Mercedes-Benz has stated its New Actros is beating the fleet average fuel return by a full two miles per gallon for South Yorkshire haulier Ken Mallinson & Sons. The operator is running 10 New Actros 2545 tractor units, including two of Britain’s first ultra low-emission Euro 6 models. The trucks feature 2.5 m wide, flat-floored BigSpace cabs and are powered by 450 bhp engines, which drive the latest Mercedes PowerShift 3 automated transmissions.
Mallinson’s business development manager, Ian Egan, said: “Within the first two weeks, one of the Euro 5 units came back with an average of 10.65 mpg, and the Euro 6s were recording 9.7-9.8 mpg.
“We carry a lot of plastic products, so we’re not fully freighted all the time – but given our previous overall average of 8.4-8.6 mpg, these figures obviously made us sit up and take notice.”
Based at Mallinson’s purpose-built site at Barugh Green, near Barnsley, the New Actros are on nationwide general haulage work. They pull 4.5 m high curtainsiders and a selection of flatbed trailers, and are typically on the road for a week at a time.
Supplying dealer Northside Truck & Van, Sheffield is inspecting and servicing the new vehicles under the standard – and free – two-year Mercedes-Benz Repair & Maintenance Contracts.
Ken Mallinson & Sons is a long-term operator of Mercedes-Benz trucks and most of its vehicles wear three-pointed stars. “They’re tried and tested product,” Egan said. “We run Axor as well as Actros tractors and they’re the most reliable trucks we own. We also have an excellent relationship with Northside and if we were to suffer any breakdowns, we know the cover from the rest of the dealer network is fantastic.
“The New Actros builds on the excellent reputation of the previous model and is a superbly engineered vehicle, with a cab that’s certainly proving to be popular with our drivers,” he added.
New Actros was launched on the eve of the CV Show in April and Ken Mallinson & Sons ordered its trucks during the NEC event, making it the first customer in the UK to commit to the Euro 6 model.
