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ROAD TO GLORY
Page 42
Page 43
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The International Truck of the Year 2007 was revealed at the IAA Commercial Vehicle show in Hanover. CM editor—and UK jury
member — Andy Salter reviews the
winner and assesses the runners-up.
Dafs XF105 was one of the stars of the show at last year's RAI commercial vehicle exhibition in Amsterdam, where it made its first public appearance. The re-styled cab, all-new engine, transmission improvements and chassis refinements ensured that it was high on everyone's 'must-see' list of new trucks.
Twelve months on and the 105, now in full production and reported to be selling well, has been named International Truck of the Year (IToY) for 2007.
We've tried and tested the XF105 across a range of European terrain from Spain, through Belgium to its home country of the Netherlands, as well as here in the UK. And everyone who has driven and come into contact with the XF has been impressed with the truck's credentials, he it in terms of driveability. powerful engine braking, in-cab comfort or the potentially low cost of ownership.
To recap the major changes, the Daf XF105 is powered by Dafs new MX, 12.9-litre engine developed to meet the Euro-4, Euro-5 and, ultimately, Euro-6 emission standards. It uses a high-pressure fuel injection system developed jointly with Delphi, with selective catalytic reduction (SCR) to clean up the NOx emissions.
Daf claims the engine is also 4% more fuel efficient than its Euro-3 predecessor. It offers extended service intervals (now up to a maximum of 15(1.000km) and better engine braking. with 325k W of effort on tap to save your service brakes.
The three power options from the XF95 (430, 480 and 530hp) have been cut to 410,460 and 510hp in the 105, but torque output is up to a maximum of 2,000, 2,300 and 2,500Nm respectively. A 560hp version is on the drawing board, but according to senior engineers at Daf it won't be offered until there's a clear demand for that much power.
Chassis changes
The main changes to the cab include a 180mm reduction in engine hump height to improve cross-cab access and headroom; a fold-flat gearstick (on autos the controls have migrated to the steering column); revamped interior lighting and steps to the top bunk; and improved mirrors. Chassis changes include repositioning the air tanks inside the chassis.
The ROY jury says: "The XF1 05 continues Dais reputation for building fine long-distance trucks. This category of the market continues to represent one of Europe's biggest and most important truck sectors and for a truck to be successful in this arena it has to meet the challenging demands of both the driver and operator.
"In the XF 1 05 Daf has addressed these two customer groups in impressive fashion.
"The jury was very impressed by the new MX engine, which offers excellent performance for the driver, with the promise of improved lifecycle costs for the operator. In addition the improvements the Daf engineers have made to the cab interior further enhance the new XF105's appeal.
"Daf has always prided itself on being close to its customers and this point is illustrated in the long list of detail improvements made by the engineers addressing all the minor niggles logged by drivers and operators" •