A new firm took over at my place of work about 6 months ago brought in all shiny new tackle but all set at 52 what a pain, they say it saves fuel is this true an anyone else have this?
turn an burn:
A new firm took over at my place of work about 6 months ago brought in all shiny new tackle but all set at 52 what a pain, they say it saves fuel is this true an anyone else have this?
It can be a pain when I catch you up, in a busy period, too.
No problem when it’s quiet enough, I’ll just keep her chappin’, pull out, pass and pull in again, after suitable indication of course. 
I expect it does save a tiny amount of fuel per trip, which would make small cost savings.
There are all those people who drive at that speed voluntarily too, they swear it’s less stressful than driving at 90k’s 
If 52 is what your new bosses want, then I’m afraid your stuck with it.
You’ll just have to chill out in the less stressful working conditions and enjoy the scenery more 
i have been running the same truck for almost a year now on the same run every night…2 months ago they turned the limiter down to 85 kph from 89kph…im doing 325 miles a night and now using about 10 litres of feul less a night…so its saving about 12 quid a shift? x 5 = 60 quid a week…x however many trucks.
a compny i used to work for reckoned to save 3 grand a week on feul after dropping the limiter to 85kph…on it fleet.
timewise it takes me about an extra 15…20 mins a shift?..and im rarely in a constant 1kph battle to pass or be passed now…,.more relaxing drive.
Worked for Sainsburys for ages, about 75% of their trucks where limited to 52mph, the rest 55mph.
Fuel savings they claim the 52mph are quite a bit better on fuel than the 55mph trucks but its not really fair to compare the two since the 52mph ones are doing store deliveries carrying about say 25tons usually, where the 55mph are generally doing the trunks, like pulling double deckers or doing trunks with loads full of water at 40tons.
Depends who set the limiter, a lot of limiters aint 90kmph anyways usually over reading, where as the ones set to 52mph are typically bang on, was going down to Carlisle one night two of us so was following truck in front which was limited to 52mph, i was in a 55mph motor, knocked it down to 88kmph and we were doing the same speed. Didnt really bother me since mostly did locals but was a right pain if got hit with somewhere like Lancaster from East Kilbride with a 52mph motor.
Also did Poundland Volvo FM 440’s and they reduced their trucks to 50mph, when we were going the trunks. Carring double deckers heavy going up and down hills, used a lot more fuel because the autobox constantly having to drop into 11th gear. After a few months they were put back up to 56mph.
Think really depends on the engine and gearbox, some trucks will hunt when limited lower others won’t. The Volvo hunted and reduced fuel consumptions, also depends how much weight you are carrying.
Biggest problem with having the limiter set low is a lot of other truck drivers think you are messing around and get annoyed espec in Scotland with two lane motorways when its hard to get into lane 2 because of constant flow of cars, they tend to take the nose off you when they pull in.
ask JD about limiters set low, he had one set at 48mph
lol
i drive an XF SuperSpace with a 530BHp engine, if i run it on the limiter, the onboard computer tells me i am getting 7.5 - 8 mpg, however, if i run at 52MPh, it increases to 9+
the job i am doing is local work and it always allows plenty of time to do the job, so, i voluntarily run at 52 MPh to save fuel (i pay for the fuel 
)
as has already been said, it is far less stressful at that speed than flat to the mat all the time
I used to find that to show her who was the boss, while in “pulling” mode ; Then when on a favorable gradient to slip her into “Aberdeen Overdrive”, and let the load do the work, worked wonders on my fuel consumption figures. Whatever sort of waggon, and whatever sort of load it was tugging. I also did not allow the speed limiter-if fitted- to hamper my progress. It,s fuse used to spend most of it,s life in the ashtray. It made for relaxed, stress free juggernaut jockeying.
