Punishment trucks lol …you should try agency work, as you get the pleasure of driving every dog truck available
AndrewG:
muckles:
It was an experience and the most amazing thing was it really made you appreciate getting your G290 back from the workshop.That R310 really must have been bad then
Between 88-90 i worked for Jack Richards, had a F10 and when that went in for its 6 weekly the usual handout was a very old ERF (that being bad enough) it had the Rolls 265 Eagle fitted, couldnt wait to get the Ovlov back…
I thought Jack Richards was all ERF well into the 90’s, 
but you know there are some on here that will accuse you of blasphemy, by saying that an ERF was worse than what they consider some peice of Sweedish junk. 
Must admit to having a chuckle to myself when Drivers complain about vehicles, its usually about DAF Mercs Scania Volvo Iveco`s over 6 years old, that have ridiculous things like a "manual box"or a vehicle has no fridge no TV socket,uncomfortable seating. 
Sure there must many “old timers” chuckling or even laughing when they think back to their early days of ERF, Foden, Scammel, Seddon, Atkinsons, Bedford, Dodge,Guy,and not leaving out Leyland AEC.
muckles:
Quinny:
Concretejim:
Put a volvo seat in it and be done.Not so sure.
I currently pilot a 12 year old FH, just 10k under 1m, and the seat base is torn and the back of the drivers seat has come adrift.
Ken.
I think seat condition in an old truck is as much down to the previous drivers and the type of work they did as much as design and build quality.
The last race team I was at we had an FH with over a million Kms on it but the seat was still in good nick and didn’t leave you doubled up in pain after a full days driving.
Seen other trucks of all makes where the seat has been knackered in a year due to the oversized driver or because it’s been on multi drop work.
Id think youre right there. A heavy driver sliding in and out of a seat 20 times a day is going to affect it more than a lightweight sitting on it on a smooth motorway just moving off it for a couple of breaks.
Ive had Volvos and DAFs with well over a million kliks on the clock with reasonable original seats on em. And known others falling apart at half that.
Not a punishment truck maybe but I did have a week out in a truck that had been “customised” by it`s regular driver: Volvo F10, (that dates it somewhat), tasseled velvet curtains, all internal lights painted red, bull fighting banderillas in the windscreen, fans hanging and swinging off the shelf over the window, wine glasses hanging by their base from the internal sunvisor, slippery plastic anti-spray attached to the steps, and, to finish it off very dusty tiger skin fabric glued to the door panels. It went OK,but I was glad to get out of it. No names, but the driver had a metalic green Yank tank as his daily drive so it was all in character. Oh, and the wine glasses were de rigour on that company!
If seats broken, it doesn’t get driven, it will knacker your back, but we’re there’s blame.
Last Daf I had seat bolsters went soft, up to Daf, new seat was fitted under warranty, due to it being a known faulty batch of seats 2004/2004.
There was a class action against Scania, when the P cab was about, don’t know what happened.
A bad or knackerd seat can and does, cause as much damage to yourself as a fall.
Your gaffer TM, wouldn’t sit on a knackerd office chair, so why would you sit on a knackerd drivers seat.
TiredAndEmotional:
SouthEastCashew:
Daf makes the nicest seats but I can’t hack their jerky gearboxes and heavy steering.Nah you want a volvo pad under yer arris! Deffo not an Iveco though!
Not if you’re double-manning an FM you don’t. The passenger seat’s fixed, and bloody awful.
Sidevalve:
TiredAndEmotional:
SouthEastCashew:
Daf makes the nicest seats but I can’t hack their jerky gearboxes and heavy steering.Nah you want a volvo pad under yer arris! Deffo not an Iveco though!
Not if you’re double-manning an FM you don’t. The passenger seat’s fixed, and bloody awful.
Double manning an FM… I wouldn’t even consider that… to small for two humans.
Sidevalve:
TiredAndEmotional:
SouthEastCashew:
Daf makes the nicest seats but I can’t hack their jerky gearboxes and heavy steering.Nah you want a volvo pad under yer arris! Deffo not an Iveco though!
Not if you’re double-manning an FM you don’t. The passenger seat’s fixed, and bloody awful.
