I had a “N” reg DAF 2800ATI for a while and at the time it was probably cutting edge technology,
though I preferred the Mk 2 Scania that I moved up to from a Bedford TM with the 500 engine. I was
out all week in the day cabbed TM but at least it had a dual passenger seat to sleep across.
The sleeper cabbed Scania made my life much more comfortable and it had a night heater.
The “current” DAF’s are one of the few makes that have the catwalk steps at the correct side of the
truck for right handed piper uppers, so you don’t have to stride across greasy airlines or try to slide
down the diesel tank. I find trailer changes can be done in moments with an economy of movements
rather than wasting time having to circle the thing twice every trailer change.
And the little CF DAF has it’s roots with the Leyland T45 cab.
bubsy06:
bullitt:
Cup holder not deep enough■■?
Auto box complaints■■?
No electric mirrors??
Adjustable steering column problems■■?
No room to put your “dinner bag” (lunch box?? 
)
Cruise control buttons in wrong place!!..CRUISE CONTROL!!!
I dont know how old you are or how long you have been driving but you sound like you are well and truly spoilt. Is that the worst you could find to moan about■■?
Its a truck FFS, a working machine…and you are supposed to be as truck driver, not a luxury car chauffeur
If these are the points that urk you the most then you would have hated some of the machines from times past.
Cruise control was a length of timber wedged between the accelerator and the bottom of the dash. Electric mirrors, adjustable steering columns,auto boxes ■■?
How about a …non air assisted clutch■■? 
Great for giving your left leg a work out when driving through heavy, stop-start traffic! 
And now cup holders!!!, WTF is that all about?? 
Thank [zb] we are not all cavemen hey
Times move on, people invent new stuff to make life easier, how can that be a bad thing? do you still expect me to power a lorry by sticking my feet thru a hole in floor and running for minimum wage 
Nice one dude, made me smile mate!!
Speak as you find, I had a brand new 85CF 380 in 1999, absolutely bog standard with no frills (Wincanton Chilled spec). It was double shifted doing two runs a day from Abergavenny to Basildon (630 km round trip x2) 320,000km in the first 12 months and it NEVER put a foot wrong. Saying that I wouldn’t want to night out in it.
gunnerheskey:
I must admit that the interior’s not moved on much but as for basic in cab comfort, room and storage i couldn’t fault the XF95 430 i had for 18 months, infact i’d swap it for my R series 480 tomorrow.
FJ06 FBY. Miss ya babe x 
Hi Gunny Heskey.
I assume you work for the company in your avitar. If so, hasn’t your lot just got a “11” plate XF?
NB
love my xf 105 its on a 10 plate and had no bother yet,and the bunk is the best iv ever slept in,
yes its an old design but i think it is still up to the job
Hey Bullitt…dont ya just love it when you :
Dont have to tie the mirrors up with string to stop the wind blowing them in
Have to keep a gallon of oil in the passenger footwell. cos theres no where else
Have to have a portable radio on the dash, cos manufacturers didnt fit them, only in cars but with a portapack. ( as in the ford consul )
No night heaters, and the cab heater hardly worked anyway, IF you complained…the gaffa would throw an old blanket at ya.
Seats ripped and torn, and hardly any adjustment, back and forth…no height adjustment…
So much play in the steering, it was a job to keep hold of it
Wheel nut trims…to assist climbing into the cab…but sometimes slipped and done your shins in.
No automatic oil checks ( like the daf )…had to do it manually, and got covered in oil, before you started work.
ABS…whats that
Brakes were servo ( ask your grandad )
No power steering
No air suspension…just hard springs…which bounced you from here to eternity
i wont go on and on…i must admit that DAF has been my favourite mark…starting with the 2600 split screen, and then the 2800, second came the 141 left ■■■■■■, dutch spec…
I get to drive the XF105 some days…and its a pleisure…arm rests…cup holder…walk through cab…power steering…3 axles ( on the unit )
Air suspension…automatic…( its a bit slow in changing, and not as quick as my mercedes E300 TD)
but it will suffice…times have moved on…and the trucks today i wished were about way back then, but all in all i think todays drivers are very lucky, and with wimps running the industry, and not real guvnors who had actually done the job, can only make things easier…only problem today is the shorter hours and working week.
truckyboy:
Hey Bullitt…dont ya just love it when you :
Dont have to tie the mirrors up with string to stop the wind blowing them in
Have to keep a gallon of oil in the passenger footwell. cos theres no where else
Have to have a portable radio on the dash, cos manufacturers didnt fit them, only in cars but with a portapack. ( as in the ford consul )
No night heaters, and the cab heater hardly worked anyway, IF you complained…the gaffa would throw an old blanket at ya.
Seats ripped and torn, and hardly any adjustment, back and forth…no height adjustment…
So much play in the steering, it was a job to keep hold of it
Wheel nut trims…to assist climbing into the cab…but sometimes slipped and done your shins in.
No automatic oil checks ( like the daf )…had to do it manually, and got covered in oil, before you started work.
