First Euro 5 Stralis tractors for Arcese Trasporti

The UK arm of Arcese Trasporti, the largest independent transport company in Italy and Iveco's biggest customer in Europe, has taken delivery of the first Euro 5 Stralis Active Space tractor units to arrive in the country.

The seven Stralis AS440S48T/FP-LT low-height 4x2 tractors each benefit from full air-suspension and join four Euro 3 models delivered in September 2006. Together, they represent the first UK registered right-hand drive trucks to be operated by Arcese UK Ltd, which was established in July 2005.

Kevin Leutchford, Managing Director of Arcese UK, says: “As the company continues to grow we will be expanding our fleet with additional right-hand drive vehicles and local drivers. We have already placed advanced orders with Iveco for an additional Euro 5 Stralis to join our fleet every six weeks throughout 2007.

“The decision to adopt Iveco as our brand of choice reflects our parent company's positive experience of operating Iveco vehicles. We have also developed a strong relationship with our local dealer, Stormont Truck & Van, having purchased four Daily vans last year.

“Furthermore, initial reports since the vehicles joined the fleet have highlighted an average fuel consumption of approximately 11.5mpg, together with AdBlue consumption of less than five per cent,” he adds.

Arcese operates from a £10 million freight terminal at Tilbury Docks, built on seven acres of land and featuring 32 loading bays. The company has a major contract with New Holland delivering materials to its manufacturing facility in Basildon and finished vehicles to mainland Europe. This is supported by a number of high profile contracts with customers including Land Rover, Caterpillar and Ford.

The new Stralis tractors are operating primarily at 38 tonnes on a mixture of single and double shifts, covering up to 80,000 and 160,000 miles respectively. They are each finished in the company's striking red and silver livery and will be serviced by Stormont Truck & Van in Crayford.

The vehicles join a Europe-wide fleet of over 1,200 tractor units and 2,000 trailers, which will include 1,000 mega trailers by the end of 2007. It also represents one of the largest Stralis fleets in the world, with Arcese Trasporti having been one of the specially chosen hauliers to have trialled prototype Stralis models prior to the international launch in 2002.

As one of the only manufacturers already able to offer its full range of medium and heavy trucks in Euro 5 specification, the Iveco Stralis tractors are powered by a 12.8 litre Cursor 13 engine, developing up to 500 hp between 1,525 and 1,900 rev/min and up to 2,300 Nm of torque between 1,000 and 1,400 rev/min. In addition to a 570 litre diesel tank, they also feature a 55 litre heated AdBlue tank.

The new Euro 5 Stralis models feature Iveco’s latest EuroTronic AS2330 TD gearbox, which sees the gear change controls incorporated into the dashboard on the right-hand steering column stalk, further improving cab ergonomics and making gear changes even easier for the driver. The relocation of the gear selector also opens up the flat floor area of the cab, creating additional space for the driver.