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182 
MIDDLEWEIGHTS
Page 90
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111 If power is the flavour of the month at the heavy end of the market, plenty of middleweight operators appear to have caught the same fever.
According to Mercedes-Benz (UK) half the demand for two-axle rigids (excluding drawbars) is for chassis with over 135kW (170hp) on tap; models offering over 150kW (200hp) account for 30% of that total. The long-awaited Mercedes 1720 17-tonner is clearly intended to satisfy that demand.
The 1720 features a 157kW (211hp) charge-cooled version of Mercedes' standard straight-six engine which pushes out 20% more power than the 131kW (175hp) turbocharged version used in the 1717 (which supersedes the previous 1617). The 1720 also enjoys a higher torque output of 646Nm (476Ibft) and better fuel economy.
Both the new Mercedes 17-tonners have the revised SK heavy truck cab, as fitted to M-B's current tractor range, with stronger and lighter chassis frames and automatic chassis lubrication in line with Daimler-Benz's policy of extending service intervals on its trucks. The 17-tonner dash has also been tweaked.
Nothing comes for free, however, and the 1720 weighs 150kg more than the old 1617, but a longer wheelbase option caters for bodies up to 8.0m, while an uprated 7.1-tonne front axle gives greater loading tolerance. M-B (UK) is also testing the high-power drawbar market with a rigid version of the 1733L tractor — the 1733L rigid is at the show.
RENAULT POWER
Renault's new G200 17D provides distribution operators with 144kW (198hp) to work with, and for drawbar operators there is a more powerful chassis still — the G230Ti.18D with an uprated 166kW (226hp) version of the six-litre chargecooled Renault diesel.
Seddon Atkinson is another truck maker which has followed the trend to higher power with the launch of its 17.21P rigid, although, unlike the latest Strato TC range, it is still soldiering on with the old Motor Panels cab. The 17.21P has the six-litre Perkins Phaser 210Ti which develops its maximum power of 157kW (210hp) slightly lower down the rev band than the old'180Ti's maximum output; the 180Ti and 160T variants have been dropped from Seddon's rigid range.
As part of its 17-tonner improvement Seddon Atkinson has also revised the 17.21P's interior, which now features the same trim and basic styling as the Strato.
On the subject of aesthetics Leyland Dafs 17.18 Freighter has gained the facelifted C51 cab with the "Family" front end and the same interior as the Series 80.
Following the company plan to integrate its product line-up as much as possible, virtually all Leyland Daf truck models have the same corporate styling theme of three horizontal black bars on the grille. The only exception is the Roadrunner, but Leyland Daf, however, has designs on the little 7.5-tonner which will probably see its distinctive kerbside window going as it switches to the same front end styling as the left-hand-drive Roadrunner sold under the Daf badge on the Continent.
Some time early next year MAN will start shipping in improved versions of its M90 middleweights. The basic 17.192 and 17.232 badges remain the same, but the 17-tonner's sixcylinder engine has grown in capacity with more torque and improved emission levels. A 17.192 "ECO" rigid is on show.
AWD's 32-tonne TL drawbar rigid is powered by the same Cummins C Series engine as its 6X4 tipper chassis and soon-to-be-launched 32tonne tractor. It goes down the production line soon after the Motor Show, but NEC visitors will at least be able to see the company's civilian version of the M-type 4x4 truck, the MT15-18, complete with a Perkins 180Ti Phaser.