ABS…whats that
Brakes were servo ( ask your grandad )
No power steering
No air suspension…just hard springs…which bounced you from here to eternity
i wont go on and on…i must admit that DAF has been my favourite mark…starting with the 2600 split screen, and then the 2800, second came the 141 left ■■■■■■, dutch spec…
I get to drive the XF105 some days…and its a pleisure…arm rests…cup holder…walk through cab…power steering…3 axles ( on the unit )
Air suspension…automatic…( its a bit slow in changing, and not as quick as my mercedes E300 TD)
but it will suffice…times have moved on…and the trucks today i wished were about way back then, but all in all i think todays drivers are very lucky, and with wimps running the industry, and not real guvnors who had actually done the job, can only make things easier…only problem today is the shorter hours and working week.
who manages to get covered in oil by checking a dipstick lol
Someone asked me today why my Foden wasn’t as clean as the 11plate Daf infront of me waiting to go onto the weighbridge; “Because I’ll end up with one!” I replied
We have a 2006 430. The head’s and airvalve’s have been changed,over5 year’s that’s not so bad. The front bumper rust’s like a Datsun and the engine smoke’s badly after idling but the truck goes well running fully loaded with timber all day. Saying that,the driver is going for a Scania next,he reckon’s the DAF just is’nt as a good a truck but certainly not a bad 1 either.
I drive an XF105/410, reasonably happy with it. Probably be able to find fault with any motor, can’t please all the crowd all the time !!! Would rather have a M.A.N but would rather they took the money for a new truck out of my wages and get what I want than have to drive a crappy Scania.
it could be worse you could be driving an iveco…
TheFan46:
it could be worse you could be driving an iveco…
Do all Ivecos have dodgy steering?
I drove one once when I was on agency, I came out of the yard and when I got to the first corner I turned the steering wheel the usual amount to go round the corner but the Iveco carried on going straight
I had to turn it about twice as much as I would in any other vehicle, plus the thing rattled like ■■■■
We got 6 DaF’s CF’s 6 wheel ridged’s as they was a good deal (have posted on here the story) not one driver likes them , no space ,no storage, wee ordered 360bhp engines ,as was promised good MPG dont think they are getting anywhere near the promised MPG .
Daf are supposedly taking them in to change the gear settings as they recon they might have been delivered with the wrong settings !!! esp as they seem to scream out for another gear when on motorways doing 56.
And who on earth puts a metal bumper on anything other than a tipper■■?
less than 6months old they started rusting with stone chips looks tacky !
I know its not DaFs fault but there "white " paint is more a ivory/cream white so when wee put new fridge boxes on the back that are nice bright white it looked like a 2 tone paint scheme !
Willy Gofar:
would rather they took the money for a new truck out of my wages and get what I want than have to drive a crappy Scania.
Christ, I wouldn’t go as far as to help pay for a motor! I’ve heard of drivers getting say a £1 p/h less to drive a new one but paying towards a wagon’s a new one on me I’d rsther have a Leyland Constructor and a pay INCREASE 
Got to say our fleet of CFs are total garbage. We get thro 100 gallons of oil a week, apparently heavy oil use is a major problem, the add blue system only works occasionally, rust, electrical faults galore - no windscreen wipers etc. Just not up to the job I fear. Also for an alleged 410, it wouldn’t pull me out of bed. Put 675000 on an Actros in 2 years with much less trouble. It would also be quite pleasant to have a working radio and a seat that’s only on the floor or in the roof - my legs aren’t long enough.
As the engines are all blowing up now, someone’s getting a large bill. Probably won’t stop them choosing this junk again tho!!
Our firm run about 13 or 14 CFs and I’ve found that with all but about 2 or 3 the drivers seats have collapsed to the left somewhat. Because of this the bolsters have worn around the metal frame inside the seat on the left hand side. So the consequence is that you’re leaning slightly to the left and you have a metal frame digging into your ribs.
I agree with the other problems mentioned - electrical faults galore, wipers not working, extreme oil usage, etc - but the collapsing driver’s seats make the CF one of the worst trucks to drive in my opinion. Our company wont just change 10 seats, they’re too tight for that. Amazingly, when I do complain I get told that nobody else ever complains about them. Perhaps they’re doing what I do: using cushions.
The lumbar “supports” are too close together,and when you get the backrest comfortable to a degree (if that’s possible) the awful bend in the top half pushes your head forward…
Not strictly a Daf fault, but our last Foden 6wheeler has been off the road for over a week waiting for bits to repair a blown turbo…and the diffs aren’t great either as many of us have found…
Muckaway:
Willy Gofar:
would rather they took the money for a new truck out of my wages and get what I want than have to drive a crappy Scania.
Christ, I wouldn’t go as far as to help pay for a motor! I’ve heard of drivers getting say a £1 p/h less to drive a new one but paying towards a wagon’s a new one on me I’d rsther have a Leyland Constructor and a pay INCREASE
Actually that was tongue in cheek, just trying to make sure everyone has no doubts how crappy I think Scanias are.
masetheace:
we have two 18t daf LF’s one 08 and one 54 reg, and the rest are atego/axors 14/18tonners and i prefer the mercs hands down. i find the daf cabs are bloody awful-
cupholder is useless as its not deep enough,
auto box takes an age to change, flick it in reverse too quick and you end up in neutral, and floor it to pull onto a roundabout/ junction and youre sat there like a plank for 20 minutes waiting for the thing to actually move (unless you hold it on the handbrake and release while on full throttle!)
mirrors arent great and why are they not electric!!! and i dont like the way the bonnet mirror is placed right n the middle of the screen, prefer the merc mirror on the left side of the screen, better visibility
can not get a comfortable driving position and steering wheel does not have enough movement, and driver seat can not recline due to no space behind the seat
no room between the middle of the seat and dash to put your dinner bag! or anywhere else for that matter
cruise control buttons on the steering wheel - many times ive turned this on by mistake, feels wierd accelerating when you take you foot off the throttle to slow down!
door locks are fragile#
54 reg is starting to become quite unreliable
um think theres probably more!
i prefer the mercs yes we only have cheap lorries but i find the mercs more comfortable, better to drive and more reliable.
Bad workman always blames the tools. Mercs are crap, almost as bad as Scanias.
