Finally going for it,lorry purchase.

S

Smiffy

Well-known member
jd6820 said:
Don't think I've driven a DAF that hasn't made many noises during the course of a trip and displayed various warnings. I relief drive for a local haulier when they get stuck. There fleet consists of Volvo, Scania and DAF, the latter being phased out as they give more issues and I'm my opinion drive the worse of the bunch. They are manual tractor units that fully freighted, require someone not fussed by heavy gears and heavy clutch pedal to drive properly. I do know that when I've had a shift on one and jump back into my van to head home the clutch pedal nearly enters the engine bay via the bulkhead for the first try... 😂 ...

Having driven a DAF (manual & auto), Merc, Volvo and Scania all with some degree of hours behind the wheel. I'd choose to run them in this order: Volvo, Scania, Merc then finally.... DAF.

Only reason I didn't buy a Volvo was that a Tag axle was out of budget and they are so few on the ground, hence the Scania. But I will say Merc's are a flipping good wagon and drive nice too, the auto box ain't bad.
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I suppose it's horses for courses but of the lorries I have been involved with, mostly belonging to people of an agricultural persuasion and not so hot on maintenance the dafs have been one of the better brands. Tbh scania are the ones I know most problems from.
They seem to still be trading on the reputation of the 3 and 4 series.
Iveco are very plasticky inside and seem to fall apart and the last M.A.N I drove was auto but of a very poor quality. It's hard to beat volvos I shift, scania certainly can't compete, but Volvo cabs are cramped in comparison.
I have not driven a merc.
But above all else any new lorry is a pretty decent place to spend the day, especially if you are a driver and not an owner.
The first lorry I spent much time in was an 18t 6 speed iveco with no heating, one working windscreen wiper speed, power steering that only worked at exactly 1300rpm no higher no lower. Manual winder windows. The drivers headlight shook like it had Parkinson's. And it overheated on hills and you had to wait half hour for it to cool down if you where to enthusiastic up them.
I'm not entirely sure it had mot in hindsight.
And the only thing that really bothered me was the heater. Oh and had no radio. Beyond that it was quite entertaining to drive, especially as the silencer would regularly come loose so it was straight piped.
And I got paid to drive it so that was what mattered most.
 
Simon edwards

Simon edwards

Well-known member
Still looking! Admittedly I haven’t viewed anything yet,just slowly going mad viewing everything online.
Has anyone had anything to do with AandM commercials they seem to have a steady supply of low mileage Daf CFs with new bodies( obviously bought as chassis cabs ), would stretch the budget a bit but they look very tidy and would assume a fairly safe bet,any ideas /thoughts from any of you with more lorry experience than me.
My other thought was a 14 plate Iveco 250 flat bed that I have just spotted with 5000 miles(ex mod) and convert to a Beavertail,for a fraction of that price.
 
Mogman

Mogman

What man as done, man can do, what never has,maybe
Simon edwards said:
Still looking! Admittedly I haven’t viewed anything yet,just slowly going mad viewing everything online.
Has anyone had anything to do with AandM commercials they seem to have a steady supply of low mileage Daf CFs with new bodies( obviously bought as chassis cabs ), would stretch the budget a bit but they look very tidy and would assume a fairly safe bet,any ideas /thoughts from any of you with more lorry experience than me.
My other thought was a 14 plate Iveco 250 flat bed that I have just spotted with 5000 miles(ex mod) and convert to a Beavertail,for a fraction of that price.
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A&M near me done a bit of business with them good in my book👍
 
Simon edwards

Simon edwards

Well-known member
Mogman said:
A&M near me done a bit of business with them good in my book👍
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If you don’t mind me picking your brains a bit,in your opinion would there be a big difference in fuel consumption between acf410 and lf260 with similar bodies on the same work,mostly short distance rural.cheers.
 
Mogman

Mogman

What man as done, man can do, what never has,maybe
Simon edwards said:
If you don’t mind me picking your brains a bit,in your opinion would there be a big difference in fuel consumption between acf410 and lf260 with similar bodies on the same work,mostly short distance rural.cheers.
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I would have the bigger engine
Less stress for the motor plus keep the speed on the hills probably better on fuel too if you keep your right foot light👍
 
Simon edwards

Simon edwards

Well-known member
Brilliant, thank you.
It’s slightly unnerving buying your first truck when you’re not in that world,I’m always confident buying machines due to a million years around them,but Lorrie’s are a new game really,but hey you only live once🥴
 
JD450A

JD450A

Feral as Fk 🐾
I'd go bigger engine. However the cab is a major consideration. CF is nicer to sit in but is a lump when you've got hedges and trying to reverse. LF for jobbing.

What gearboxes is the equally important question. A big engine with few gears isn't always better than a little engine with a splitter
 
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Simon edwards

Simon edwards

Well-known member
Thanks Rory, trucks I’m looking at are all auto,don’t know any more detail than that until I ring a couple of dealers.
A lot of my runs will involve crap lanes and hedges, a good mate of mine runs a couple of 6 wheel tippers both cf in the same area,admittedly he’s done it for 40 years I am very green in comparison.
In my naive eyes the cf looks more of a truck!
 
JD450A

JD450A

Feral as Fk 🐾
Simon edwards said:
Thanks Rory, trucks I’m looking at are all auto,don’t know any more detail than that until I ring a couple of dealers.
A lot of my runs will involve crap lanes and hedges, a good mate of mine runs a couple of 6 wheel tippers both cf in the same area,admittedly he’s done it for 40 years I am very green in comparison.
In my naive eyes the cf looks more of a truck!
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The CF is more of a truck. My Foden is a CF based 2004ish unit. Only a 250 engine but was a good weapon. If you've no fear about the cab width/height then I would take the CF. Nicer cab too.
 
Simon edwards

Simon edwards

Well-known member
JD450A said:
The CF is more of a truck. My Foden is a CF based 2004ish unit. Only a 250 engine but was a good weapon. If you've no fear about the cab width/height then I would take the CF. Nicer cab too.
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Thanks, that’s pretty much the way I’m thinking,will make a few calls next week I reckon.
 
hiluxman

hiluxman

Well-known member
V8Druid said:
down to volume I'd guess
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Yes, usually they get a little patch for its final mot then ran 12mths and then they usually get exported at that point.

My red one is starting to go and I'm certainly not going to the extent of what I did with my lf tipper....so needless to say at the point its too bad it'll either get broke or exported.

Hopefully by that point I'll have a replacement lined up too but who knows.
 
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