Mercedes-Benz Arocs Tipper Truck Storms The Hill For DA Commercials
Faced with a steep hill on one of his company’s routes, owner-driver Dan Ayling of DA Commercials decided that his fourth Mercedes-Benz Arocs truck needed to be his most powerful. Hence, his new Arocs 3253 tipper has a 12.8-litre, inline six-cylinder, OM 471 engine with 530 horsepower (390 kilowatts) to handle the hill near Exeter, Devon.
“The tipper has to get over the top of Telegraph Hill five times a day,” says Ayling. “We’ve found that using bigger engines for this work is both quicker and more fuel-efficient, because the truck is not having to work as hard.”
An Arocs Mixer, Too
DA Commercials of Beer, Devon, delivers concrete, tarmac, aggregates, and sand throughout South West England. Ayling needed the more powerful tipper truck to make 64-kilometre (40-mile) round trips out of Stoneycombe Quarry near Newton Abbott in the English Riviera region.
Mercedes-Benz Trucks dealer City West Commercials supplied the new Arocs 3253 with a ClassicSpace M-cab and a roof-mounted Ecco light bar. The truck rides on shiny Alcoa Dura-Bright alloy wheels. Aliweld of Ryton, Newcastle, provided its insulated, aluminium tipping body.
DA Commercials also purchased an Arocs 3243 mixer truck last September. It was fitted with a mixer body from McPhee of Glasgow and a 10.7-litre, 428-HP (315-kW), inline six-cylinder motor.
“The mixer makes up to six deliveries a day and the journeys are shorter,” Ayling says. “Sometimes it won’t do more than 20 miles in a day but it spends a lot of time ticking over on sites.”
Technological Advantages
Mercedes’ combination of technology and service won Ayling’s custom away from a competing truck brand, according to the manufacturer. Both new Arocs came with the visibility-enhancing MirrorCam system. MirrorCam eliminates a truck’s side mirrors and replaces them with a system of cameras. Removing the side mirrors also enhances the vehicle’s aerodynamics, which improves its fuel efficiency.
“Rear visibility is certainly better. Reversing into tight spots is very easy now,” says Ayling. “More importantly, though, by doing away with the mirrors and replacing them with roof-mounted cameras, Mercedes-Benz has also effectively eliminated a massive, forward-facing blind spot. I’ve been driving for more than 20 years and can tell you that’s a huge safety benefit, particularly on the approaches to roundabouts.
Ayling says the drivers of both new Arocs trucks were initially skeptical of giving up traditional mirrors in favour of MirrorCam, but both quickly changed their minds once they spent time in DA Commercials’ new Arocs.
“They’re getting on really well with the new dashboard too, as it’s so easy to use,” Ayling says.
The twin-screen dashboard of the DA Commercials Arocs’ Multimedia Cockpit was upgraded with a larger, 12-inch instrument panel and satellite navigation.
Residual Value
Mercedes’ Arocs range of 18- to 41-tonne (20- to 45-U.S.-ton) construction trucks includes tractors, rigids, dump trucks, and concrete mixers. The rugged, versatile Arocs line is available with a variety of cabs and axle configurations from 4x2 to 8x8.
In December 2021, Aylin sold an older Arocs trucks to downsize his fleet. “Pricewise, I did very well. The 2014 Arocs went for nearly three times the figure achieved for a 2014 French-built tipper I sold at the same time,” he says. “Our Mercedes-Benz trucks have lived up to their reputation for reliability, while on the evidence of that first sale they will also do so when it comes to residual values.”
Find The Right Mercedes-Benz
Truck Locator gives you plenty of opportunities to buy new and used Mercedes-Benz trucks for sale, including many Arocs models for various applications.
Source: Mercedes-Benz