8x8 Actros

[Summiitt]

Put the Actros thru its paces yesterday on a project up in the mountains building a small ski run, I managed to find the limitations of the truck, all due to tyres and frost on the ground, once it turned to mud and I got some grip, the truck was amazing, as we were off public roads, 20+ton payloads on 20-25 degree slopes and the truck never faulted..very impressive bit of kit, I used low range but could have done without it, the ability to select which difflocks to engage is a real bonus in tight bush work.

[Homestar]

Did you get to play with it in the snow today?

[Summiitt]

No, but today I took the 130 up beyond mount Franklin with my workshop trailer to service a digger, almost snow, gale force winds and slippery firetrails..just another day out!!

[rrturboD]

From the bitumen streets of Deakin and Yarralumla earlier in the week to the dirt roads of snowy mtns .....

[LandyAndy]

MONSTER
With our 6x4 Actros prime mover the big problem with the diff and cross axle locks is they tend not to release when under load in slippery/loose conditions,you then have to back off even stop as you cant steer,how does the 8x8 go???
Andrew

[Summiitt]

Pretty well instant, haven't yet had an issue with not releasing, the dash display of what's locked is essential to seeing what the drivetrain is doing, but like any cross lock = no steering, it is also interesting that the truck is a constant 8wd in on road mode..

[dromader driver]

Is it an otto or manual?

[Blknight.aus]

to help with driving in frost if its only just starting to harden the ground try running your front steers 20psi higher than your intermediate steers and running your outer of the duals 20 psi higher than the inners

this will make them cut through and give some drive while the other wheels will give you some floatations.

Dont drive extended distances on bitumen roads like this.

for landy andy.

try adding some moly grease into the diff oil (say 100-200gm worth) about 1000 KM before servicing and before it gets drained lift the drives and repeatedly actuate the locks while they are all turning over. if it smooths out and remains smooth immediatlely after the service but begins to get worse add a half measure of the amount of moly you added the first time, if that shows some improvement add another 1/4 measure. trial and error till you hit the right amount.

If that keeps on working you can either make it standard to add the grease as part of the diff service or look into an oil with a better "filling" package.

Ive heard of this also working with PFTE lubes but Ive also heard stories of that causing other issues. with air actuated stuff.

[Summiitt]

It's a 16 speed manual with an auto controller. You still have to clutch and manually select each gear but it will skip gears depending on load and throttle movements. You can split each gear manually if required. It also has low range so a total of 32 gears