What a day for a draydream
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AT A WET and windy Mira proving ground last Sunday the major fuel economy prizes in the trials organised jointly by the Institute of Road Transport Engineers and the Brewery Transport Advisory Committee were won by two Dodges, two Volvos, a Foden and an lveco.
The prizewinners for "payload earning factor" will be announced later when Lucas Kienzle has analysed the tachograph charts from the 38 vehicles which took part and the judges have had time to check their figures. This factor is calculated by multiplying the vehicle's net payload (kg) by its average speed (mph) by its fuel consumption (mpg).
In the 14.7-tonnes gvw class the best fuel consumption was recorded by a naturally-aspirated 6.354.4 Perkins-powered Dodge Commando, entered by International Distillers and Vintners. The Commando's overall average over the 25-lap trial (which comprises five laps at a steady 30mph, five at 40mph, five at 50 and 60mph as well as five including six stops a lap), was 24.1 lit/100km (11.7mpg).
In the 16.25-tonnes gtw class there were three winners. lveco won the "manufacturer entered" category with 24.95 lit/100km (11.32mpg) from its 159.17 16tanner, and the Dodge/Perkins combination again proved to be a winning one by giving CocaCola the "normal user" prize for 25.1 lit/100km (11.25mpg) from its T6.354.4 engined, spineback chassis Commando. The "open" category of the 16.25-tonnes class was won by the Bass/Bandag/Lorry Logic Volvo F6 tractive unit with 28.3 lit/100km (9.98mpg).
The best fuel economy from a 38 -tonner came from a Sandbach Engineering-entered Foden 6x4 tractive unit with an impressive 42.5 lit/100km (6.65mpg). The winning Foden has a Cummins 240hp L10 engine driving through a direct top Fuller RT 7609 gearbox to a Rockwell SQ100 rear bogie with a 4.11:1 ratio.
Bass took the fuel economy prize in the "normal user" category of the 38-tonnes gtw class with 43.7 lit/100km(6.46mpg) from its Volvo F10 — one fitted with the latest TD101F, chargecooled, 281hp, 10-litre engine variant.