAT); basic chassis-cab (with standard sleeper), £56,520. Engine: 7,8 litres, 347hp (259kW). GCW: 38 tonnes. Payload: 24.26 tonnes. Average speed: 72.8km/h (45.2mph). Average fuel consumption: 8.34mpg (33.87 lit/100km).
Sometimes you've got to play the hand that's dealt you. Given the choice, Iveco Ford would doubtless have preferred to launch the EuroTech Cursor with a io-litre engine instead of its little eight-litre lump, and never mind an innovative variablegeometry turbocharger. Now that aitics can run up to 41 tonnes the Cursor 8's 35ohp looks a bit puny for top-weight work. But if you're sticking at 38 tonnes, or hauling less, then prepare to have your perceptions challenged.
The Cursor 8 is a surprisingly good "little 'un".
S
0 ince Iveco unveiled its EuroTech Cursor (the word means "runner" in Latin) a lot's been written about it, not least by CM. But just in case you've been liv
ing on another planet for the past nine months, here are the facts.
Product profile
The EuroTech Cursor 8 is Iveco's latest fleet tractor. It's powered by the 7.8-litre Cursor 8 engine: the first arrival in a family of diesels which will soon be expanded to include a no-litre and eventually a 13-litre model.
Of course there's a lot more to it than that. For a start the little Cursor 8 six-pot has an electronically controlled variable geometry turbocharger which helps to overcome turbolag at low revs and provides a constant torque output across more than 8o orpm.
Inside its four-valve head are unit injectors with electrically operated solenoid valves which control fuel flow and timing. One-piece aluminium pistons disperse heat more effectively into the engine's wet liners and help to reduce the thermal stress on the piston cooling oil.
The seven main bearing caps supporting the crank are combined into a single element, forming the lower section of the stiffer, twopiece cylinder block. The Cursor 8 also has a Jake Brake-style engine compression brake, operated by a foot button or a dashboard switch.
Externally the engine is notably clean and uncluttered. More importandy it weighs 167kg less than the 9.5-litre lump it replaces, and it's quieter too. And with semi-synthetic oil it will run up to 8o,000km between oil changes.
Best of all it's designed to be 6% more efficient than the previous Iveco engine which powered the equivalent EuroTech 34o.
So much for the Cursor engine; what about the chassis it sits in? All EuroTech Cursors now share the same frame, which features lighter Knorr S 87000 front discs and a Mentor U177E back axle. There are also improved springs and dampers and a revised cab suspension (still four-point coil). Further tweaks include updated wiring and a general tidying up on the outside. The interior trim has had a facelift and the mattress is now deeper Put it all together and you've got a tractor that weighs some 370kg less than the old EuroTech 34o.
And so to our test truck. The 347hp (259 kW) rating is the most powerful in the Cursor 8 range, which runs from 27ohp upwards. Its i,28oNm (9441bft) of torque is delivered between 1,o8o-1,95orpm (more of that later). Behind it is a 2F Ecosplit r6-speed synchro which now has Servoshift assistance. Unfortunately our 3.8m-wheelbase arctic went down the line just before Iveco made it standard on all models.
Normally, if you buy a sleeper you get a standard-height cab. CM'S Cursor came with the optional higher/medium-roof cabin which has more headroom and storage space, albeit for an extra £888. A top bunk adds £215 to the bottom line; other options included Speedline alloy wheels and a full aero kit.
Productivity
When Iveco Ford offered us its new baby we wondered whether its small capacity engine could hack it around CM'S gruelling three-day truck test. The results, to quote football commentator Barry Davis, are "interesting...very interesting."
A quick perusal of our comparison tables shows just how unusual the Cursor 8 is. On fuel its overall average of 8.34mpg (33.81it/rookm) is as close to the class-leading Scania PH4 340 as makes no difference. It beats the Actros 1835 and is streets ahead of its Cummins-powered Doppelganger, the Seddon Atkinson Strato.
We should point out here that the Cursor ran with a box trailer in place of CM's normal curtainsider which was busy on another test. However, any aerodynamic edge it might have had was well and truly clobbered by strong headwinds on the second day.
