Has Mercedes Always Been This Bad?

ERF-NGC-European:
Hi all,
The Sk range (17 series)was released in the U.K. in 1988,then the 1628 became the 1729.Afaiaa on the earlier Ng units anything from 1635 upward in the U.K. was eps unless the customer paid extra for a manual.The 17 series SK was the same from 1729 and upwards.My later 1853 was built by Merc in Germany for an Italian customer,with a 16 speed manual gearbox.Intresting to hear about the heavy knock across manual gearshift,I remember that very well.Yet oddly mine isn’t like that? I’m guessing a different smoother linkage on a LHD? With regard to Gingerfold,s original post and comment,I agree 100%,though Tbf every European brand imo,now produce three year throw away trucks.
Regards Andrew.


I was driving Mercs during the changeover period. The last of the NGs was the 1633 IIRC and that remains, for me, the last good Merc. It had the awful ZF Ecosplit knock-thru’ (but far better than EPS!) but was reliable and went like stink. The 2035 I drove had the NG cab but was basically an early SK, complete with bollox EPS. I was told at the time that Merc would not supply a manual option for love nor money. Only the rigid SKs I drove, as CF rightly pointed out, continued to have the ZF manual.
I later drove early Actroses with the Telligent 'box, which were just as dreadful. The only SK I actually quite enjoyed was a trip to Morocco in the big high-cabbed version of the 1850 and that was a proper uphill-downhill machine in the Spanish mountains! Robert
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Just picking up on a couple of comments. Firstly, the automated 'box in these Actros. Whenever I move one in the yard it is impossible to drive them smoothly unit only. They lurch, jump, etc. In fact I moved one this morning from one end of my yard to the other and it was like a kangaroo on a sugar rush! If I’d gone another 100 yards I’d have been sea sick! After moving the Merc I moved a DAF CF to couple it to a trailer, (the unit and trailer were both going for service), the DAF has more Kms on it than the Merc and when the DAF finally decided to give me a gear with its automated box at least it moved smoothly.

I have both DAFs and Mercs on 63 plates, they have all done between 800,000 to 850,000 Kms. The cabs on the Mercs shake, rattle, bang to a greater or lesser degree. The DAF cabs are as solid and rattle free as they day they were made. I do agree with the comment that all modern trucks have a limited service life, and it does seem to be getting shorter.