kr79:
Agree the foden was probaly the best all round tipper out there especaly when they got the daf cab. Was only the loss of engine supplier that done for them.
I think paccar thought all the buyers would buy a daf but it didnt quite work like that.
Scania seems the most popular make riund our way now.
One high ranking manager at Smiths was supposed to’ve said (hearing Fodens were
finishing) “we wont be blackmailed into buying Daf”. Whether true or not, they’ve not been loyal to a make since then. Their first FMX is coming end of the year.
Earthline seem to rotate between MAN, Scania and Daf although no Dafs have appeared since the 59 plate.
I currently drive an FM and occasionally a DAF. The DAF is basically litter despite being 2 years newer and with 200k less miles. They’ve both had the same driver before me and honestly the Volvo is 10 times the tipper the DAF will ever be.
I live close to three big quarries,and the Daf CF’s have never made any impact this way. The operators that ran a couple of them have since got rid of them and gone over to Scania’s or Volvo’s. The Foden Alpha was a much better vehicle than the Daf CF !!!
Agree, but they’re not the lightest chassis. Then again the FM is good as a tipper anyway. Are the construction spec Mercs available yet? Haven’t seen any.
You mean the Arocs? We had a demo to use a for a few days. Our driver was impressed with it even with the auto box it had, however the cab was at least 13ft in height and it wobbled badly everytime you went over a pothole or took a turn.
The demo was fitted with an Edboro PTO & Thompsons body, the Tare weight of it was 13.5tonne. We’ve ordered one for March albeit it will be fitted with a Alloy body (stone) to bring the Tare down & increase payload.
I’ve driven Volvos, MAN, Renault Keraxes & also Scania which I currently drive now & think Scania is the best but it all depends on what type of wagon you’re given, what tipper body is built on it & gearbox. (All our wagons are manual with the 4 over 4 gearbox & reverse as well)
Just to add to yesterdays post the firm who operate the Volvo FMs I mentioned have a company culture of"drive it like you just stole it" plus they go through a “monsoon” type lorry wash umpteen times a day not good for the electrics!.
splitshift:
Just to add to yesterdays post the firm who operate the Volvo FMs I mentioned have a company culture of"drive it like you just stole it" plus they go through a “monsoon” type lorry wash umpteen times a day not good for the electrics!.
We’ve got one of those wheelwashes. Could ths be the cause of so many electrical problems? A few years ago a wheelwash was a flooded rumble strip. Now for some reason it has to wash your mirrors.
We don’t have any facilities to wash our lorries where I’m based so 2 or 3 runs in wheelwash at the end of the day is all mine gets.
splitshift:
Just to add to yesterdays post the firm who operate the Volvo FMs I mentioned have a company culture of"drive it like you just stole it" plus they go through a “monsoon” type lorry wash umpteen times a day not good for the electrics!.
Mullens:
How do the renault kerax’s fair up they seem to be very popular round my way in north london.
The Renault dealers seemed to have played a blinder (much the same as Hino dealers did before the London LEZ came in) they have stock available at decent money for those wanting new motors prior to Euro 6, as they say “every dog has his day”
For a 6wheeler I’m surprised that the Volvo FE hasn’t become more popular. Nice and basic, nice compact cab for urban work and low tare weight. Stick an I-shift in it and you’ve got a great motor.
This is my motor.
Pros: Good ground clearance, nice driving position, no frills, good cross cab access, quiet, fantastic brakes.
Cons: Annoying warning system, crap (auto) 'box, heavy on fuel, poor interior build quality, crap air con system, heavy tare (13400), the bg cab is wasted because strangely there is still no storage space.
Because of the above problems, it doesn’t receive any TLC from me except strict daily checks.
**Since this photo was taken, the o/s cab air deflector has decided to get off and walk along the A40 near Headington. If you see it keep Britain tidy and bin it. Ta.
i like the fmx’s with i-shift,cant stand the manual box volvo’s though-change is too stiff.
and the fmx has superb mirrors-the fm mirrors leave a lot to be desired
i actually really like dafs,had a couple of cf’s from new-although the 06 340 was a much much better motor than the 61 plate 410 .
as for hino- far and away the worst thing i have ever driven
DAF CF with a double drive and a manual box, Never had any issues with traction, compared to the Volvo’s if it works alongside seem to be able to dig themselves into tarmac sometimes.
andrew.s:
i like the fmx’s with i-shift,cant stand the manual box volvo’s though-change is too stiff.
and the fmx has superb mirrors-the fm mirrors leave a lot to be desired
i actually really like dafs,had a couple of cf’s from new-although the 06 340 was a much much better motor than the 61 plate 410 .
as for hino- far and away the worst thing i have ever driven
We still have a 09 Volvo FM albeit a Grab and it’s manual and I agree it is very stiff to change, strangely it’s the only Volvo of ours that hasn’t suffered any problems, despite the local dealership forgetting to put the stump back on after a service thus when our driver picked it up and drove off the engine seized right there and then meaning they had to ship in a completely new engine from Gothenburg & fit it. Somehow our 08 Volvo FM tippers we bought from new suffered alot of problems in the 3 years we had them from ad-blue failure to power steering going and due to that the boss will not buy another Volvo, although he has been tempted by the FMXs but finds them to be too much money.
For Myself, I’d have nothing but a volvo, after 3 FL10’s and 2 FM’s I can’t fault them, they do give stupid warning electrical fault troubles but I have never been left on the side of the road.
If I had to buy for a driver? He’d get a Hino, Strong and Cheap and easy to work on. No matter what you buy a driver he’ll find fault with it, so just buy the strongest and cheapest on the market!
FmTipper:
For Myself, I’d have nothing but a volvo, after 3 FL10’s and 2 FM’s I can’t fault them, they do give stupid warning electrical fault troubles but I have never been left on the side of the road.
If I had to buy for a driver? He’d get a Hino, Strong and Cheap and easy to work on. No matter what you buy a driver he’ll find fault with it, so just buy the strongest and cheapest on the market!
and the worst on fuel -smart move
also the horrendous price (and availability) of spares-£1500 for an alternator…
dew:
DAF CF with a double drive and a manual box, Never had any issues with traction, compared to the Volvo’s if it works alongside seem to be able to dig themselves into tarmac sometimes.
I think CFs are good for the more relaxed drivers and operators. I temp’d for MA Gibson of Woodstock last December. They have an 09 reg 8w with the 8speed and the 360 engine. They also have an 02 reg 6w with 8speed and the 310 engine. I was amazed by the 6wheeler, comfortable, went well and carried about 16200. It’s been no trouble and apparently nor has the 8wheeler. The thing is they wont rag their lorries, do mostly there own work so not chasing loads at £ silly per load or tonne and stay local.
The firm I delivered flour for run CFs and they are the biggest heaps of junk out. Then again the drivers are on job and knock doing 60hours per week…
