Precision selling converts Devon operator to Volvo
The first of two new Volvo FH 6x2 rigid trucks has entered service with Devon-based haulier M R Horn Transport.
Designed to operate with a tri-axle drawbar trailer at 44-tonnes GTW, the Volvo Globetrotters have been engineered to provide maximum deck space for loads of hay and straw and for the transportation of heavy farm machinery.
“These are the first Volvo trucks we have ever operated,” commented Martyn Horn, adding that he was attracted to the product by the overall quality of the vehicle and by the co-operation he received from the sales team at Truck and Bus Wales and West and at the Volvo HQ in Warwick.
“The choice of options was overwhelming, as was the number of safety features on the Volvo,” said the proud owner. The sales engineering team at Volvo Warwick spent hours with me in order to ensure that I got exactly the vehicle I needed. They even agreed to build my trucks with a non-standard wheelbase. That’s the sort of thing that convinces potential buyers they have made the right choice of business partner”, he added.
Martyn Horn also remarked that he was also favourably impressed by the build quality of the cab and by the extremely comfortable sleeping accommodation. “Our drivers generally cover about 2,500kms each week and when you consider the physical effort required in loading and unloading it’s important that they get a good night’s sleep,” he added.
The new Volvo trucks are equipped with air suspension on all three axles, a feature that is put to good use when the trucks are required to enter or leave the fields in which they often work or when entering tight farm entrances. The adjustable air system also ensures improved stability for the unusually high loads. Power is provided by a 13-litre 460hp engine and the gearbox is the popular two-pedal automated Volvo I-Shift.
“We had our first automatic ‘box in 2004, another in 2006 and the third in 2008”, said Martyn Horn. “At the time we thought that they were all OK, but the Volvo I-Shift is simply streets ahead of everything else. It is exceeding all our expectations”, he added.
The 3-plus-3 combinations travel the length and breadth of the UK and join a fleet of Scania and DAF vehicles and the owner reports that the performance of the Volvo 460 diesel is already ‘so much better than vehicles with EGR’.
“I had always been against the idea of AdBlue. It just seemed like another unnecessary complication,” Martyn explained. “But the performance is noticeably better and now we are hoping for an improvement in fuel consumption compared to our other trucks too”.
“Even before the first vehicle went on the road I was impressed with the superiority of the Volvo. The build quality of the chassis engineering was evident from the outset”, concluded Martyn Horn.
The new trailers were supplied by Turners Commercials of Bruton in Somerset and M R Horn Transport undertook the task of building and installing their own bespoke bodywork.
