Brussels gets the year off to a classy start
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BFLGIUM provides a unique platform for the CV industry to compete on an equal footing: with no domestic motor industry, everyone is playing away from home. The emphasis of the Brussels Commercial Motor Show is on doing business, with a small army of salesmen standing by with order pads poised.
But on the first day of this year's
BRUSSELS
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16-24 JAN 99
show the trucks were overshadowed by industry politics—primarily the announcement of Volvo's purchase of a stake in Scania (see Industry News). The vehicles weren't forgotten, though, with newcomers like the lveco EuroMover and the Suzuki Carry, and mid-life upgrades such as a new engine for the MercedesBenz Vito and electronic disc brakes for the Volvo FH, as well as the usual array of innovative components and bodywork. • IvEco finally unveiled its EUROMOVER refuse collection chassis at Brussels and confirmed that it would be built by Seddon Atkinson for both continental and right-hand drive use in all configurations.
The announcement is good news for the Oldham, Lancashire truck builder and underlines its position as Iveco's prime manufacturing base for specialist municipal chassis for the entire European market.
The Brussels show model was a left-hooker, but a Seddon Atkinson-branded UK market version is due to be introduced at this year's Commercial Vehicle Show at the NEC, Birmingham, in March.
To achieve the low entry needed for municipal use, lveco has adapted and lowered a standard EuroTech cab with medium-height
roof and used a coach-type plug door to provide two-step access to the fiat floor inside.
Left-hand-drive continental models cater for three-man teams while those For the UK market will have a driver-plus-three-seat cab. All seats fold down and have three-point seat belt anchorages while air conditioning and an extra heater are included in the options list.
All Fixtures and Fittings are pure EuroTech but the backwall is Flattened with plenty of storage space around the sides and lockers above the crew's heads.
With an interior height of 1.90m and clear space in front of the crew, cross-cab access is good and a 600mm-wide doorway with two broad steps will also allow crew to exit the cab safely.
PROTOTYPE
The prototype exhibited at Brussels, a 4x2 MH190E27-LE, had Iveco's 270hp (201kW) Cursor 8 engine and electronics with Allison MD 3060P six-speed automatic transmission. Control buttons are fitted to the dash panel.
Like the Marshall RCV chassis, Iveca has removed bulky engine components and mounted them behind the cab; the liquid and air cooling radiators with twin fans are on the right and the air cleaner across from it.
As well as making it simpler to maintain, the layout has enabled lveco to position the modified EuroTech cab much lower and further forward. Its front overhang is a rather lengthy 2.0m but provides For roomy, illuminated steps (450mm and 280mm high unladen). Ground clearance under the cab is 265mm.
Two and three-axled models are available with 240hp, 270hp and 300hp (179, 201, 224kW) power ratings and on a choice of 4.2m, 4.0m, 4.8m or 5.2m wheelbases. All models will have mechanical suspension at the front and steel or air at the rear while 6x2s have a choice of mid-lift or rear-steer third steer axle. Both can be raised but the pusher model improves manoeuvrability in tight estate roads or town centres.
In its shortest 4x2 form, the EuroMover is best suited for 16/18m3 waste compactor bodies whereas a 6x2 on the same spread can handle 22/24m3 systems. Side loading conversions will match wheelbases of 4.5m or 4.8m though.
Cursor engine technology provides 750Nm of torque at just BOOrprn and more than enough power to keep noise down when compacting in housing estates during quiet hours.
Annual sales of refuse collection trucks account for around 5,000 units in the continental CV market, says lveco, but its new low-entry chassis-cab can also be adapted to other market sectors such as firefighting or drinks distribution.
In all its forms EuroMover production should keep the Oldham factory busy for a long time to come. unveiled its new Carry lightweight panel van which has a more contemporary two-box design than its predecessor. Most major dimensions are greater than before, particularly the length, which has been increased to allow the Carry to meet the latest crash protection legislation. Although the engine remains under the seats, the new design provides significantly more cab space than before. The van now looks less like a loaf of bread and more like a scaled-down 2.8-tonner. The 1,450kg GVW Carry is powered by an all-new 16-valve aluminium 1.3-litre engine delivering 78hp/101Nm (58kW/74Ibft), which should provide lively performance. Thanks to a double-layered arrangement, the van has a high but flat loads pace floor with an extra underfloor space for smaller packages. Standard equipment for the UK market will include twin side loading doors, power steering, a driver's airbag and cloth trim. The Carry goes on sale in the UK in April via a dealer network which will have grown by a third by the end of the year, when the "gentleman's agreement" import quota on Japanese vehicles comes to an end.