Sector: Heavy Truck GCW: 40 ­– 60 tonnes Engine: 9.0 – 16.4-litres Power: 250 – 730hp

Engines improved

If you thought Euro6 was a done deal, think again. Scania has revealed significant upgrades to the Euro6 models it launched two years ago. Scania’s second-generation Euro6 450hp and 490hp engines provide a claimed 2% improvement in fuel consumption, and a 13-litre, six-cylinder engine equipped with selective catalytic reduction (SCR) at 410hp, is predicted to be among the most frugal. 

It will appear in the P, G and R-series Scania trucks with a relatively high AdBlue additive consumption rate of 6%, on the basis that high AdBlue/lower fuel consumption is a cheaper alternative to low AdBlue/higher fuel consumption. A new disengaging air compressor will also improve efficiency, with a claimed 1% fuel consumption benefit alone, and gearbox oil capacity has been reduced to cut churning losses. Silencers are claimed to be the smallest on the market for Euro6, and intake systems are revised to maintain high exhaust temperatures. AdBlue tanks have got creative too. 'We found some handy air spaces inside the chassis frame, so we moulded new AdBlue tanks to fit,' says Scania’s Per-Erik Nordström. Engine management software has been further refined and a lighter, stronger rear axle is installed. 11 new engines come to the P, G and R-series trucks, and the new Streamline brings an aerodynamic makeover as well. But the two most interesting developments for fleet managers are under the skin.

Remote access

Two vital elements that workshops and fleet owners need to know about are what faults might be developing on a truck far from home, and how the driver is performing. Scania Communicator has been delivering information to service managers for some time now, but only when back at base. Now they will be able to run a "health check" on their truck from the office in Sweden, for instance, even if the truck is being driven along the E62, south of Milan.

Worn components, or deteriorating oil quality can be flagged up early, meaning that the appropriate parts can be ordered and the technician with the right skills booked. 'It will increase uptime and help to avoid delays that cost money,' says Nördstrom. Driver training is known to become less effective after a driver returns to real-life operations. It’s a natural process. But Scania is pioneering one-to-one coaching that uses the driver data to zero in on areas for improvement. A monthly phone call from the coach, who has all the driver’s performance data to hand, could help prevent this loss of effectiveness and it is hoped it will have a long-term effect on driving style.

Opticruise

Scania’s Opticruise AMT (automated manual transmission) is well known and liked among drivers. It now gets the GPS-guided predictive cruise control that surveys the approaching landscape and adjusts gear-shifting strategies to match. Dubbed Scania Active Prediction (SAP), this will be standard specification on all Streamline models. Also integrated in the AMT is a choice of three performance modes, from four available. Depending on application, standard, economy (fully integrated with SAP), power and off-road are the options. If required, fleet managers can modify their initial choices later, at their local dealer.

Drivers get an easier life too, with upgraded interiors and new seats. The headline on the press release for the new Streamline declares: "Saving up to 8% of fuel." As ever, the "up to" part is the escape clause, but with drivers and workshops able to focus on details as never before, you just might achieve a good proportion of that.