The many merits of IVECO
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Tim Blakemore sings the praises of the IVECO 190.29 tractive unit. Its versatility in all kinds of operating conditions was particularly impressive
FOR MANY operators engaged in general haulage in this country the term "general" as a description of their work could not be more apt. One week a tractive unit might be hauling a half-laden boxvan from London to Glasgow, the next pulling full loads of steel coil from South Wales to the Midlands, and then there might be a week of multidrop work with a curtainsider when the tachograph needle never goes above 80km/h.
Such a variety of operating conditions demands great versatility from the vehicles in service if the operator's balance sheet is not to suffer through poor fuel consumption, driver dissatisfaction or unmet schedules. The subject of this week's road test and operational trial, the 190.29, the second of IVECO's "third generation" tractive units to appear so far on the British market, repeatedly demonstrated how adept it is at coping with many typical British operating conditions. It left me with the strong impression that any reasonable general haulage task could be demanded of it without disappointment.
This air-cooled, Deutz-engined tractive unit returned an overall average fuel consumption over the Scottish route of just under 7mpg, not the best ever achieved with our van semitrailer (that honour still rests with the Mercedes-Benz 1625) but nevertheless within a couple of litres of the elite few which have so far bettered 7mpg.
Furthermore, the overall average speed, despite the high number of road works en route, was also first rate.
The fastest 32-tonner to date with the van semi-trailer is Scania's R112MA, which had an overall average of 67.30km/h (41.83mph).
Like its Fiat-engined 170.30 sister, (tested at 32 tons gross, CM October 10, 1981 and at 38 tonnes, March 13, 1982) this IVECO machine revelled in hill climbing, as the very swift hill climb times indicate.
But in the way in which it goes about the job it is unlike the 170.30 because of its different overall gearing and the V8 engine's totally different power and torque characteristics. The Deutz VS is much faster revving than the Fiat 13.8 litre in-line sixcylinder unit.
Both these engines first became available in turbocharged form when IVECO launched its revised range of heavyweights last year and both are derived from well-proven nia versions.
The air-cooled V's governed maximum speed is 2,300rpm at which its net power output (to BSAU 141 a) is 200kW (268hp) but unusually, though not uniquely, it is at a slightly lower engine speed, 2,100rpm, that the maximum net installed power output of 206kW (276hp) is developed. Peak torque of 1,110Nm (819Ibft) is developed at 1,500rpm.
There is no question that the turbocharged Fiat engine has marginally more power and a deal more torque than the Deutz but the relative quoted power outputs have provoked some disagreement recently from th engine supplier, Klockner Hurt bolcit Deutz, which is no longc part of IVECO.
Our operational trial result provide evidence yet again (a with the MB 1628 and MB 162 tractive units) that if a vehicle' gearing is right, the last fel horsepower in the quoted max mum are of academic intere: only. Nothing in our results tabl suggests that the 190.29 with it 4.87:1 rear axle ratio is ur dergeared, which is a though that must have occurred to som of IVECO's engineers becaus they are considering a 4.5:1 rati as an option.
The advantage of this woul be that it would bring the engin speed at 60mph in top gei down from around 2,15Orpn Just outside the "economy speed range, to just inside it around 1,900rprn. The trade o would be that the Nlagiru would lose some of its wil ingness on gradients.
My opinion, influenced by th reasonably good motorway fuel consumption of our test vehicle even at the relatively high engine speed, is that it would be a shame to tamper with gearing which makes this tractive unit so driveable.
Any driver who is accustomed to one of the current low-speed engines (Rolls 290L, Cummins E290 or Fiat 8210.22, for example) will soon learn in this Magirus that the "let it lug" philosophy cannot be applied to the same extent.
If engine speed falls below 1,500rpm, power and torque drop off sharply and one or more downchanges will probably be needed. It is much better to keep the engine speed up, though there is no need to waste fuel by constantly taking the rev counter needle way into the orange sector which begins at 2,00Orpm.
It is a tribute to the versatility of Fuller's 13-speed transmission that it felt as much at home behind this Deutz engine as it does behind the Fiat, MAN, Rolls-Royce, Cummins and many others.
The overdrive on the high range gears again proved especially useful on motorway gra dients. On Shap northbound, for example, a change down of half a gear only, from overdrive top into direct, allowed the Maggie to pull strongly all the way to the summit in one gear at a steady road speed of 47mph with the rev counter needle always in the green zone.
