Is the Mercedes-Benz Econic a Rubbish Truck?

News

24 Aug

Absolutely! If there’s one truck out there that’s synonymous with rubbish, it’s the Mercedes-Benz Econic.

After all that is it’s intended purpose. Whilst others cruise the highways and byways in their big bangers, delivering all those lusted-after goods around the country, there are those that will jump behind the wheel of this truck – on the left or right – and pick up the unwanted waste that came with those products: the cardboard boxes, the plastic wrap, the orange peel and everything else we throw in our bins.

For the men and women behind the wheels of this unheralded form of trucking, Mercedes-Benz Trucks is promoting its safety-first Econic at the Australasian Waste and Recycling Expo, which opened in Sydney on August 24.

The Econic is a waste-industry focussed machine which will spend most of its day’s curb-crawling (in a good way). The truck is designed to make life easier for those brave men and women who have to dispose of your disposed and often smelly garbage.

Now, whilst the Econic can’t do a lot about the odours emanating from your bins, it can do a lot in regards to safety for its drivers. This is the only waste-collection truck in Australia and New Zealand to combine a Direct Vision high visibility cab design with a full suite of fully-integrated active safety features including Sideguard Assist.

The Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) Sideguard Assist system uses twin radar technology to look down the left side of the truck and alert the driver if any vehicles, other objects or pedestrians are in the danger zone.

Select Econic models have been recognised with London’s prestigious five-star Direct Vision rating (formerly known as CLOCS), which measures how well the driver can see pedestrians, cyclists and other road users.

The Econic has a range of other key safety features including Lane Keeping Assist and a radar-based Advanced Emergency Braking System (AEBS) system that can automatically brake the vehicle even if the driver fails to respond to a potential impact. The latest generation of Mercedes-Benz Active Brake Assist can even brake when it senses moving pedestrians.

An optional Blind Spot Camera package is also available and includes four cameras around the vehicle that give the operator complete visibility.

Other benefits available to Econic customers include a walk–through cabin and four seats. There’s always going to be multiple times throughout a working day when your friendly neighbourhood ‘Garbo’ will have to climb down from the cab. In the Econic he/she can simply step out.

The Econic is available as a single control model, or a dual-control version that was specially-developed for the Australia and New Zealand markets.

Both Econic models now feature potent air-conditioning systems, with between 8.5kW and 10kW of power depending on the model. They are well suited to extreme heat of our region, meaning you can keep the windows up to keep out that sweet and sometimes potent smell of peoples discards.

The Australian Waste and Recycling Expo will run across August 24 and 25 at the International Convention and Exhibition Centre (ICC) in Sydney. If you happen to be in the vicinity and rubbish is your bread and butter, it would be worth a look at the Econic.