DRIVERS' VERDICTS
Page 30
If you've noticed an error in this article please click here to report it so we can fix it.
As usual, we took our roadtest truck out and about to see how experienced working drivers got on with it. This time we took the rig up to the BP Truckstop at Crick on the A5...
Jeff Buckley usually drives an Iveco 175.24 drawbar 12-car loader for Tolemans out of Liverpool. We met him at the BP truck stop at Crick. He has held a Class 1 licence for 10 years but was riding shotgun this day with a new driver. They had pulled in with a flat tyre and while he was waiting for it to be changed he agreed to try out the 75.300 artic combination loaded to 32.5 tonnes. "I'm used to the range change," he told us, " and this gear change is nice". As we came to a hill he commented: "its pulling beautifully" then down through the gears to the lower part of the box "the gears just fall in; the change is unbelievable. The steering is light and the ride is firm which I like. The brakes are a bit sharper than I'm used too. It's very quiet in here but can you hear a faint whine?" he asked. It was the turbocharger we told him. "Well at least you know it working. We don't sleep in the cabs so I can't comment on the bunk, but it's a nice cab. There is nothing hidden away," he said as he looked down at the instrument and controls mounted on the swept-around fascia.
Pat Hasler has ten years' driving experience and works for Federal Express out of Rugby, on contract to Matchbox toys. His normal rig is a Mercedes-Benz 1625 artic so he is used to driving a 32.5-tonner. As we got going his first comment was: "It's very quiet. Little cabs are usually much noisier. Visibility is lovely, but it could do with a wide angle mirror for the driver's side." As it started raining: "The wipers clear OK but I think three blades would be better. The gear stick has got a short movement and it doesn't flop around. it pulls very well for a 32-tanner. 1 con reach the exhaust brake button and the ramp gives me somewhere to park my left foot. There is no play in the steering and although it is light there is still enough feel." Pat Hasler: Drives a Mercedes-Benz 1625 artic for FedEx out of Rugby.
He thought the flap in the centre of the wheel, giving a flat area on which to fill in a chart, is a good idea. "But it broke off on the 95 series. Is it any stronger now?" he asked. We told him it had been redesigned. "The seat is firm but it does support your back. Is there space under the bunk for a suitcase?" he asked. Looking at the central box on top of the engine he said: "It lifts out so you can take it with you does it? I've never seen that before. The colour scheme and layout is like the 95 Series but the air vents are better. I spend Monday to Friday in the cab and this space would do for me, but the engine hump should be carpeted. It makes it feel warmer".
Agency driver John Hopla was driving a Leyland Daf 95 series out of Park Royal for Guinness. As he climbed into the 75.300 he said: "Its lower than the 95. That's like climbing a mountain." We invited him to adjust the steering and seat to suit. "It's like the 95" we said . "I didn't know you could adjust the steering," he said. "You just jump in and drive don't you? The ride is better than the 95 but the brakes are sharp. It would be a good vehicle for work around town and ideal for reversing into narrow entrances. Now I've set the steering wheel I can see the instruments OK but I can't see to adjust the radio. It might be better down on the dash, or at least tilted at an angle. The instruments lights are a bit dim." We told him that they adjust automatically in response to the level of light in the cab. "The colour scheme is not important to me but I like the overhead shelf above the screen."