Jew Volvos seem ;et for success
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L.VO'S new FIO and F12 tractive units are comfortable and to drive — that's the conclusion I came to after taking one ach for a short test drive, on A roads and a motorway.
he first vehicle I drove, the was fitted with Volvo's 100B engine which luces 207kW (278bhp) net 20Orpm.
his was coupled to the it-speed range change 'box with built-in splitter ig 16 forward speeds.
le gear lever, and, in fact, :ontrols the driver uses uently are well placed and e easy to hand.
le gear lever, in icular, is close to the 3r's seat on the left hand and has a relatively short ement fore and after and ss the gate.
Inge changes are ,mplished by moving a ch built into the gear ), either up for high range, iwn for low.
erdrive is selected by a T le control counted on the within each reach of the r's left hand when he is sing. It can be preted, then engaged by !ssing the clutch.
a cabs on the new range much more flexibly lted than on the F88 Is they replace.
ided to 32 tons, the FIO I away in second from in the flat and was quick ch the legal maximum on ds. At this speed, the engine was barely audible — in fact the highest speed of the booster fan on the excellent built-in air conditioning unit made more noise!
The F12 I tried next had the TD120C power unit which puts out 243kW (326bhp) at 220Orpm.
With this extra power, the vehicle would pull away in third and it was possible then to go straight into fifth!
Unlike its smaller brother, the F12 was fitted with a sleeper cab, but a sleeper is also optional on the F10.
I found the extra power most useful on the road, and although a puncture in one of the trailer tyres cut short my drive, I came to like the F12 very much.
Like the FIO the bigger vehicle had excellent service brakes, although the ,exhaust brake was pretty ineffective on both.
Steering was light yet retained the necessary feel, and the Volvo was easy to manoeuvre for parking.
The ride on both vehicles, although subject to the roll already described, was good. Paraboloidal springs are used which probably accounts for this.
As for driver comfort, Volvo has done its homework well. Built-in air conditioning; weight adjustable seats that can be angled fore and aft, or the backests adjusted and light but sensitive controls all help to make driving easier.
Whether the new Volvo is as huge a sales success as the old F88, only time will tell.