1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
41
42
43
44
45
46
47
48
49
50
51
52
53
54
55
56
57
58
59
60
61
62
63
64
65
66
67
68
69
70
71
72
73
74
75
76
77
78
79
80
81
82
83
84
85
86
87
88
89
90
91
92
93
94
95
96
97
98
99
100
101
102
103
104
105
106
107
108
109
110
111
112
113
114
115
116
117
118
119
120
121
122
123
124
125
126
127
128
129
130
131
132
133
134
135
136
137
138
139
140
141
142
143
144
145
146
147
148
149
150
151
152
153
154
155
156
157
158
159
160
161
162
163
164
165
166
167
168
169
170
171
172
173
174
175
176
177
178
179
180
181
182
183
184
185
186
187
188
189
190
191
192
193
194
195
196
197
198
199
200
201
202
203
204
205
206
207
208
209
210
211
212
213
214
215
216 
We change our road test route
Page 91
If you've noticed an error in this article please click here to report it so we can fix it.
teve Gray explains the reason...
ICE its introduction, CM'S atish Road Test Route has the standard which others to follow. It has esta;Fled itself as a gruelling t which proves or disposes eavy vehicle's ability to do job properly.
%Imost all the manufacturers their new vehicles round our te before announcing them he public or before letting us re one for test. Engine lufacturers too try their new ducts on the circuit and some the forward-looking have n simulated It on their com ers. • t features too on the TRRL's tiputer where it is used for nparison tests for fuel nomy.
-lowever, as the years have ie by so the route has bele slightly less representative he sort of work operators are ily to be undertaking. For mple, the section of M1 up :sick and the return run on part on the second day have sod • to have the relevance y used to. This portion of the torway is very flat for the st part and almost all modern les can maintain a similar !rage speed both up and vn.
For this reason we have cut the M1 section for the first r. Instead, we now carry out specific tests at MTRA on first day and once they are npleted start the road trials. The starting paint for these is Burmah fuel station some miles down the AS towards idon. Fuelling up here, we off, passing MIRA again and /eking through to join the M6 unction 12.
The M6 is followed through the Charnock Richard ser?, area, where we make the t of our overnight stops. Next r we fuel up at Forton, carry to Gretna and make our ond fuel stop.
Rejoining the A74 we carry as before to the A73 turn off Abington, there instead of ling off we continue on the 4 northwards eventually joining the M74. Our third fuel stop and indeed the lunch stop is at the Bothwell service area on the M74.
From here we pick up the M73 till we meet the A80 at Junction 2, carrying on on the A80 till the M9 which we take heading towards Perth leaving to join A9 at junction 11. We take a timed climb on the longwinding hill just before Perth itself.
Driving straight through the centre of Perth, we leave on the A85 which takes us to Dundee.
At Dundee we follow the sign-posts down to the Tay Bridge and crossing the Firth of Tay we head south on the A914. At the junction with A91 we take this latter road and passing through Auchtermuchty, meet the M90 at Junction 8. This takes us right down to the Forth Road Bridge which we cross on the A90.
The A90 is taken heading toward Edinburgh and we leave the city on the A68 thus rejoining the old route at Dalkeith. Once again we make an overnight stop at Pathhead. Starting from here we continue on our old route, including the tortuous A68 section with its blind summits and steep gradients.
However, when we reach the M-1 we travel only as far as junction 21 where we join the M69 just past Leicester Forest services.
This is followed through till the AS turn off which is taken to get back to the Burmah fuel station. Our final fuel measurement is taken here.
It will be seen from this new route that all the tough parts of the old route are retained. However, the test now falls more clearly in line with present-day traffic and operations. The first test over the new route, of a Ford Transcontinental fitted with the Cummins E290 power unit, appears in colour in next week's CM.
In order that we can build up comparisons of vehicles we shall be carrying out as many tests as possible over the next few months.