Now I thought it was about time that slack-jawed idler 'Agent Reg' sent me something nice---and here it is, a splendid shot of a brand new black-painted Volvo FL urban artic is the colours of legendary Welsh brewer Brains. Indeed it reminds Biglorryblog of the apochryphal story from Kenneth Williams who was playing understudy to Richard Burton in a West End play. One night Burton came into the theatre to declare he wasn't feeling well and that Williams would have to deputise for him. A horrified Williams demurred and begged Burton to find some way to carry on. With a flash of inspiration he sent Williams next door to a pub which had Brains Dark and told him not to come back without a pint, then another, then another. Suitably reinforced Burton then trod the boards to great aplomb returning after the final rousing curtain call to tell Williams "If you're ever in a jam...I'm your man!" Thus the restorative powers of Brains Beer! Now click through here for the real story about Brains' new FL urban artics!.
Anyway I digress for according to S. A. Brains' Fleet Manager Andrew Foley, the famous South Wales brewers' good experience with Volvo's
The latest Volvo's to join the S. A. Brains distribution fleet are seven new Volvo FL-280, Urban Artic 4x2's plated at 14 tonnes
S. A Brains have been operating urban artics since 1999. Specification of the latest FL's includes enhanced near-side visibility for the two-man crew via the large peeper window. Nose down articulation has been improved by dint of raising the fifth wheel height by 50 mm from standard. "You can put the new FL artics in places you would never get an 18 tonne rigid. We particularly need good manoeuvrability when delivering in the Valleys, where the roads can be both steep and narrow." explains Andrew, who also reports that the new 280 hp FL's are delivering better fuel consumption than the 220 hp trucks which they replaced. The six-speed gearbox was specified, as was the longer Comfort Cab. When coupled to the latest Lawrence David trailers, the FL's deliver a payload of between 9 and 10 tonnes, depending on the type of load carried.
Now how do you get a ten tonne payload on a 14 tonne GCW artic ? Is it light beer.
Peter the truck has a GVW of 14tonne and a GTW or GCW of 26tonnes - A 10 tonne payload is easy if truck and trailer weigh less than 14tonne unladen, one of the other key benefits of an urban artic concept is when the load is diminished from the rear there is plenty of load tolerance on the two axles at the front to keep the axles legal.
Interesting to read about the S A Brains Volvo artics and also the Bass front wheel drive vehicle. These vehicles were both converted by Chassis Developments Ltd of Leighton Buzzard, the Managing Director being David Brain. Co-incidence or what?