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Managing director: Mark Doel Kilometres covered: 1,538 Trailer type: Container Fuel consumption: 9.5mpg "It's a lot different to the early Stralis," Mark Doel, MD of Mark Doel Transport tells CM. "We had seven of the early ones, and they were a complete disaster. They went through turbos — loads of them — and they had electrical problems. I've got a late 560 at the moment, and we haven't had too much trouble with that, and the demonstrator we had we didn't have any problems
with either." Mark Doel Transport operates with 30ft polythene-lined boxes for transporting plastics and powders, and has a mixed fleet of 14 vehicles, with Daf, Renault and Iveco units. Of the operators
who took the demonstrator, Mark Doel was arguably the Stralis's biggest critic. However, he still thinks the Hi-Way is a decent upgrade on the outgoing model he brought just weeks before the trial. "They've done the business on it. They've definitely beefed up all the hinges. In the early Stralis you had to go around with a hard hat on because things used to fall off and biff you on the head. The inside could do with being a little less plasticky, but it's a big improvement. It's a good vehicle to drive, you feel like you're in it, rather than on top of it. I'm a big, tall bloke, so could do with a little more leg room, but the armrest on the doors are in a good position for driving. The engine is also good, and
the fuel consumption was good too. AdBlue consumption was pretty high, compared to my Dafs, but that's apparently how they're achieving the emissions. They've made a big step forward. It's ever so quiet; a good working environment for a truck driver."