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ota dog yet
The saving grace for driver training, sometimes viewed as teaching an old dog new tricks, is that it actually works
Words: Kevin SwatLow / Images: Tom Cunningham
Today is going to be awkward. Jam on a driver training programme with Renault Trucks UK, at its new site in Nuneaton which will earn me another day's training towards the Driver CPC but, despite the bright weather and perfect driving conditions, I am struggling with a cold.
Not quite man flu but, in true bloke fashion, the slightest hint of pain has me driving around town in search of drugs, but I can't find a pharmacy or, remarkably, a supermarket and I arrive at the dealership empty-handed.
Vince Taylor is running the Renault Trucks' OptiFuel Driver training programme (see below) and clocks the heavy eyelids and bunged up vocal chords. With no further delays we get on with the training session.
A presentation and video starts the day, followed by a practical assessment and then two driving exercises The
A Renault Trucks trainer first drive will be at my leisure, the second under tutelage.
Vince Taylor The OptiFuel driver course is tailored for drivers (with Cl,
C, and C+E licences) who use any Euro-4 or Euro-S version of Renault's Midlum, Premium Distribution, Kerax,. Premium Lander, Premium Long Distance and Magnum.
Training objectives include understanding the principles of economic driving and the vehicle's specification to help the driver reduce wear and tear on components while enhancing the driving experience.
So far, so bad: after the presentation, the blocked sinuses wreak havoc, and as I assess the truck only the procurement of pain relievers, decongestants and throat pastilles matters.
The inevitable can be delayed no longer, and we set off on a local route. But then something remarkable happens: as soon as the truck starts, the pain eases, and, by the time we enter the first roundabout,! feel a lot better.
Using all the experience garnered from previous truck tests where driving under constant scrutiny is a way of life, I drive like my life depends on it.! work the gears. never leave the green zone, ease off the accelerator at every opportunity and allow gravity to move or slow the truck. I crawl up to traffic lights in order to preserve some momentum and time roundabouts to minimise the need to Stop.
When we get back to the dealership, the scores on the doors are pretty good, but once the vehicle is parked up the throbbing sinuses return. The lunch break is spent in Boots opposite the Ricoh Arena in Coventry stocking up on suitable drugs for the afternoon.
The second drive sees a proactive Vince Taylor, a senior trainer, as passenger. He stops me. using the resume button on cruise control. This, says Vince, is like chucking a bucketload of diesel into the engine. Fewer litres of diesel are used by the engine if the driver works the vehicle back up to its preset cruise speed, rather than letting the engine work flat out to restore speed,
use the Opt ibrake braking system a lot more to slow the vehicle, and I actively anticipate the movement of any vehicle likely to come near us regardless of how innocent their • intention may appear.
On the motorway, he encourages drivers to ease back their speed. 'When you are on the motonvay, take a shade off the speed by dropping from 56mph to 52mph..Then you don't get caught in the traffic (as trucks battle to pass a marginally slower truck). and you don't spend your time slowing down and speeding up.
"You will arrive at your destination just a few minutes later, but it won't make much difference," he says.
We also use the manual override of the automated transmission a little more to stop any unnecessary gear changes. By the time we get hack, there is a marked difference. 1 have completed the journey more quickly, more economically, and have been more environmentally friendly. Furthermore, the cold has abated.
The conclusion
I've performed this sort of exercise with other manufacturers in the past, so to make a 10.3% fuel saving, reduce driving time by 7% and cut CO emissions by 11% in just 54km was a bit of an eye-opener, Regardless of how you process these figures, they remain impressive. Despite a heavy cold, part of some long-held scepticism towards driver training was swept away by some sensible advice on how to drive a modem truck. •