Truck or treat?

LET'S TORQUE

For the world's largest manufacturer of medium and heavy duty trucks, DaimlerChrysler has been slow in entering the Indian commercial vehicle segment.

Finally, they took the plunge recently, with the Mercedes-Benz Actros tipper. The 4040K 6x4 and the 4840K 8x4 are available as completely built-up imported chassis.

Powering the Actros is a 12,000cc six-cylinder behemoth that develops 394 horsepower at 1800 rpm and a staggering 190 kgm of torque at just 1080 revs "" which DC claims is the most powerful amongst tippers in India.

The motor is paired to a 16-speed "Telligent" gearbox that selects gears automatically, leaving the driver to concentrate on moving the mass.

I jumped into the cabin to take a short spin on a fully loaded 8x4 4840K. The view, of course, is commanding, but what I liked was the overall layout that's designed to allow the driver ease of operations. And I even espied some bits from the Actros' saloon cousins!

The gearbox makes it pretty easy to drive, just learn to manage the size, and well, Wilhelm's your uncle. Being used to driving cars, driving one of these loaded mega-tonners makes you feel as if everything is happening in slo-mo.

But I drive vintage cars regularly, so I am used to the sensation of bureaucratic braking and acceleration.

Built for mining applications, the Actros is built like a Panzer and can handle the abuse. With an amazing ground clearance and nifty safety features, one of these would have been nice during the recent Mumbai delug.

srini@business-standard.com