Roadtrain re-routed
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• Leyland Daf is to drop most of its high-powered Roadtrain models above 224kW (300hp), less than a month after revealing its product plans for 1989, (CM 3 Nov). The models will be discontinued early next-year to avoid unecessary duplication with its Dutch-built 95 Series tractors.
According to Leyland Daf, the decision to discontinue the high-powered Roadtrains reflects their sales volumes which have been "very low". The Roadtrain is now being sold primarily as a "no frills, domestic fleet motor".
Those for the chop include the two-axle 17.32 and 17.35 artics, powered by the Cummins E320 and E350 14-litre engines, as well as the 17.35 tractor with the 12-litre Perkins Eagle 350 engine and the Cummins L10 powered 17.25.
The twin-steer 20.32 Cummins-powered Roadtrain will also be dropped, along with the 6x2 Eagle-engined 20.35 and the less powerful 20.29 with the Cummins L10 engine.
The move will be effective "during the early part of 1989" says the company. As a result, the only twin-steer Roadtrain for sale will be the 20.33, fitted with the Perkins Eagle 325 engine, launched at the Birmingham Motor Show last month. It will also become the most powerful Roadtrain tractive unit.
The two-axle Roadtrain lineup will consist of the 17.30, with the Eagle 300; the 17.28 with the Cummins L10; and the 17.27, with the Eagle 265.
The Daf-supplied 95 Series range with its higher specifica tion currently enjoys more sales than the Roadtrain in the UK, particularly with smaller fleets and owner operators, as well as international hauliers.
The Interstate high roof cab option, however, will continue to be offered on the 20.33.
The company is also expected to respond to increases in power from its rivals in their 38-tonne tractive units, and a more powerful engine above 282kW (383hp) could find its way into the 95 Series by the end of 1990.