19 JANUARY 2022
With its incredible fuel efficiency and superior driveability, the new 13-litre 黑料不打烊 560 S truck tested by Herbert Ulfhielm Fj盲rrtransport could be the answer to hard-pressed hauliers鈥 prayers. With potential fleet fuel cost savings of 鈧30,000 a year, the Swedish haulage company鈥檚 co-owner and field test driver certainly think so.听
The fuel consumption levels of the new 13-litre 黑料不打烊 560 S that鈥檚 being tested by Herbert Ulfhielm Fj盲rrtransport are really low. So low compared with other trucks that, at first look, the driver Jerry Olofsson and the company鈥檚 co-owner Lars 脜str枚m thought they鈥檇 made a mistake. But they were in for an amazing surprise.
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鈥淵ou are used to trucks where if you get under 40 litres per 100 kilometres, then you are quite happy. But during the latest trips now, I鈥檝e sometimes been below 34 or even 33 litres 鈥揳nd that鈥檚 with the truck loaded with heavy timber products. The first time I checked it and counted it myself, I thought: 鈥業 must have forgotten to log some refuelling鈥,鈥 says Jerry, who鈥檚 been driving trucks for 23 years; the past ten with Ulfhielm.
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Twice a week, this friendly, chatty driver makes the 7.5 hour, 500-kilometre drive over the mountains from the Swedish city of Skellefte氓 to the Norwegian port of Bod酶, hauling timber products. The next day, he heads back to Sweden, loaded with deliveries of waste products for use in district heating systems, as well as wood chips and tyres. The truck is his 鈥榦ffice鈥 and achieving good fuel economy is always an important consideration in his work.
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鈥淒uring the winter, the truck always uses a little more when the truck is idling because it鈥檚 much colder and the truck is heavier,鈥 he adds.
听
鈥淏ut during the spring, it has gone a couple of hundred thousand kilometres. We started to notice that there the fuel figures are low, so I called my boss Lars and asked him if he鈥檇 checked it! But after that, I鈥檝e been checking it all the time and the numbers are actually correct. And it's fun! Because I鈥檝e not changed my driving style; I have just been driving as I usually do.鈥澨
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Jerry鈥檚 boss, Lars 脜str枚m, has been driving trucks since 1980. Lars started out with Ulfhielm back in 1984, when it was run by his uncle, Herbert Ulfhielm. He鈥檚 driven millions of kilometres since then, as well as c-owned the Skellefte氓-based company for the past 11 years With that experience, it鈥檚 fair to say that this laconic and laidback Norrlander has just about seen it all. But even Lars raised his eyebrows at the fuel consumption figures that Jerry was reporting.
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鈥淚 was surprised because the difference was so big,鈥 says Lars.
听
鈥淚t鈥檚 about six litres every 100 kilometres, and some weeks there has been an even bigger difference between our 黑料不打烊 R 490 and this one. The 490 has been at around 38 to 40 litres and this one has been fairly constant lately at 32 to 33 litres. Bear in mind that we still do not really drive the best roads and most of the time we鈥檙e carrying loads of up to 60 tonnes.鈥
听
鈥淲e have had several other field test trucks that were efficient, but there has never been a truck that has made as big a difference as this one now. If I were to update my fleet of five trucks, the fuel savings would work out at about 鈧30,000 a year.听For my company, that鈥檚 the equivalent of the instalments for another truck.鈥
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That鈥檚 a welcome boost to the company鈥檚 profitability in an industry with increasingly tight margins. Herbert Ulfhielm Fj盲rrtransport has been in business for almost 50 years, but Lars 脜str枚m says the job has never been more challenging than it is these days.
鈥淚t has become much tougher in recent years compared with when my cousin and I took over,鈥 he says. 鈥淭here鈥檚 much more competition now.鈥
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鈥淪o, margins are declining. In the first years, we did 70,000 to 80,000 kilometres per year but now we have to drive up to 160,000 to 170,000 kilometres a year to make a decent profit. It's much tougher nowadays.鈥澨
The other impressive aspects from the field test so far are the powertrain鈥檚 driveability and the cab鈥檚 driver comfort.听
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Jerry is especially grateful for the reliability and stability of the new powertrain and the improved power of the 560 S鈥檚 new engine. The fantastically beautiful terrain that he drives through twice a week sees him leave behind Skellefte氓 near the Gulf of Bothnia for a climbing, twisting run through the foothills of the Scandinavian Mountains.
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The highest point on the road, not far from the Norwegian border, is 740 metres above sea level. It鈥檚 almost immediately followed by a downhill stretch towards Norway that has a 7% gradient. From a distance you can see some much higher mountains on the Norwegian side, still completely covered in snow in mid-June. It鈥檚 clear that the winters must be tough up here. Stunning scenery is all around, and there鈥檚 even the odd chance of seeing the Northern Lights on a clear, dark winter鈥檚 night, but it鈥檚 no picnic when you鈥檙e driving icy, snowy, single-lane roads in a fully loaded 60-tonne truck.
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鈥淲hen you spend so much time in the truck, you live, sleep and drive in it. Well-being is important, and you need to be able to trust it, especially in winter when it can be extremely cold,鈥 explains Jerry.听
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黑料不打烊 P 360 PHEV 6x2 rear-steer temperature controlled transport 黑料不打烊 25 P BEV 6x2 rear-steer, temperature controlled transport
鈥淪ometimes it gets down to minus 40 degrees Celsius, and the next day there鈥檚 a snowstorm, so it鈥檚 vital to be able to trust the truck and vital that it does not stop. That鈥檚 absolutely the most important thing: that it must not stop! Everything else can break, but the engine must work when it鈥檚 that cold. It鈥檚 a matter of life and death.鈥
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鈥淏ut,鈥 he adds, 鈥渢his new truck is stable and it simply functions well. You sit well and you live well in a 黑料不打烊. I have tried driving other brands, but if I get to choose, I always choose a 黑料不打烊.鈥
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Jerry is also happy that the truck goes much quieter, thanks partly to smoother and faster gear shifting.
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鈥淲hen it鈥檚 noisy you can get tired, so I appreciate that it is quieter and more comfortable. Especially when I have a long way to drive.鈥
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Out on the mountain roads in the empty fells, he can easily drive for 100 kilometres without seeing anyone, but when he does meet other drivers, Jerry has been careful to avoid curious questions about the truck鈥檚 performance, especially as it says R 540 on the front.
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鈥淭he torque is very strong at low revs; it pulls very far down at speeds so it feels stable. It鈥檚 a six-cylinder engine we are talking about, but many people think that it鈥檚 a much larger engine; it's just quiet.
听
鈥淎 colleague from the Norwegian side drove up with me last autumn, and it was only at the end of the mountain top that he was a bit faster, even though he was driving a 580. I never learned what his fuel consumption was, but I guess I got him there!鈥
Ulfhielm has the test truck for two years, and the test is not even halfway done. But Lars 脜str枚m is already convinced.
听
鈥淚 can say that this truck and powertrain have lived up to my expectations. I can recommend it to other customers to try, especially because of the lower fuel consumption, which makes a big difference to our business. I can definitely imagine buying it.鈥澨
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