First Paravan in Service
Page 54
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T"prototype Dennis Paravan, fully described in The Commercial' Motor on August 8, went into service with Essex Carriers, Ltd., last week. Mr. R. B. Brittain, managing director of the company, instigated the design.
A representative of The Commercial Motor was given the opportunity to drive the vehicle and found that, as well as the advantages gained from the angled near-side front door, giving direct access to the body from the cab, the new van possesses excellent riding qualities and i> easy to drive.
Although the semi-elliptic springs are not restrained by shock absorbers, travel unladen was extremely steady. To test this a canister of scouring powder was placed on a packing case over the rear axle on the centre line of the vehicle. A run of 16 miles into Southend and back failed to dislodge it. Only the descent of a steep hill with an undulating surface shifted it from its marked position.
Placing the Perkins P.4(V) engine level with the driver inside the cab might be thought to create excessive noise, but this is not so. Indeed, the volume of noise in the cab was much less than in some forwardcontrol vehicles with a similar engine conventionally situated. As there is no soundproofing under the engine covers, the silence is assumed to be due to the remote location of the fan, which can, in normal application, act as a sound-amplifying baffle.
All controls are light and the gear and hand-brake levers are conveniently placed. Good weight distribution shows up in the lightness of the steering, which requires little effort in slow manceuvring, whilst remaining sensitive at high speeds.
c16 Curtailment of the windscreen to accommodate the angled door makes one think, on first sitting in the driver's seat, that judging the width of the vehicle will be difficult. This was not so in practice, a trial stop ending with the near-side wheels 3 in. from the kerb and in line with it