RENAULT 1134011.191
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The Renault R340ti.19T comes at the bottom of the revised R tractor range which went on sale in the UK last summer. The previous 310/340/365/420 line-up was superseded by a revised quartet badged 340ti/350/380/420, and while the driveline in the top three models was little changed, the 340ti uses a lighter 10-litre six in place of the 12-litre used by the old 310. Thus the R340ti provides the longhaul alternative to the fleet orientated G330, with which it shares the same charge-cooled 9.8-litre unit. The engine is rated at 249kW (334hp) and 1,472Nm (1,086Ibft), so despite having the smallest capacity in the group, the Renault has as much power as the rest. The remainder of the driveline is standard Renault fare, combining the B18 synchromesh gearbox with the latest P1345 hub-reduction drive axle. The R340ti misses out on the front disc brakes employed on the 380 and 420, but does get the latest incarnation of the Berliez cab, which has been facelifted both inside and out.
On the road, the Renault exploited its healthy output, and was consistently second only to the MAN in its journey times and speed up the timed hill climbs. As with the 19.322, the Renault driver was perhaps guilty of straying above the 80km/h (50mph) limit on occasions.
The slightly peakier nature of the Renault's torque curve was, however, re
fleeted in the comparatively high numbet of gearchanges required.
In terms of fuel consumption, the R340ti did comparatively poorly, consuming more diesel overall than any of the other trucks, averaging 36.681k/100km (7.70mpg) at 66.9km/h (41.6mph).
While the Renault was fairly close to the other vehicles on the A-roads, actually bettering the Pegaso, it was on the autoroute that the R340ti lost most ground, using 4.4% more fuel than the Mercedes in fifth place. The reason for this is unclear, as the rev profile indicates that the driver did not use excessive revs and the gearing was chosen to provide efficient operation at 80km/h (50mph).