What's the best HGV you've driven

[Fina]

About 1966 my boss D Mortimer bought a Scania Vabis LB76.
I was the lucky one to get it. It was the best HGV i have ever
driven. Power steering , white wheel, turobcharger, suspension seat,
and a nice new radio. Behind the gear stick was another, forward
low axle, back high axle. With 32 ton gross you could approach a
roundabout still in top gear, move to low axle, round the roundabout,
back to high axle and on you way still in top gear.
The unit and trailer were plated to carry 40 ton gross, the limit was
32 ton gross here, you were never fully loaded..

If i remember right, top speed was 60 mph. It could pass anything on a hill
or shap,had a few drivers ask me what sort of an engine she had, they
said i passes them as if the were stopped. In three year running all over
England, Scotland ,Wales trouble free other than a broken windscreen.
It was pleasure to drive. I retired in 94 and had never seen anything
to match it,
barney.

[Mandator]

For sheer pulling power and speed the Leyland Marathon with the TL12 engine I had from new in 1976,PCL 553R was the one I remember best.What a change from the AEC Mandator.Brakes were not rayt clever though until they were modified.I was never a fan of continental wagons for a start but I had a Scania 112M UWJ 495Y and it was a pearler.Now I understand from another forum that Scanias have gone downhill a bit.I went back on tankers in 1994 for a few months and had an ERF E14 with the twin-split box and that was a good tool,bags of power and brilliant brakes.D802 PHD was the reg.
What a silly owd sod I am with reg numbers:D.

Bedtime.

Chris.

[billyboy]

I dont know what the engine was, But, my mates Renault had some welly in it. 65mph flat out but great on the hills. plenty of power fully loaded.

[G6 UXU]

My favourite motor was our Volvo F12, 336 brake horse power 32 speed box reg # VBA 495S she was one of the first F12s out of Taits of Oldham if I remember rightly and she was a pleasure to drive. All the best.

[Ian]

It has to be the Leyland/Daf 95. The only down with it was the bloody steering lock or lack of it. Had to take out a Daf 85 demonstrater for a night out, there was a nice shelf for nics and nacks, very nice till you got in the bunk and it dug in your back

Ian

[ray bloomfield]

I thunk the best motor I've driven must my sons 500hp Magnum. All the toys and loads of room to boot, close second comes a super space cab Daf owned by Richard Long of Wymonham on the JCB european run. I know the worst was on old commer where you had to let the handbrake off, first gear and chock the wheels if you had to sleep in it with a big gap between the seats on which you tried to get some sleep.

[G-CPTN]

I've not driven anything noteworthy for nearly twenty years (retired, hurt) but I did drive a prototype 'auto-shift' - a manual 16-speed gearbox that shifted using air-actuators controlled by computer according to load and speed(s).
The beauty was that I knew the route and couldn't fault the system.
Anybody got the production versions?

The very first 'fly-by-wire' gearshift system that I tested (around 1977) packed up in the middle of a busy street in central Luton. Very quickly there was grid-lock and a pedestrian policeman ambled up. He asked what was the problem. I explained (or so I thought) and he said "Well if you could just pull it into the side of the road . . . " http://209.85.48.8/1889/52/emo/zacepi.gif

[robertdavey6]

I've not driven anything noteworthy for nearly twenty years (retired, hurt) but I did drive a prototype 'auto-shift' - a manual 16-speed gearbox that shifted using air-actuators controlled by computer according to load and speed(s).
The beauty was that I knew the route and couldn't fault the system.
Anybody got the production versions?

The very first 'fly-by-wire' gearshift system that I tested (around 1977) packed up in the middle of a busy street in central Luton. Very quickly there was grid-lock and a pedestrian policeman ambled up. He asked what was the problem. I explained (or so I thought) and he said "Well if you could just pull it into the side of the road . . . " http://209.85.48.8/1889/52/emo/zacepi.gif

Evening all,
I currently drive an Iveco Strallis (430 6x2) with "Eurotronic" gearbox, which could be just what the production version would be like.
I absolutely love it. I didn't want it a t first, being quite happy with a 16 speed ZF. (Though I would've prefered an Eaton Twin Splitter!!) Now I've got it, the ONLY acceptable alternative would be; the Eaton!
One job we used to do was down to Southampton. Empty to Alton, in Hampshire and reload for Deptford. Tip and reload Deptford for Wandsworth. Tip and reload for Deptford. Tip and reload again for home (Leeds).
From Alton I used to go A31, A3 to Wandsworth, then round towards Vauxhall Bridge before going through Peckham and New Cross Gate to Deptford. (Might not be the very best route but I knew it well.)
As you can imagine the Deptford to Wandsworth bit was just the same route in the opposite direction. THen back again to Deptford. Deptford to home is always A2 then various route to the Woolwich Ferry and eventually onto the M11.
I never thought this was particularly HARD work with the ZF. Then I got the Eurotronic and it suddenly became very easy work indeed. The automated shift and the ability to set the speed limiter to whatever speed you like allows you to concentrate on exactly where you want the wagon to go.
Brilliant stuff but I'd still like another go in a motor with a Cummins engine and an Eaton Twin Splitter. Just to prove I still can do it.