Its all well and good setting these limiters to 52 MPH but what happens when you get from an older motor to a new one
if you could do say - your yard to Lymm in 4.20 hrs at 90kmh and now you have to stop at knutford - then when you get to your drop you don’t have enough time to get home - unless you break into a 10 hour drive its false economy - you simply can’t do the work
fair enough if it retail distribution and its planned into your run - fine
but the work i do is different every day - if mine was set at 52 i would lose wages - i’m paid by the mile - so its 55 for me = so in one hour i would be 3 miles short - working it out literally over a 9 hour day i would short 27 miles - X 5 = 135 miles per week - then add in the extra time it takes - no thanks matey - i’ll stick to 55/90 and carry on - fully freighted i’m getting 8.2 mpg - which i class as pretty good - i am expecting it to get a bit better when she’s loosened up but no by much
cheers
Steve
gm:
Its all well and good setting these limiters to 52 MPH but what happens when you get from an older motor to a new one
if you could do say - your yard to Lymm in 4.20 hrs at 90kmh and now you have to stop at knutford - then when you get to your drop you don’t have enough time to get home - unless you break into a 10 hour drive its false economy - you simply can’t do the work
fair enough if it retail distribution and its planned into your run - fine
but the work i do is different every day - if mine was set at 52 i would lose wages - i’m paid by the mile - so its 55 for me = so in one hour i would be 3 miles short - working it out literally over a 9 hour day i would short 27 miles - X 5 = 135 miles per week - then add in the extra time it takes - no thanks matey - i’ll stick to 55/90 and carry on - fully freighted i’m getting 8.2 mpg - which i class as pretty good - i am expecting it to get a bit better when she’s loosened up but no by much
cheers
Steve
Are they allowed to pay by the mile? I thought that was banned due to it encouraging law breaking, but I could be wrong
Nope not banned but frowned upon - lol
i’d love to paid by the hour or salaried - but too many of our drivers take the pee - live in laybys and clock the hours up without working
I’m actually on more money by the mile than i was salaried - just not guaranteed anymore
cheers
Steve
Buycrider:
I also did not allow the speed limiter-if fitted- to hamper my progress. It,s fuse used to spend most of it,s life in the ashtray. It made for relaxed, stress free juggernaut jockeying.
Until the guvnor’s got wise and sealed them with wax 
. But they say that the modern electric wagons have the limiter built into the engine’s ECU so there’s no way of doing that any more on newer trucks ?.But there’s been a recent directive that all trucks with limiters are supposed to be re calibrated at 85 kmh.Rog might be able to clarify it.
gm:
i’m paid by the mile - so its 55 for me = so in one hour i would be 3 miles short - working it out literally over a 9 hour day i would short 27 miles - X 5 = 135 miles per week -
While the maths are good in the real world it is different. If you do a 9 hour driving day with the limiter set to 52 as opposed to 55 you will find at the end of the day it has cost you no more than a few miles and a few minutes. At most it will be it will be 5 or 6 miles and no where near 27 unless you have spent all those 9 hours driving on near empty motorways, such as on the toll motorways in France for instance, and even then it won’t be 27 miles. You don’t spend every minute of those 9 hours with your foot to the floor so there is no way it can be 27 miles.
Coffeeholic:
gm:
i’m paid by the mile - so its 55 for me = so in one hour i would be 3 miles short - working it out literally over a 9 hour day i would short 27 miles - X 5 = 135 miles per week -While the maths are good in the real world it is different. If you do a 9 hour driving day with the limiter set to 52 as opposed to 55 you will find at the end of the day it has cost you no more than a few miles and a few minutes. At most it will be it will be 5 or 6 miles and no where near 27 unless you have spent all those 9 hours driving on near empty motorways, such as on the toll motorways in France for instance, and even then it won’t be 27 miles. You don’t spend every minute of those 9 hours with your foot to the floor so there is no way it can be 27 miles.
But it would be a different comparison if it was based on the actual 60 mph limit versus 85 kmh and night trunking on empty motorways.