Not anymore, I’ve just been given a 66 plate FM and the redundant passenger seat is bouncy bouncy air ride.
I remember a certain cargo drawbar outfit at a "green " company that the ex huge boned driver left the drivers seat kfd .this vehicle was used for day work and you had to put your folded up sleeping bag/jackets in the hole!!! when I complained I was told it was only Carlisle -Manchester -warrington -Carlisle on days so it was ok. Punishment trucks ower here lol new yank tanks are 20yrs behind think what you get as a beater truck…drive a 99reg but was given an 86 reg with camel back suspension for a day omg .
The company I just joined mostly had me driving a 14-plate CF the last three weeks, and last week I was first told I was moving into a 17-plate XF (all their tractors are XFs except that one CF) and now into a 15-plate one which I’ve been told will be replaced with a new XF next March. Everyone says the CF is horrible but I don’t find it all that bad. It goes pretty fast especially when it’s only lightly laden (which with the stuff we carry is usually the case), and because of a calibration error it does 57mph (at least) while showing 56 on the clock (53 or 54 while showing 56 is much more common) and it’s as comfortable as any newish truck of that type. Personally I’m more interested in it being my regular ride which I can do things like keep my stuff in overnight and fix my sat-nav mount down and it won’t stink of someone else’s food or some other weird stuff (over-strong air freshener for example) like the cab I had yesterday.
Les Shoes:
Not anymore, I’ve just been given a 66 plate FM and the redundant passenger seat is bouncy bouncy air ride.
Not before time.
muckles:
AndrewG:
muckles:
It was an experience and the most amazing thing was it really made you appreciate getting your G290 back from the workshop.That R310 really must have been bad then
Between 88-90 i worked for Jack Richards, had a F10 and when that went in for its 6 weekly the usual handout was a very old ERF (that being bad enough) it had the Rolls 265 Eagle fitted, couldnt wait to get the Ovlov back…
I thought Jack Richards was all ERF well into the 90’s,
They had three F10’s, C21, C22 and C23 AVG(mine) also an F7 BNV 100X. All came from Duffields Norwich and were on the UCP contract at Salhouse Road Norwich. Apart from these four, yes, the rest of the fleet was plastic ERF. Drove quite a few models, Eagle 265, ■■■■■■■ L10 and L11 celect, ■■■■■■■ C14 320, E8 265 and various Gardner 300’s, hated all with a passion… 
peirre:
…you should try agency work
I know, I do every day hence being able to predict the problems it’ll have before starting it. 
I can imagine the old timers forum having a field day with all the ■■■■■■■ and ERF’s they used to drive vs the “comforts” of the wrecked ones we sometimes drive. Have seen an old ERF rigid which is used 5 days a week by a guy who parks it beside all the modern ones in one company I work for locally. Does look in seriously good nick and seems to keep going but also looks a tad basic inside.
Btw, when did Ford last make trucks (not those American pickup-“trucks”) as that was the last time he apparently thought about changing it.
As for Iveco, learned to drive class 1 in one of those but it was pretty new (and orange), but think the only one I actually driven in anger was a 7.5T flatbed so I guess that doesn’t strictly count.
compareusedtrucks.com/advert.asp … 92c38feb84
This was the punishment unit where I used to work, the advert is a little false, it’s not in excellent condition and its on around 1 million kms as it was on 985k+ when I last drove it
Also it does not have twin tanks as the small one is for hydraulic.
I once ran out of fuel in it on the A42 near Donnington Services as the fuel gauge never worked
Im sure we only paid a couple of grand for it 3yrs ago and sold it a few months ago thinking it would be exported.
lolipop:
Must admit to having a chuckle to myself when Drivers complain about vehicles, its usually about DAF Mercs Scania Volvo Iveco`s over 6 years old, that have ridiculous things like a "manual box"or a vehicle has no fridge no TV socket,uncomfortable seating.
Sure there must many “old timers” chuckling or even laughing when they think back to their early days of ERF, Foden, Scammel, Seddon, Atkinsons, Bedford, Dodge,Guy,and not leaving out Leyland AEC.