[billyboy]

A youngish guy obviousley not used to artics was havin a bad time reversing into a timer yard, A copper who was holding up the traffic for him to shunt for third time said "Whats up? not passed your test" the driver replied..."if you think you can do better try it" OK said the copper. bail out now! Up climbed the copper, chucked it in reverse and put his foot down. 12" clearence either side and he sailed in through the gat right back up to the unloading dock.
He said to the driver "dont be so cheeky next time son" I was driving these things in the RAF before you were born.
Made my day that did. And NO i was not the driver, just an amused moterist being held up while this young lad was shunting to and fro

[G-CPTN]

We were having a 'show' for visiting managers from America.
Our usual trailers were flatbeds, but we hired-in some box-trailers (they looked bigger and better). We also hired-in a couple of extra drivers (so that we could have all the assembled vehicles available to run).
Our parking area had been extended (the facility was relatively new) and edged with shallow concrete strips (2" wide, not 'proper' kerbs.
I wanted one of the 'rigs' parking 'over there against the kerb' (with the kerb on the blind side). I delegated one of the agency drivers to park it. He jumped in and quickly (and smoothly) backed the trailer so that the kerb was close to the wheels and the tailgate was directly above the rear kerb - all in one go, tractor straight too.
We kept him on full-time and he made a superb test driver.
Are you reading this Hamish?

[Nicol40]

I drive a Merc at the moment which is a good enough unit, but if I had the choice I would go for the DAF XF, they pull well and handle well. However one of the best units I had was a Volvo F12, it was at the time, limited to 60mph, but with the hand throttle (primitive cruise control) you could knock a good bit of your journey time, I had this vehicle when I worked with Dennis Mortimer Print services (I wonder if it was the same Mortimer that fina worked for). Andy.......

[Fina]

Andy, I work for D Mortimer of Hemel Hempstead, 1960-72.
He also had a depot at Delph, Lancs. I don't know anything about
print services unless it changed after i left.
Where did you work from?
Barney.

[trucker 2]

1 the volvo F 12 ,volvo FH 16,third in line the scania 143.learned to drive artics on a F 88 thought they were the bee,s knees.

[Western SMT]

The DAF XF is the 'Best Truck Ever', as decided by UK drivers

http://www.roadtransport.com/Articles/2009/05/07/133662/tampd-readers-vote-daf-xf-best-truck-ever.html

[G-CPTN]

Is the DAF XF designed in the Netherlands (or is there still designers and engineers in Leyland?)?

[trucker 2]

surprised at the result ,as i drove the earlier versions of the daf in the late 90s,for t.d.g[agency work].still reckon volvo. it,s afix.:eek:

[G-CPTN]

Maybe it was a Dutch auction?

[trucker 2]

the 16 speed zf gear box ,wasn,t bad.:)

[G-CPTN]

Ecosplit:- http://www.zf.com/zfXmlServlet?resultUrl=/corporate/en/products/product_overview/ProductContentPage.jsp&sessionAttribute=xmlRoot&serviceUrl=http://apps01.zf.com/zf.productDataBase/service/applicationLayerSelect&productTechnicID=12141&productGroupID=17903&productTypeID=17978&languageISOCode=EN&applicationID=18149&applicationGroupID=&businessUnitShortcut=&divisionShortcut=
http://www.zf.com/corporate/en/press/press_releases/corporation/corporation_detail_21154729.jsp

[trucker 2]

talking about different truck,s.but what about the work horse,s of the 60s and 70s.the t.k/k.m bedford,s and the d series fords.mind the ford,s were not very reliable,at times.

[trucker 2]

another motor i liked quite a lot,is the iveco euro star 440,which i drove on day trunk in the late 90s.:)

[G-CPTN]

The Bedford TKs (including the KM) and the Ford D Series were the bread and butter with Leylands a touch more 'classy' - with the Atkinsons, ERFs and Fodens much higher up, and those that bought Bedfords and Fords realised that they wouldn't last as long as the Atkis, ERFs and Fodens but they were cheaper to buy.
Market analysts identified a niche for greater numbers of 'heavier' trucks than the 'Fodens' were capable of building, so Ford created the Transcontinental and Bedford the TM and Leyland the RoadTrain.

Unfortunately each manufacturer had calculated to capture the same sector (without recognising the presence of the others - or the emergence of Volvo - in the marketplace).

Volumes didn't match up to expectations and the unit costs left insufficient profit.

Meanwhile Seddon joined Atkinson and produced the Seddon-Atkinson and things at Bedford (and Ford) started to fall apart (literally). Volvo continued to gain market share.

[trucker 2]

in the 80s,drove a bedford T.L up and down the country.never impressed with it.:mad:on the ship nostalgia forum discussing the chinese six set up for twin steer,s and single rear axle,s.as in the back to front set up of a normal six wheeler.

[davepenn54]

Well I think it's really hard to say which was the best HGV I've ever driven:confused: I think you get attached to some motors especially if you spend all the week away in them. I had a Commer Maxiload for 12mths and it was a great motor it never let me down and if you changed gear at the right time it just kept on pulling and the TS3 engine always sounded like a real lorry. I also spent 2yrs living in & out of a day cab S80 Foden and I loved it , I was young at the time:o:o, and it did let me down more than once with silly problems but one of the best tractor units I had was a Scania 142 V8 everything just seemed right on this A reg motor, the seats the mirrors, the steering, the power! But the best range of lorry I've driven has got to be the DAF's right from the 1700/1900 rigid series upto the 2800/3600 series although now my brains working the MAN 20/321's or 22/361's were also a brilliant lorry to drive and live in.
Oh well that's my contribution
Regards to all
Dave Penn;;);)

[BJC]

just saying hello came here from ships nostalgia
the best truck i drove was the F12400 Intercooler
no speed limiter would hate to drive one now
cheers Brian