DRIVERS' VIEWS
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Chlvisited a Readymix quarry and landfill site near Stonleigh to ask drivers for their opinion of Volvo's latest eight-wheeler and managed to tempt ANDY LEWIS from the Scania 113 320 he
drives for TN Walsh out of Tysely, near Birmingham. He jumped up into the cab easily enough. it's a bit smaller than the Scania and I thought that was tight," he said.
'This is a lot quieter but it feels a bit under-powered compared with mine, but then I don't always run at the full 32 tonnes on muckaway work. For only a seven-litre engine It pulls quite well. It rides nice and smoothly with a full load and the brakes are not too heavy. You only need to touch the pedal to feel that they're working, but they don't grab. It feels surefooted on the bends and holds the road well. It needs that half gear to keep up the momentum though. I could get used to the box very easily; it's a lot nicer to use than the one in an MAN demonstrator I drove the other week.''
II TONY WHITEHOUSE drives a Renault 340 Muter, also for TN Walsh. As we pulled away he noted: "The instruments are blocked off with lock on but It suits me to have the steering wheel a blt higher. It doesn't pick up as fast as the Renault but that's quick. We need a bit of extra power for our work. Cab roll is about average but it's a lot quieter than mine. Visibility is OK and the wide-angled mirror on the nearside covers the blind spot. The dash has a nice sweep and all the controls are close by. I like the cruise control. The gear lever just drops in and you only need to use the splitter in the top of the box. I thought that the brakes were spongy at first but it's just light pedals. The sun visor at the side is neat. The trim would show the dirt very quickly an muckaway work. It's nice to drive, though."