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Storage facilities throughout are excellent—all lockers are fully trimmed and rattle resistant.
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Page 38
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VOlvO'S FM Globetrotter effectively provides the same solution that the hybrid Scania offers, but on a full production vehicle. This is to match the low access distribution cab to the high roof of the long-distance Globetrotter XL. The ideal overnight configuration is to use the driving seat as a dumping ground for larger odds and ends and use the passenger side for access. This is aided by the unusual passenger seat which isn't adjustable in any direction but jack-knifes in the middle and folds up or down, although when down it could be more useful if it was horizontal and had a flat work surface in the back.
Although the engine hump is wide and tall, the large cut-out next to the passenger gives extra foot room when sitting and relaxing on the bunk and extra headroom when standing up to dress. Without the cut-out, the bunk would be impossibly low for use as a seat.
Volvo's traditional safety culture extends the inclusion of a smoke detector in the standard specification. Not only is the driver's safety considered, so are his possessions. A sturdy looking valuables safe is located at the left end of the bunk area.
The flat area on the central dash top was ideally placed and just about large enough for our portable TV, but we were surprised to find that no power was available from the 12V auxiliary power socket with the ignition turned off. While the sharply sloping nature of the rest of the dash top has obvious benefits for visibility, it's a mixed blessing for accommodation needs. A slide-out cupholder in the dash avoids the grief of spilt drinks.
There are plenty of lights including a large roof light, one on the bunk end wall and a flexible reading lamp, each duplicated on both sides of the cab. A small panel houses the light switch and heater controls.
Also fitted on the end walls of the bunk area is a useful stowage net. Storage facilities throughout are excellent, with three large lift-front lockers above the windscreen and three more, with roll-front lids above the single bunk. All are fully trimmed and rattle-resistant. There is no storage space beneath the bunk, though. The nature of the cab storage layout is probably better suited to the regular night-outer, who can arrange the essentials around the lockers, rather than to the casual sleeper living out of a holdall.
The interior sprung mattress, although generous enough in its dimensions, proved a little too soft for comfort when subjected to this tester's sylph-like 100kg frame. The lightweight curtains aren't opaque so if you really need complete darkness, you'll need to deploy the bunk curtains, and also be careful to get enough tension to prevent drooping gaps between the curtain rings.
The heater controls are unique to Volvo and although basic, with no programmable timer function, are simple and effective. There is just a switch and a thermostat knob in the bunk area. In operation, the night heater emits a moderate hum but it's not too intrusive, unlike the MIRA handheld radio whose battery expired at 4.30am, sounding an alarm buzzer followed by an insistent choking. The heater responds impressively quickly to a demand for more heat, but takes quite a while to cool down.
NIGHT HEATER TESTING
To test the output of the cab heaters, we started by opening all the doors for 30min to equalise each cab's internal temperature to the rather mild ambient of 8°C. With this done, and thermometers installed in the centre of each cab, we set each heater to maximum output before closing the cabs and adjourning for dinner. On return, 2hrs 30min later, each cab's temperature was recorded before sleeping commenced.
The majority of cabs featured VVebasto or Eberspacher heaters, with the same type of programmable controller. While simply getting this type to work is easy enough, accessing other functions such as timer-controlled wakeup heat requires a greater understanding, in some cases hampered by the functions being in German.
Our only failure, though, came with the Scania. With no English handbook available, we thought we had got it running properly after telephoned instructions from a Dutchman. Unfortunately, despite leaving it pumping out full heat, on our return the temperature was back down to 11°C and our sleeper failed to get any more heat out of it for the rest of the night. While much of the blame was down to the unusual circumstances, the Scania's over-complicated and unintuitive functions involving multiple button ores ses didn't help.
While pretty well all of the heaters are capable of producing all the heat you're likely to need in the UK, question marks still remain over inconsistent and overcomplicated controls.
TEST PROTOCOL
For the dynamic part of the testing, each cab was wired up by a MIRA instrumentation expert, Chris Alstead, for vibration measurement, vertically on the cab floor and seat cushion and horizontally on the seat backrest. Readings were taken in 30sec samples, two at 48km/h on smooth asphalt and two at 32km/h on rough asphalt. Changes to MIRA's facilities meant that this year's figures are not comparable with last year's. All of the dynamic tests were carried out hauling a trailer loaded to full GVW.
Unfortunately, one of the much anticipated parts of the test, at least by those not involved who can watch from a dis
tance, could not be carried out this year, as the main bit of kit needed was not available. We refer, of course, to the noise ingress, 'reefer parked next door' test. However, noise levels at tickover and at a steady 80km/h were measured.
Our previous experience was confirmed when the Scania cab produced a reading at tickover of just 51.0dB(A), which is actually a huge improvement over the best of the rest, the ERF at 54.0d(A).
At cruising speed, though, it was the lShift-equipped Volvo that took the honours, with a highly laudable reading of 61.9dB(A) ahead of the Renault's 63.9dB(A) and the Scania at 64.0dB(A). everything else being remarkably consistent at around the 65.0dB(A) mark.
CONCLUSION
Each year the quality of cabs presented seems to move up a step. Although the cabs tested here represented the less glamorous end of the spectrum, none of them presents any hardship as a shortterm hotel. But that doesn't mean that some aren't better than others. For the simple reason that no one operator or driver's needs are the same as another's, no one cab is perfect.
The MAN and ERF pair effectively highlighted the difference between a very occasional sleep in a low cab and regular nights under a medium height roof. One is tolerable at a push, but for anything like comfort, the more height the better. The Renault Single Driver cab is brilliant in concept, but falls down in its execution. Maybe the engineers should have handed the interior design to an interior designer, or, failing that, a driver.
Although it's unfair to judge the prototype Soria on the same basis as the other production cabs, as tested both it and the Volvo suffered somewhat from their high engine humps. Likewise, the clutter in the centre of the Mercedes makes moving around the cab an exer. cise in nimbleness. However, having a high roof clearly provides more room for dressing and undressing along with ar enhanced feeling of 'space'.
For an all-round blend of easy move. ment around the cab, good use of storage space and comfortable lounging, ii would hard to separate the two doublE acts present, MAN and ERF (if it had thE higher roof), and Daf and Foden. Bu sleeper cabs ultimately being about theii suitability for sleeping, the casting vote goes to the Paccar pair purely on thE strength of their supremely comfortable mattresses.
• This type of test involves shifting lot! of people around the country, and out thanks this year go to Citroen for tin loan of its latest CB MPV.