Now take a look at its three-day average speed and, even allowing for the fact that we now have to bypass Edinburgh City centre (new weight limits), it's still a nippy little motor. The lack of bottomend grunt made itself apparent over the toughest A68 section, but on most of our timed hill climbs its performance was by no means embarrassing.
And now, the clincher; how does 24.26 tonnes of payload grab you? With a full 400litre tank, alloy rims, air kit and driver our Cursor weighed in at just 6.73 tonnes. Multiply average fuel consumption by average speed by payload and you end up with a truck with high earnings potential.
The optional higher/medium-roof cab offers more headroom and storage, but it will cost you £888.
Not surprisingly, when you put the EuroTech Cursor up against bigger-engined fleet rivals it loses some of that shine. It's behind the Daf 85CF.38o and ERF11.38 on fuel, but it beats the ti-litre Renault-Premium 385 and 12-litre Volvo FM12.380. And all of these contenders have a higher tare weight.
On the road
If you're a graduate of the "let it lug" academy, sorry, you're going to have to go back to school for the Cursor 8. There's no :2-litre lump to dig in and hang on so there's no point letting it fall back much below r,500rprn unless you're cresting the top of a hill or running on level terrain. When the going gets tough the drill is to drop half a gear or more, and keeping it spinning.
Two things about the Cursor 8 are noteworthy. Firstly, it pulls particularly well from 1,6 o o rpm—which is at the lowest point on the specific fuel curve—with peak torque on tap up to 1,950rpm. Secondly, as it's a very free-revving engine you need to take care when pulling away that you don't over rev it while you work your way up through the low range. The standard cruisecontrol is good: it comes in smoothly and is easy to adjust or reset.
You'd expect a little motor to be noisier than a big, lazy diesel. In fact the EuroTech Cursor's interior noise levels are commendably low, and at omph it's certainly very easy on the ears. It's a pity didn't have Servoshift on our Ecosplit box. We're usually happy with the Z F r6-speeder—we can even live with a double-H shift pattern—but it can be pretty baulky at times. A low or high-split indicator on the dash wouldn't go amiss either.
Whatever lveco's done to the EuroTech's suspension, we like it. It handles better than the old model and seems to have less road shock coming up through the front end than, say, the Daf 85 CF. Cab roll is also well under control and the Cursor's steering is light, accurate and positive, although we did notice that it was affected by tramline ruts on the A74.
Panic brake stops at the MIRA proving ground produced some pretty spectacular cab rebound, but the lveco's stopping distances were very impressive. Discs do make a difference and the Eurolech's discs are good examples of the breed.
That's just as well, as the Jake-type engine brake wouldn't stop a runaway shopping trolley below 2,000rpm—although with only eight litres acting as a compressor that's hardly surprising. However, once you get the revs up around 2,500rpm (or better yet steel yourself to go up to 3,000rpm) you can feel it working. And we do like the three-position control switch which allows you to have the engine brake working manually off the footbrake or floor button, or automatically when you lift off the throttle pedal.
Summary
Every time we test a EuroTech we can't help noticing how things keep getting better. If the Cursor 8's performance is anything to go by then all bodes well for the forthcoming Cursor io and 13. Indeed it looks like rewriting the small engine rule book.
But before we get carried away let's remember that it will never rival an ii or rz-litre attic (it's not meant to) and as fuel-efficient as the Cursor 8 is, you'll not be buying it for intensive top-weight work. But if you're a parcels carrier who wants more oomph with maximum economy, or a supermarket, brewery or tanker operator looking for maximum payloads over undemanding routes, then the Cursor 8-powered EuroTech is an attractive proposition.
Of course, the task facing Iveco Ford is not selling the Cursor 8's "here-and-now performance". Judging by our results that shouldn't be difficult. The real challenge is how the market will view an eight-litre tractor with over half-a-million klicks on the clock in three years' time.
And if the Cursor 8 is to be attractive throughout its entire working life then Neu) Ford, and its dealers, will have to play that hand too, and with some skill.