I am ready to replace a unit that runs only with a double decker. It does high miles (300k’s a year) so needs to be a decent manufacturer that will withstand the miles. My specific question is which unit will do the miles and has a decent enough air kit to reach the height of the front of the trailer to give good fuel figures? My local dealers are Volvo, Scania and Mercedes, luckily the only 3 I would really consider suitable.
I would like to hear from people who actually run something similar rather than a boat load of opinions, sorry to sound ungrateful but I have asked questions before and had a load of stupid answers that aren’t really specific to the question. Many thanks, Andy.
is the double decker the 1 that slopes at the front or a square front ?
i was pulling a 16ft 1" dd for a while a few months back which sloped at the front an was drivin a merc actros 2548 long distance cab with the air kit fitted and adjusted to normal height and was getting the same mpg as a mega space actros on the same contract,
in my opinion i would go for a merc as they r durable, comfy and a nice overall truck !
megaspace actros all day long. we have run them 24hours 6 days per week for the last 4 years with minimal down time in my opinion. seems a shame to spec a small cab and put a big air deflector on top look after the driver and give them a bigger cab instead. and look into speccing alloy wheels not only do they look better save weight and slightly improve fuel use minimal but every little helps!
There’s not much between those marque’s, alll good tools. Just play them off against each other and go with the cheapest. The fact that it’s pulling a dd won’t make any difference.
gazwrf:
megaspace actros all day long. we have run them 24hours 6 days per week for the last 4 years with minimal down time in my opinion. seems a shame to spec a small cab and put a big air deflector on top look after the driver and give them a bigger cab instead. and look into speccing alloy wheels not only do they look better save weight and slightly improve fuel use minimal but every little helps!
yer i know what ya are sayin, my actros went well with the trailer as it sloped down towards the cab, the airkit wasnt raised right up either just the way they usually, are, i did have the choice of a megaspace, but i prefer the lower cab as i like the engine hump in the actros as a place to put my paperwork, things i need close to hand etc
just a personal preference !!
but merc all the way
Whether you buy or contract hire the Merc will be cheaper.
I would rule Volvo out simply because they are sore on fuel. Don’t all 5th wheel’s come at a standard 1250mm ride height regardless of what manufacturer you buy from?
I have seen 5th wheels/ride heights vary between 850mm and 1350mm. I know of 1 firm who did not spec a fifth wheel height on the entire fleet of 15 and it cost them a fortune in the fact that they could not run swiss to/from Italy.