Scania, Volvo, Mercedes vs American trucks. How can you stand them?

Dear Swede

I completely agree that Euro truck is more beatiful everything.
On the may 10,I did see one Scania 580 R in the U.S roads and I tell you I cried of happiness.I wish that the U.S would let more European truck to come to U.S roads.Honstly I can't tolerate the American Trucks they are too you know.that's one of the reason that I did not drive truck in the U.S.
I just wish that I could meet pernally a Euro truck in the U.S.

European truck is in my soul

 

I used to drive european and american trucks. EU trucks are usually of cabover design (but there are fat trucks, like Titan) and cabines are on very soft air suspention. Not so rought ride like in US truck. Brakes are usually EBS (all disk brakes, with trailer). And it is true that EU truck brakes like a car. EU truck electronic systems are suffisticated and complicated. Difficult to diagose, expencive to fix. Fuel milage is the same with same payload comparing with US truck. They have very dfiifcult to reprogram speed governor (90 kmh/55mph). So EU trucks are slow.
EU cabines are made of steel, becouse hoodless truck needs more tought cabine for safety. Transmissions are with synchro (to shift like a car) and clutch booster (yo depress every time you shift). EU truck is easier to drive....
But sleepers are smaller.
EU trucks have auxially heaters, usually made by Webasto ore Eberschpaher.
All EU trucks are with immobilizer! What a nice day when driver loose all keys!
Many EU trucks are equiped with ESP (becouse short frame with one drive axe design makes them not so stabil, especially dangerous bobtailing)

US trucks are more brutal, with longer frame, twin axes, simple drum brakes, noisy cabine.

But... more reliable!
Active safety not so good as EU truck can offer, but loonger frame and hood saves $$$ and lives....

US trailers have equal front-rear veight distribution , EU trailers have 3 axes with 66% load. That's why EU trucks have controlled axe differential,

EU trailers are 40', US trailers are 48'.

So having shorter lenth limits we can tow only EU trailer with US trucktor. US trailers are usually towed with EU cabover trucks.

EU trucks have 24v electric system.

If trailer is with EBS you cant use it w/o power supply, becouse no ABS, no Brake force regulation, no roll stability cintroll,no brake axeleration.... so we use 12-24V voltage doublers and sometimes additional batteroes to supply trailer EBS.

And I can surally say that US truck with EU EBS trailer combination is good! Trailer brakes are so good and sensetive!

It is not all, In EU we have different lightning standard, and we change headlamps are update them, add taillamps with yellow turn signals.

Later I gonna add some pictures

 

No one i stopping you or anyone else from bringing Scania, MB, Cabover Volvo, or any other brand. Just no one over here is very interested in them. They would probably do quite well in the NE where people live on top of each other like Europe. Out West forget it. Man's country. No place for those little fellas.

 

some contries in EU changes vehicle lenth limits and seems to me trucks with long hood will appeare in EU too. Russia and Ukraine use both the EU and US trucks, like Australia too. All they have some advantages and as I can see in Ukraine operators know these advantages well and use US truck in places where it is the best, like they know well were to use European truck too.

Okay, European companies attack US maket for long time. Volvo own Mack and Renault and use Volvo Powertrain engines all over the world, Paccar build trucks for the Europe (DAF), some of them, like LF are clones of US small trucks and they are with small B-series Cummins engines... Scania is a part of WV group, and they start US game too. R-series trucks have engines with HPI by Cummins.
Mercedes own Freightliner, International, Western star, Mitsubisi Fuso... and many US trucks have many Mercedes Actros details, seems to me Cascadia cabine is just an actros cabine with hood (like volvo use narrow FM cabine on VN trucks).

Dimler tries to hijack Russian Kamaz (cummins got a pie three years ago, and build engines in Russia), small Kamaz truck is designed on base of International City star....

So we can see globalisation and soon the market will be global with global road standards.

 

Big Duker
All I whant to know were that I can find a European truck in the U.S.
I spotted one down to I 4, it was a Scania carreing some kind of racing boat and I wonder were I can find those trucks in the U.S.

 

Pretty heavy truck or trailer.

We can load 45,500 on a 2005 Century with a 99 53' reefer

 

I run an 04 379 peterbuilt. The MBN engine is a POS but other then that I love the truck. 13 speed manual and all. I have driven some of the autoshifts and full automatics and hated them especially on ice and in snow. I feel I have better control when I control the shift points. As far as the syncro trans, never felt a need for it. Heck I float shift pickups and cars that have full sycnro transmissions in them. Only use the clutch to start and stop.

As far as weight or payloads. I usually put 60,000 lbs to 75,000lbs in the box depending on the route I have to take. Grossing weights between 92,000 lbs to 105,500 lbs and then some.

