Driving impressions
Page 12
If you've noticed an error in this article please click here to report it so we can fix it.
• We had a brief drive at MIRA in an FL10 360 4x2 sleeper-cabbed artic loaded to 38 tonnes. This particular model was fitted with a nine-speed gearbox and high final drive ratio. This made pulling off in first on level ground a necessity and certainly blunted the additional performance offered by the extra power and torque. For 38-tonne operation, we would expect most operators to opt for a lower final drive and the 14-speed gearbox.
The FL is not the quietest cab available, due to the closeness of engine and driver, but the Euro-2 engine did not seem significantly noisier than its predecessor. Euro-2 engines tend to be noisier because of the shorter combustion period than Euro-1 engines.
The .355hp option will help Volvo to increase further the popularity of its FL10. It will make it a more competitive 38-tonne tractive unit and give Volvo a contender in the high horsepower 8x4 rigid market.