Truck cabs are designed to be safe, efficient and comfortable
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workplaces, but even the best of them can be improved with the right aftermarket equipment. From navigation systems and fridges to music systems and drinks machines, the choice of extras has never been wider.
Steve McQueen has been taking a look at this season's crop...
* The Haulage Handbook, published by Tolley's in association
with Commercial Motor, is a useful accessory in any cab. It's designed to keep drivers and operators up to date with the latest regulations, and is available on special offer at 295. A sister publication, the Haulage Records and Procedures Handbook, is due out at the end of
November. It is also designed for the operator, covering everything from 0
licence applications to record keeping and
daily business administration. Contact: 0181 686 9141.
Kenwood has introduced an in-vehicle navigation system for the UK which uses GPS to calculate a choice of routes, with the ability to specify parameters such as the use of ferries or toll roads. A combination of audio and visual messages help drivers find their way "turn by turn". The system also features an address finder and a point-of-interest capability to find fuel stops, cash points and other useful sites.
The company also offers a mini disc system which is said to allow digital-quality recordings to be made time after time. The KMD-860R costs £399. It has an autochanger control so drivers can select from several discs, but it needs a converter. Contact: 01923 8164444.
Kenwood's mini disc range offers the professional driver with all the sound and functional quality of a CD with the added benefit of being able to record on to them over and over again. There's even an autochanger, which means you can just about get through to lunchtime without having to listen to a single radio DJ.
You'll miss the traffic reports, of course, but if you're using Kenwood's navigation system this shouldn't be a problem. It guides you "turn by turn" by voice and screen to wherever you want to go. You can even pre-set it to take you to your first five drops. After work you can even hook it up to a TV screen or play video games in the comfort of your cab.
The system is currently restricted to the UK but a Continental version should be ready early next year.
Cab equipment won't simply keep you on the straight and narrow; it can help make the road a more courteous place. Cosmic has come up with an illuminated sign that will flash the words "Thanks" or "Sorry" at the touch of a button. If all else fails its repertoire also runs to "Help".
Having impressed other road users with your courtesy you might want to relax with a drink. The Handy Holder fits into the slot of your window, and there's a Sandwich Holder too if you really can't spare the time to stop for a snack. It also serves as a music cassette holder, and if you really like having everything at your fingertips a Mobile Vision spectacle holder from Fischer will keep your Raybans at instant readiness.
Miserable summer As a miserable summer turns into a chilly autumn a Diwsvy could make your cab that bit more comfortable. This handy little gadget turns a bottle of water into a hot water drinks maker. It sits on the dashboard; you simply switch it on and place one of a range of branded drink sachets underneath it. Hot drinks work out at about 10p a cup.
If you're heading into warmer climes the new range of 'FTC cool boxes will help keep your food fresh. And if you're working in the UK TTC's Voyage and Road models can also be used as heater boxes.
Andrew Harris, managing director of cab accessory supplier Road-Pro, says the demand for real cookers never wanes. More and more drivers appreciate in-cab fridges too. A compressor driven Waeco Coolmatic will do the job, for around £400.
Once your home from home is rigged to keep you heading in the right direction with the entertainment and catering taken care of, you might like to do a spot of decorating. You can apply a wood-grain effect to your dashboard for about £110, and complete the luxury look with a quilted leatherette engine O. .4 cover and mats. In-cab fashion guru Stewart Myhill at CTC Autofashion says these have been best-sellers this summer at £70 for a hump cover and £65 for a pair of matching mats for the foot well.
As you settle down in your re-equipped cab you might feel like a good read, and you could use your time constructively by curling up with The Haulage Handbook, just published by Tolley's in association with Camel-ciao' Motor. It will keep you abreast of the law and operational procedures for the special launch price of £95. A sister manual, Haulage Records, Procedures and Handbook will be available later in the year.
All these items are designed to enhance your comfort or efficiency, but if you're feeling frivolous you might care to invest a termer on a nodding Shaun, the sheep from the Wallace & Gromit films. ADS also offers a nodding Bart Simpson figure, with 2,000 sales in the first two weeks. Look for one in a cab near you...
* Mirror Technology's wide-angled safety mirror mounts on the nearside Apillar, allowing the driver to see the road immediately in front of his vehicle. Contact: 01242 621534. * The Diwwy could be one answer to the disappearing wayside cafe—it turns a bottle of water into a hot water dispenser and comes with a range of ready-mixed top branded drinks which work out at about 10p a cup. The Diwwy costs £99.
Contact: 0541 500601.
*Sales of fans have held up well despite the poor summer. These examples from Ring Automotive are battery operated: the top of the range, Hawaii, is said to give up to 300 hours of use per set of batteries. Contact: 0113 2767676. * Mobile Vision from Fischer Automotive Systems protects and stores glasses, sunglasses or nightvision lenses, so that they are easily accessible from the driver's seat. It can be fitted under the instrument panel, over the windscreen, on the door or on the dashboard.
Contact: 01865 880716.
*The Handy Holder from Summit slips over the door trim and slots into the window recess to hold snacks within easy reach.
Contact: 01295 270770.
* Automotive Distribution Sales is marketing a nodding "Shaun the Sheep" character from the Wallace & Gromit films. It joins a Bart Simpson version which has brought the company 2,000 sales in iwo weeks at around £8.50 each.
* Truck and Trailer Components has introduced two new coolboxes. The Voyage and the slightly smaller Road model both double as heater boxes. They can run on 24V and 12V and are powered from the cigarette lighter socket.
* CTC Autofashion can supply a range of quilted engine covers and matching quilted floor mats. Engine covers in quilted leatherette are about E70; matching mots cost around £65 a pair. Other cab cosmetics from Autofashion include a stick-on wood gran kit for fascias. It costs El 10. Contact: 0800 9808018.
ik Cosmic's Envoy "courtesy system" is designed to defuse potential cases of road rage. Drivers can display signs saying 'Thanks" or "Sorry" at the touch of a button, The Envoy illuminates the chosen message in bright LEDs; power is supplied via the lighter socket. There i5 also a "Help" sign, which could be useful in case of breakdowns.
Contact: 01543 452626.
* ICOM (UK) has introduced a new model of its data compatible radio receiver, the IC-Fl 010, which accepts data from base and allows the driver to receive text messages when reception is poor.
Contact: 01722 741741.
* Rood Pro has a new line in power converters, which cost from £50. They enable
drivers to power mini discs or other lower voltage equipment from their trucks' power source. Road Pro also offers a range of double adapters for the cigarette lighter socket, allowing two appliances to be operated at the same time. The company is the UK agent for Coolmatic fridges from Waeco. They start at around £400 and are powered by 12V or 24V.
Contact: 0171 252 5832.