 

Comparing Eaton Auto shift/ultra shift and ZF Freedom (sold as As-Tronic in EU), I'm surelly saym that ZF shift better, smoothly, very suffisticated clutch controll, but there are some things difficult and expencive to fix. The weak point is clutch actuator becouse ZF use it for shifting. When clutch fork is worn, stick may damage actuator body and water coning inside foods small ceramic board cinverting inductivity of clutch pisition pick up coil to voltage... and we have to replace actuator.

It is just one issue... So ZF needs good maintanace and may run over 2 illion miles....

What is good, that shift unit may be rebuilt. It saves many $$$$.

Eaton auto shift trouble - is worn shift motors. If you go on driving with bad motors electronic shift unit fails. Very difficult to take apart tp fix becouse of something like silicone filling inside....

The most reliable is Mercedes EPS, with ore without clutch pedal, and all valves, sensors are not inside TCM and you can change any faulty part.... Cheaper to fix but more expencive to produse... but Mercedes've never built cheap trucks and cars.

For skilled driver manual tranny is better if you own the truck. Less problem, less $$$ for maintanance... But not so easy to drive. I feel tired when I drow a truck with manual tranny. Our drives hate US clutch pedals, becouse there are no clutch boosters and pressure plates like easy pedal are not so good as clutch on EU truck.

But in our company a half of trucks with EPS and as I can see, not so many drivers are really good and maintanance cost of EPS (electro pneumatic shift) is less then rapare costs of trannies failed with poor shifting.

Why european trucks have full synchro trannies? They do it to let less skilled driver work. In 90-s trucking boom began and the problem of drivers was very serious.

I know some drivers who towed payloads from France to Iran (by political issues Soviet truckers had ability to do it), they draw very brutal MAZ trucks without ABS, with simple drum brakes, non synchro transmission... and did it bettter then new generation now.

well, 750000lbs... yeah, I can haul, but it is not legal here, we must haul 20 ton only, so with overloading box we use to drive when it is dark and less road cops.

 

In the US, the problem with Volvo Trucks and Engines, as well as Mercedes Engines, is parts -- it is the poor availability of parts and they are very expensive.

That is why you don't see more Euro Trucks over here -- cost and availability of parts.

Please do not confuse Freightliner Trucks with American Trucks in general. Freightliner is the bottom of the barrel. They are disposable trucks. Junk.

I drove a brand new Volvo a few months ago. It was very well made and comfortable. It was also virtually useless due to excessive computer influence over the engine which took control of the RPM's in situations where the torque increased. It forced the engine to lug. It barely made it up small hills in Texas. In real mountains, forget it. I returned it after one week.

If you want to understand why Americans prefer American Trucks, then try to get to the US and drive a long-nose Peterbilt or Kenworth over the Rocky Mountains in winter.

There is no experience like driving a long-nosed truck. It is a thrill. It is like driving a sports car and much safer due to enhanced traction and manoeuvrability.

There is no need for automatic transmissions except to accomidate inexperienced drivers. Unsynchronized transmissions are more durable, offer more driver control, and we use the clutch ONLY to start and stop.

Judge American Trucks by Kenworth. That is our quality standard.

 

I prefere long nose trucks too. you know why, but cabover trucks have some very interesting advantages. well, if you drow old FLA ore Inter9800, they run lika bad european truck so to juge EU truck try to drive Volvo FH, MAN TGA, Scania R-series, ore the best - Mercedes actros. Argosy is based on Actros cabine, but actros is V6 ore V8 powered, US engines and OM457-460 are too tall for actros, but Mercedes Axor cabine is too ascetic and Daimler did something like Renault Magnum truck with installen very high cabine. EU cabines has no protaction with long hood and they make them of steel. Cabine weight is about 1900-3000 kg to be tought enought in accident and that's why smaller and shorter trucktor has the same weight like US long nose truck.

But what is good! to remove tranny is less then a hour in our workshop. we can do it with crane. Do drop US truck tranny is a half of day stuff!

EU truck is easier to park trailer in limited room. I remember 100 meter backing in century to park trailer... had no room for U-turn.

EU trucks have electronic brake system (brake by wire) and they stop better then car! In is not a myth!


This is my favorite EU truc with Scmitz trailer

And this is my friend's truck with N14. Trailer - Schmitz, with EBS, all disk brakes. This is really good combination of EU trailer, designed in Sweeden cabine and legendary reliable N14 Select+.


Why are Freightliners and Internationals popular here? Hah! Cheap parts! That's all!
Parts for other trucks are higher here, anyway many Peterbuilts, Kenworth run over here. What trucks are rare? Finnish Sisu, Mack (mechanics do not like Mack engines, well known by Renault Magnum) and Western Srar.