RENTAL SURVEY 17-TONNERS
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2.30pm and were ready to leave just after 3pm. The rental office kept us hanging about while the truck was brought out of the workshop. We paid by Visa, leaving 2220 with the company. We were told that BRS would give us a credit card refund voucher on return the following day, which they failed to do. Instead, we were told that our credit card account would be credited by 269.72. BRS checked the state of the returned truck and charged us 213.68 for diesel.
Hiring a truck from Ryder is just like hiring a car. The whole process is as smooth and as effortless as possible, with obviously well-established forms and procedures. Our reception (again on an industrial estate on the outskirts of Heathrow airport) was very businesslike. We paid by American Express and, as with BRS, insurance was included.
But the truck looked a bit shoddy, only one windscreen wiper was working and we had to fill up with diesel before leaving, the only time we were delayed for this. The return of the truck was equally speedy and Ryder promptly checked the vehicle for damage and charged us 2129.72, giving us an immediate credit card refund slip for 2120.28 out of the 2250 paid out at the start. The reception area, like that at Smith Self Drive, featured seats, toilets and potted plants. The BRS method of refunding is to "credit" the customer's card account and not issue any refund documentation.
Ryder's Freighter was the only truck in the test to carry clear warning labels in the cab informing the driver of the height of the vehicle, the daily checks required and the number of its emergency breakdown service.
Hunt's Uxbridge, Middlesex-based reception area is 1957, perfectly preserved. The wood panelling and the desks are period pieces, beautifully careworn. The service, however, was bang up-to-date, with the minimum of paperwork and nothing to pay until we returned. Hunt did not double-check the insurance nor the state of the truck before we left: it simply brought the vehicle to the door and promised to work out the bill on our return, which they did just as fast and just as efficiently.
THE INSPECTIONS
Once the trucks had been picked up, they were driven in turn to our test track, where the most vital part of our survey was to take place: a rigorous vehicle examination by Brian Wardley, an experienced ETA vehicle inspector.
With Wardley's help, we hoped to discover whether the rental companies are giving hauliers a fair deal by providing them with efficient, roadworthy vehicles.
The 1.-FA vehicle maintenance inspection, which is widely used by fleets as a reliable indicator of a truck's condition, is a detailed check, typically lasting about an
hour. The inspection covers all aspects of a truck, including engine, transmission, suspension, electrics, steering, chassis, wheels and tyres, brakes, bodywork and ancillary equipment.
Smith's F-registered Mercedes-Benz 1617 arrived with 36,467km on the clock, and looked smart in its orange and white livery; our driver also commented that the truck drove particularly well.
Appearances can be deceptive, however, and Wardley's probings soon revealed a broken cab front panel release and a jammed hazard warning light switch. More seriously, tell-tale spots under the vehicle highlighted leaks of oil and coolant from the engine; Wardley traced the oil leak to the drain plug on the oil filter housing, while the coolant was dripping from a hose which had been affected by the oil.
While "great big heaps" of grease showed that regular maintenance was being carried out, a missing battery cover and an air pipe chafing in its clip revealed a lack of attention to detail. Like the majority of trucks in this survey, Smith's vehicle also fell foul of the law on side reflectors, primarily by mounting them higher than the 350-900mm height specified (a missing reflector also led to a gap more than three metres between adjacent reflectors).
The bright red Iveco Ford Cargo 1718 from Hunt was the youngest truck featured in our survey, and with only 10,106km showing on the odometer, was understandably in extremely good condition externally.
Mechanically, Hunt's Cargo was also in good shape, with only a few minor items meriting comment. The thing causing most concern was, in fact, the French Hydris tail-lift — not because of any defects, but rather that its unconventional design and French operating instructions exercised the brain-power of our testers in order to get the thing to work!
The problems Wardley did spot included a missing dip-stick on the power-steering fluid reservoir, reversing lights that didn't work, a tyre with a cut sidewall, and a slight oil leak on the gearbox.
A quick look was all that was needed to see that the Scania P82M supplied by
Beeline had seen some hard work in its 47,592km life. What with its missing taillift platform, bumps and bruises in the side of the body where pallets had tried to force their way through, and a rather dirty cab interior, the truck's presentation could certainly have been improved.
The exterior condition was not an indication that the Scania had been neglected, however, and after a thorough going over by Wardley, only a few comparatively unimportant defects were uncovered. Most serious were a badly cut tyre and faulty stop lights, though we can't help but mention the fact that the cab tilt jack handle had been inadvertently left, in the pump, leaving it free to fly off dangerously at speed.
The truck sporting Ryder's distinctive yellow livery was an E-registered Leyland Freighter 1617 which had clocked up 79,319km, but was still reasonably smartly turned out. If first impressions count, however, the Freighter didn't do itself any favours; to Wardley's obvious disbelief, the Leyland had only one windscreen wiper fitted (its absent partner was later found in the cab). Wardley was further surprised to discover that Ryder's vehicle appeared to be overdue for its biannual tachograph inspection.
Fortunately, the remainder of the vehicle had been prepared more thoroughly, though someone had obviously taken the term "maintenance-free battery" rather too literally. Wardley also noticed that the dim-dip function on the headlights wasn't working, and that the reversing bleeper couldn't be cancelled for nighttime use in built-up areas.
There was evidence that the interior of the bodywork had seen better days with a lot of sharp edges, and a loose strip at the end of the body floor to trip the unwary.
The oldest 17-tonner in our survey was the Leyland Freighter 1617, supplied by BRS, which had covered 84,784km in its short lifetime. The truck had obviously arrived fresh from the workshop, which our driver noticed because the steering wheel made his hands dirty, and which Wardley noticed because of the tell-tale signs on the vehicle.
The paint on the front bumper hadn't even had time to dry, the cab was not completely locked down, and the cap was missing from the windscreen washer fluid reservoir. More positively, there was lots of fresh grease, and evidence of hammer blows checking the bolts. Wardley was all the more astonished, therefore, to find a serious (and obvious) defect: the front cab corner panel had been pushed in by a collision, forcing a sharp edge hard against the nylon air pipes from the brake foot valve. Wardley also spotted a damaged tyre, a minor power-steering fluid leak from near the reservoir, and a small oil leak from the engine. 1=I We would like to thank VP Transport for its help in arranging this feature.