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you wait for ages then three come along at once. In recent weeks we have evaluated MAN's latest middleweights in a group test at 7.5, 12 and 18 tonnes; then we got a user's-eye view of the 18-tonner in our Tools of the Trade series. And now we've taken a used r8-tonne MAN from a dealer's forecourt to see how it performs.
Operators buy MAN 18-tonne 4x2s because they deliver the goods. They're low on optional extras and high on practicality, making them ideal for those routine jobs that involve travelling short distances; from urban multi-drop work to servicing building sites.
Drivers will probably testify that they are not the most exciting vehicles to drive. Fuel returns are competitive but hardly blinding, not helped by the stop/start routine that is their natural environment (and tends to leave its mark in terms of scrapes, scars and chipped paintwork).
Our MAN group test concluded that the 18tonners are more productive than their 7.5 and 12-tonne stablemates (CM 14-20 Feb). Not the greatest revelation in the world; nor is the fact that in terms of overall sales the r8tonners are ec.lipsed by 7.5-ton ners. But MAN rigids are gaining in popularity—sales in the tipper and distribution sectors rose 23% last year, and February's SM MT figures show that the German manufacturer (with its UK subsidiary) holds 10% of the UK market.
The M2000 range of 18-tonners was sold from May 1996 until July 2001, when it was superseded by the Euro-3 version. Our test subject, V753 HDW, is fitted with Euro-2 DI charge-cooled six-pot developing 22ohp at 2,40orpm with 825N m of torque between 1,40 0-17oorpm. A
260hp version was also giavailable until the arrival of
the Euro-3 engines in 1999, when the decrease in emissions was matched by an increase in power, to 280hp. Our example drives through a six-speed Eaton synchromesh box; others come with the optional ZF six-speeder with higher ratios.
The Urban day cab is narrower than the Distribution cab option but still has room for three seats. The curtainsider body measures 5.9m long by 2.7m high; that height gives enough volume to suit bulky loads.
First owner of our MAN was Ferryline, which bought V753 HDW outright from MAN South Wales in Cardiff and plated it at 17 tonnes. The MAN ran out of Bridgend, South Wales on local collection and delivery work, rarely venturing any further than the Severn Bridge. It was registered on February 2000 and clocked
up 56,000km in its time with Ferryline. Tb service history shows that, apart from a fe, light bulbs, it still has all its original parts.
Following a takeover by Jacobs Holding last year Ferryline's operations were cer tralised to its Dartford, Kent site. The Wels depot was closed and our MAN was sold t Chris Hodge Trucks in Greenwich: V75 HDW can be yours for £21,000 (ex-VAT).
That's more than £2,000 less than th £23,250 suggested by Cap Red Book (Use Commercial Vehicles, March edition) for a] M2000 18.224 4x2 curtainsider with an extr 84,000km on the clock.
Bottom line
Once again a CM test was cursed by th weather. From the moment we headed of from Hinckley to the time we returned i rained. Apart from 20 minutes spent refu ening at Ross-on-Wye when the sun came ou it either drizzled or poured. The wind was a steady south-westerly, which proved fortunate for the journey back from Ross-on-Wye to the BP Station at Hincldey. V753 HOW returned exactly iimpg, but that figure would certainly have been better without the surface water we had to run through; the metre of headboard protruding above the air management kit on the day cab: and the relatively high-sided body.
There are those who would argue that you don't get the best out of an urban distribution truck by running around the edge of Cambrian Mountains, and they might well be right. But V753 HDW was specced by Ferryline for running into the valleys of South Wales and along the M4 to the Severn Bridge. It returned 10.65mpg along the A-road section at an average speed of 59,7km/h.
The second section, along the motorway and helped by a tail wind, was completed at 1.8mpg and an average speed of 74Icm/h. With a C VW of 17 tonnes payload was immediately cropped by a tonne compared with a full t8-tonner; the body/payload allowance is 11,500kg.
On the road
After just a year on the road and with only 56.000km on the clock it would be a little alarming if we had encountered any driveline problems. Trucks that work local routes can
develop niggling problems that regular drivers get used to, but no such worries here. The driveline is solid and hard working with no hint of any potential headaches.
At 17 tonnes 220hp is more than enough to keep the momentum going. With the top of' the solid green band ending at 2,000rpm gear changes need some revs—once the rev counter falls below the torque band at 1,400rpm it struggles to regain lost momentum. In fact this has more to do with the relative paucity of gears than with any lack of power or torque.
As we progressed around the A5 at Cannock through to the M6 we noticed the lack of gears when dealing with traffic lights and roundabouts in heavy traffic. The gaps seem much bigger when the going was slow; on the flat this caused no problem once we were up to speed.
Early changes are particularly important on hill climbs, When CM tested a new 18.224 in December 1997 we bemoaned the lack of an eight-speed option to help out the 22ohp engine. Early changes certainly helped the climb up Dolfor Hill on the A483 out of Newtown, despite the red traffic lights halfway up. Here it was able to drag itself from second gear and near walking pace to record a very good climb. However, the design and build of the box would suggest that it is not ideal for excessive motorway action.