The old tag v midlift… I have seen the other threads on here, but wanted to grab a quick update to see if anything has changed, but also to gauge opinion on my individual needs (trucking, not personal care or hygene)
So; I’m looking to add a tractor unit to the fleet (making it a two fleet operation) and will need something that will be good at squeezing down narrow country lanes and scraping into farm gates. It also needs to be adequate on light off road for about 10% of its life.
Ok so initially I was all for Tag. Trouble is I’m looking for a Euro 6 Tag FH 500 and volvo tags seem a bit like hens teeth.
So I thought I’d consider a midlift which, when you look at my situation, might actually be ok on a slightly shorter than average wheelbase…
I’d rather stick with volvo; and I see most of AW Jenkinson’s volvos are midlifts so…
What’re your thoughts on the Volvo midlift? Midlifts in general? And is there such a thing as a proper midlift which actuall does keep the wheels clear of the ground whilst loaded?
MAN’s the only one i’ve found that would lift the wheels completely clear when you used the mid lift air dump, well apart from square Axors which was unstoppable in the snow but doubt you’d be looking at one of those, newer Axors apparently you can’t even dump the air (but they have some sort of judder device on the box to aid grip, so i’ve read, sounds a bloody waste of space to me), and i seem to recall the same issue with Ivecos of no dumpee mid lift air.
New gen Scania locks the clutch in M (maneuver mode) which should bode well for mild offroad and hard maneuvering, won’t completely lift the mid lift though.
Not driven a tag for donkeys so I’m afraid I can’t help with that, but I will say that with the notable exception of Iveco every single mid lift I’ve driven has the ability to lift the err mid lift even when fully freighted when moving slowly (setting off on greasy roundabouts, low speed manoeuvring etc) the axle usually drops when you reach around 10mph.
I can’t help either, the last tag axle I drove was E registered 88/89 maybe.
All I can remember is these daft lads saying they preferred them because they were better to screw the trailer round. I remember they ripped off lights and mud wings if coupled to a wrong trailer
A tag axle makes the truck noticeably more manoeuvrable in tight situations for sure.
The Scania I drive won’t lift the tag loaded, but will take a lot of pressure off it to aid sharp turns and grip. The downside is the harsh ride when solo or empty.
I think it’s probably fair to say that a good driver will be able to make a tag/mid do the same thing, but it will be a lot easier doing it with the tag axle truck.
The Volvo mid lift, has bloody awfull traction on anything except dry roads, considering they are designed in a country that has some very adverse weather, they got something wrong. In a straight line, and rolling in snow not a problem, but have to slow down and keep going, then it gets fun, even going down wet farm roads, they understeer badly .
biggriffin:
The Volvo mid lift, has bloody awfull traction on anything except dry roads, considering they are designed in a country that has some very adverse weather, they got something wrong.
They don’t use 6x2 on the continent. As far as I know only the UK runs 44 tonnes.
slowlane:
The Scania I drive won’t lift the tag loaded, but will take a lot of pressure off it to aid sharp turns and grip. The downside is the harsh ride when solo or empty.
And that’s why few companies have them because there’s not many drivers willing to have such a crap ride. Used to drive a Scanny with a tag axle myself and it was horrendous when empty.
biggriffin:
The Volvo mid lift, has bloody awfull traction on anything except dry roads, considering they are designed in a country that has some very adverse weather, they got something wrong.
They don’t use 6x2 on the continent. As far as I know only the UK runs 44 tonnes.
slowlane:
The Scania I drive won’t lift the tag loaded, but will take a lot of pressure off it to aid sharp turns and grip. The downside is the harsh ride when solo or empty.
And that’s why few companies have them because there’s not many drivers willing to have such a crap ride. Used to drive a Scanny with a tag axle myself and it was horrendous when empty.
International EU reg state 40tonnes so you’ll not be seeing many heavier trucks here. Domestic French rules allows 44t on 5axles and 45t on 6 axles normally. Up to 57t on 6 axles for round timber, although there’s extra regs attached to that.
Scandinavian outfits are heavier and longer still, as are some Dutch ones I think.
There are a few French hauliers using 6x2 units but they are still unusual.