Chuckling away here. 
I can’t believe how fantastically 'ard we were.
lolipop:
Sure there must many “old timers” chuckling or even laughing when they think back to their early days of ERF, Foden, Scammel, Seddon, Atkinsons, Bedford, Dodge,Guy,and not leaving out Leyland AEC.
Admittedly it was only a yard slag but along with a A Series ■■■■■■■ 14litre 220 ERF the Sudden Accident (301 i think it was) just had to be the worst piece of ■■■■ i ever had the mispleasure of driving, and thats comparing it to a 2817 D series Ford
trevHCS:
peirre:
…you should try agency workI know, I do every day hence being able to predict the problems it’ll have before starting it.
I can imagine the old timers forum having a field day with all the ■■■■■■■ and ERF’s they used to drive vs the “comforts” of the wrecked ones we sometimes drive. Have seen an old ERF rigid which is used 5 days a week by a guy who parks it beside all the modern ones in one company I work for locally. Does look in seriously good nick and seems to keep going but also looks a tad basic inside.
Btw, when did Ford last make trucks (not those American pickup-“trucks”) as that was the last time he apparently thought about changing it.
As for Iveco, learned to drive class 1 in one of those but it was pretty new (and orange), but think the only one I actually driven in anger was a 7.5T flatbed so I guess that doesn’t strictly count.
Ford still do make trucks in Turkey. We sometimes see Cargo artics on the road here, always left hand drive of course as they don’t make them for the British market. Their UK truck plant at Langley near Slough, a joint venture with Iveco, closed in 1997 and the parts were shipped out to India where old-style Cargos are still made (or at least a truck based on it). Iveco used to own AL but sold out to the Hindujas.
AndrewG:
lolipop:
Sure there must many “old timers” chuckling or even laughing when they think back to their early days of ERF, Foden, Scammel, Seddon, Atkinsons, Bedford, Dodge,Guy,and not leaving out Leyland AEC.Admittedly it was only a yard slag but along with a A Series ■■■■■■■ 14litre 220 ERF the Sudden Accident (301 i think it was) just had to be the worst piece of [zb] i ever had the mispleasure of driving, and thats comparing it to a 2817 D series Ford
300 with the IH engine was bit underpowered in standard tune, but all it needed was the lid taking off the pump and the fuelling increased a fraction and the vehicle transformed into what it should have been.
That engine was never originally intended for general lorry use as far as i’m aware, it was meant for earth shifters crawlers etc and possibly refuse type road work running through a torque converter so maintaining max torque at all times.
I regularly drove a 6 wheeler Rolonoff equipped double drive rigid with a 250 L10 ■■■■■■■ in a 301 sitting on Norde rubber suspended arse end and it was cracking lorry.
Personally i’d like to see return to those old Scammells Fodens etc with real gearboxes, you’d see a mass exodus of the steering wheel attending class which would be good news for the industry 
Any trucks really comfey ? x
Juddian:
Personally i’d like to see return to those old Scammells Fodens etc with real gearboxes, you’d see a mass exodus of the steering wheel attending class which would be good news for the industry
I know where you’re coming from, but I think it’d take more than that to stop the rot. Personally I don’t give a monkeys if I never see another manual box throughout my career, and as you well know in my line of work I get to use the gears more than some. I was the first bloke at our mill to get an i-Shift Volvo, little 6x2 curtain-sider; all the nay-sayers advised me to keep the towing hitch permanently attached, “You’ll get stuck in every farm you go to” they said. I did get stuck a couple of times admittedly but in conditions that even a manual wouldn’t have coped with, frozen slurry having an even lower coefficient of friction than pure ice.
What I did notice was that after a day’s work in that thing my left hip didn’t ache like it would’ve done even with an Eaton Twin-Split where you don’t use the clutch half as much as a synchromesh box. Once you’d worked out when to flick the beast into manual mode to out-think it (not difficult admittedly on the early i-Shifts) it was a doddle. I’m not looking forward to the impending Merc which will replace my much-loved Renault though.
If you really want to sort the wheat from the chaff give 'em six months of farm deliveries, it’ll kill or cure!