T he Scania Streamline is very much the odd one out
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in this lineup: a standard-height cab, albeit a sleeper, which lacks the luxury and the presence of some of the big beasts we saw. But is it any less practical? The cab has Scania's usual compact driving position with the dash curved around the driver—ergonomically very good, but a tricky proposition when trying to get across to the passenger side.
There's not much room for changing as the driver cannot stand completely upright: maximum usable interior height is 1.46m.
It's not easy to get into bed; you have to clamber over the seats with your head well down. Once there both bunks are comfortable enough, but the straps for the upper bunk can hang down in your face if you're in the lower bunk.
Reading lights above both bunks are convenient hut there's no master switch for the radio, which is not easily accessible without getting up. At least the heater controls could be reached from the bunk, and the heater provided masses of heat once it was working (problems on the first night precluded us from taking
useful temperature measurements). There was a timer, but no temperature control. Like most cab heaters it did not stop heating straight away but kept blowing air for a while after it was switched it off; to keep you warm while you fall asleep, as our tester said.
The curtains were effective and straightforward; the roof hatch is manually operated.
Where this standardheight design really loses out to the big boys is in stowage space. The under-bunk chest is relatively shallow and suffers from engine intrusion. There is no wardrobe-style hanging space, just net bags at the offside end of the bunk and above the bunk.
The overhead pockets are not great—none are big enough for a clipboard and the locker in between them is barely adequate.
One respect in which the Scania surprised us was in its noise control: it was among the quietest on the track testing, though it was not laden (trailer problems again), and this must have helped.
The 6x2 chassis gave good ride performance: it felt firm but quiet and performed better than the Mercedes, Renault or Volvo. The Scania acquitted itself well overall, but clearly wouldn't tempt a driver to transcontinental travel as some of the bigger cabs might.