Coffeeholic:
gm:
i’m paid by the mile - so its 55 for me = so in one hour i would be 3 miles short - working it out literally over a 9 hour day i would short 27 miles - X 5 = 135 miles per week -While the maths are good in the real world it is different. If you do a 9 hour driving day with the limiter set to 52 as opposed to 55 you will find at the end of the day it has cost you no more than a few miles and a few minutes. At most it will be it will be 5 or 6 miles and no where near 27 unless you have spent all those 9 hours driving on near empty motorways, such as on the toll motorways in France for instance, and even then it won’t be 27 miles. You don’t spend every minute of those 9 hours with your foot to the floor so there is no way it can be 27 miles.
Guess it depends what you do, when i did mostly locals and central Scotland the time difference was marginal a few minutes, picking the correct route, picking the correct lane in cities can easily make that time up.
But doing trunks did make a difference since starting off and 10mins from the motorway and then would be full speed all the way down, we did trunks with motors sitting at 55mph on the sat nav would get into Haydock at 4hrs 05mins 4hrs 10mins, then sit waiting to get past security, drive in find office, then get sent somewhere to dump trailer, then pick up another trailer sitting at 4hrs 20ish then on break.
When using the 52mph we are prob loosing about 10-12 miles going down so looking at getting into Haydock about 4hrs 15mins - 4hrs 20mins so with sitting in Q’s and yard movements going to be very close or over 4hrs 30mins. So when using a motor limited to 52mph you take your break at Charnock Richard on the way down and take second break at Johnstonbridge.
Get paid for second break so its no skin off my nose its extra pay for me prob an extra hour and a half when you round it up. Its about 400miles a night, so if similar saving to Xamtex’s company what £15-£18 a trunk but then got wages which is £18 extra to me, but i work for agency so higher than that.
Another problem is doing that trunk its a 2-3am start so thats when somtimes you get motorway closures for roadworks, then coming back up your coming back up in the morning rush hour and accident or more roadworks, could soon be running outta time and stoping, and they have to send someone else out to get you. Again more money for me won’t be loosing sleep over it, but don’t see the point business wise.
Paid hourly so 52mph = more cash which could negate any fuel saving made.
Ken.
It seems to me that any savings in fuel are cancelled out by an increase in pay,obviously if you slow the job down,the longer it will take.Maybe there are other benefits,do they get reductions in Insurance premiums or brownie points with VOSA ?
im on a salary so slowing me down costs the company nothing. 
my truck goes 90kph according to my sat nav, but even if it went 80kph I would be paid the same, I just wouldn’t go quite as far 
xamtex:
i have been running the same truck for almost a year now on the same run every night…2 months ago they turned the limiter down to 85 kph from 89kph…im doing 325 miles a night and now using about 10 litres of feul less a night…so its saving about 12 quid a shift? x 5 = 60 quid a week…x however many trucks.a compny i used to work for reckoned to save 3 grand a week on feul after dropping the limiter to 85kph…on it fleet.
timewise it takes me about an extra 15…20 mins a shift?..and im rarely in a constant 1kph battle to pass or be passed now…,.more relaxing drive.
Going on these figures, If, with the limiter at 89kph the shift was 8 hours.and now at 85 kph, you go into the next hour by 20 minutes, that would cost an extra £6 1 n wages for an hourly paid driver, which cuts the savings to £6 per shift. is it worth it? I was driving Volvo FH12’s auto’s that had been set to 52MPH. within a month they lost 3 turbos in the fleet. (not down to my driving! ) they put them back to 56MPH, no more problems.
as gogzy siad when i went to freightliner my lorry was limited to 48 mph which was plain bloody stupid, they had been doing this survey on the lorries for 2 years and still not come to any conclusions 
. one day my lorry was having a service at the daf dealers and miracilious came back doing 56 mph . freightliner were furious as they claimed it blew their 2 year survey out of the water .
now then i was loads happier, when you work for a company that most jobs are late now i had a bit more of an edge. alright you can argue that i was hourly paid so shouldnt have mattered but to me i hated running at 48 mph it was downright dangerous.
at the end of this tale… was 3 weeks after my lorry had been upped freightliner got all the other vehicles upped. they didnt find it cost effective losing out on an extra job/longer driving hours compared to the saving in fuel.
funny that it took 3 weeks of my lorry going at 56 to convince them.