And on the long M18 climb it was a very similar story; just one gear change again to 8 direct and our lowest road speed was 43mPh.
Good though the operational trial results are, they are not the only reason for praising this IVECO tractive unit's versatility. It also came through our off road testing at MIRA with flying colours. There was no unpleasant drive wheel locking and twitching out of fine during the full pressure brake tests as has happened with a number of recently tested vehicles, and the pedal effort needed to produce the commendably high average deceleration was markedly low.
Nor was there any drama during the gradeability testing. I approached the test hills on this occasion somewhat gingerly after recent experiences but I need not have worried. This 190.29 had no difficulty in restarting from rest on the 1 in 6, 1 in 5 and 1 in 4 gradients.
Just to prove it was no fluke, we went around the hills a second time, this time with the IVECO driver at the helm. Had it not been for the steepness of the approach slope to MIRA's 1 in 3 hill (vertical articulation between unit and trailer would almost certainly cause some damage) would have been prepared to attempt a restart on this most daunting of gradients. The theoretical maximum gradeability for the 190.29 at 32 tons clew is 37.9 per cent (1 in 2.6).
Not every operator will regu
iarly need his fully laden vehicles to be able to restart on a 1 in 4 gradient. But when it is possible to do so with ease, as in this case, with a 32-ton combination, it is a good indication not only of the vehicle's park brake performance and its useable tractive effort but also of how well adjusted to give a fine degree of control are its accelerator, park brake and clutch controls.
Of course, if you examine the IVECO tractive unit closely enough it is possible to find things to criticise. I particularly did not like the lack of fine adjustment provided by the heater controls. As the outside temperature varied during the threeday test, it was difficult to maintain a comfortable temperature inside the cab without either switching the heater off altogether or making the cab interior uncomfortably warm.
The cab heating system on this vehicle is necessarily unconventional because of the absence of any liquid engine cooling system. It works by hay ing a separate oil pump fitted in the sump, mounted higher than the normal one, to pump engine oil to the cab and thus provide heat when required.
It seems that the valve controlling the oil's rate of flow needs to be more finely adjustable. However, this system is certainly an improvement on its predecessor as used on much earlier Deutz-engined vehicles, which depended solely on ducted hot air from the engine compartment.
Another detail which does not live up to the generally high standards set by this vehicle is its exhaust brake. Its effectiveness is not all it should be, but worse than that, the control button moves alarmingly under the driver's foot and requires a surprising amount of effort to hold it down.
This tractive unit's appealing points of detail are too numerous to list here in their entirety; the mention of only some must suffice. The dashboard's array of warning lights has been praised before, but it is worth repeating that it is the best laid out and most clearly marked in the business, and the switches can be described in the same way.
Just one example of the way IVECO has considered workshop staff when it revised its heavyweight range is the new remote location of the fuel lift pump and pre-filter which is easily accessible, even without tilting the cab.
An interesting fitment on our test vehicle was an Isringhausen air suspension seat which does not require manual adjustment to suit the driver's weight. It should prove of particular benefit on vehicles which regularly have two or more drivers, but I think drivers must be prepared to make some explanations about its spontaneous hissing and movement which at roadside checks would be likely to cause some mild concern among DTp inspectors or police officers.
Apart from the engine, the cab heating system and the rear-axle ratio, this Deutz-engined IVECO 44-tanner is identical to the Fiatengined model. IVECO (UK) Ltd offers both models at exactly the same price through its network of distributors which have been amalgamated from the old separate Magirus-Deutz, Fiat days.
One clear advantage of the Deutz-engined model should be in weight saved but you will see from our results table that the kerb weight of this vehicle was actually more than the 170.30 tested last year. Aside from the usual manufacturing tolerances, the weight difference can only be explained by the hefty Josl sliding fifth-wheel mountinG fitted to this vehicle. IVECC quotes the chassis cab weight* of the equivalent Magirus anc Fiat models respectively a* 6,280kg and 6,420kg.
Summary The name IVECO is not yet as well known in British workshops (or boardrooms) as Leyland and ERF or indeed Mercedes and Volvo. That is a handicap for the manufacturer because, not surprisingly, British operators like to know a lot about the companies from which they buy expensive equipment.
IVECO's intensive advertising in Spain of late has taken the name into millions of households across the world and that is bound to help, but no less important for this manufacturer's reputation is its ability to continue to produce vehicles with as many merits as this Maggie.