I'm sure a few of you have seen Bruce Wilson on Youtube. He bought a 1997 V8 Scania tractor unit and was very impressed with the technology in it. Then went on to the Scania factory in Sweden and ended up buying a new 770hp Scania and bringing it home.

People (American truck drivers) seemed very impressed with it and his old one. I'm sure there are some type approval and construction and use issues and differences between a European truck and domestic one, but would there be a market for these trucks in the USA, would their presence rattle a few cages with domestic brands?

It looks like European trucks work better with the trailer very close to the cab, so the 5th wheel would need moving back on your trailers, but there must be a reason why you have yours set up like that.

A guy at work as a fairly new Scania V8 which I've posted on here. Speaking to him recently, he said the new DAF (Paccar) cab is now better and he bought his dad a Mercedes because is dad said while the Scania was nicer to driver, the Merc was better to live in, and he can be away for weeks at a time. So I doubt there's that much in it in terms of comfort and useability between European trucks.

What does the panel think?

You could drive all day here and not get out of France or if you went the other way not get out of Germany. The closest town in Iraq is about 3,000 miles away. You would probably be away 3 weeks at least to get there and back when you factor in boarder crossings, maybe over a month

I'm not sure it's classed as a relegation. I know 3 Brits that have driven modern American trucks and all 3 said how basic they were compared to what we have here

You should watch Bruce Wilson's videos, he was driving a 1997 Scania and saying how comfortable it is. That's an old truck

Have you ever drove a cab over compared to a regular hooded road tractor?  10? years ago I was semi shopping auction in the county had several cab over GMC’s I new they were less desirable and thought I might get a deal.  Went to the sale and after climbing in one I was told myself it would have to go stupid cheap before I’m interested.   They didn’t go cheap enough.   My conventional road tractors are no harder to get in and out of than a farm tractor.  Different but no harder. 

Good god a lot of guys on here too lazy to crank open a slide gate on a hoppper bottom let alone climb what seems like steps you’d find at an elementary school playground to get in the cab.  

I've driven one Scania dump truck, 1 DAF LF 220 (like a Peterbilt 220) and a few Petrerbilts on US harvest, the Scania and DAF were much nicer to drive and were quite low spec trucks too

Unless you are working the coasts I would not want a European truck. Be like a Bronko going across the country at  65-80 mph.   Most of EU is 90 km for trucks (about 55).  crawl in & out of sleeper.  I like the walk in.  They would get around tight areas better, but I have done 1000 miles plus in a day on a semi ( I don't start a log untill I am out of state)  230-300" WB is much nicer ride than 140"  . The other reason for American semi tractors is our BRIDGE LAWS.  Depending on what FIEFDOM you are working in we can haul a load.  some states allow 160,000# gross I think depending on axels.  we are allowed in Montana depending on axel spacing 80-84000 on a 5 axel setup  &  up to 130-140000 for 9 axels

Have you watched his videos? He is saying how comfortable and easy to drive they are compared to domestic trucks. a 20,000lb tractor unit with 770hp hp at the wheels is like driving a big pickup, was what he said. The sleepers are pretty much all stand up cabs, whether that's a Scania, DAF, MAN, Volvo or Merc. All air ride with 4 air bags on the cab. Go and watch the videos

Give up just because it works in the land of tea and crumpets doesn’t mean it’s fitting for the US.  Honestly my Freightliner is easier to get in than a 3/4 ton pickup and honestly I’ve rode in pickups that rode rougher than it does.   Matter of fact my mom’s cousin used a Freightliner like a pickup for years. By far a vast majority of farm semis are bought used so we get the trickle down of the trucking industry.   Anymore seeing a cab over on the road is very rare.  So unless you can swoon the trucking industry to go to jungle gym cab it’s not flying.  As far as standing up in the sleeper I couldn’t care if you could do cartwheels in the sleeper anything but a day cab won’t work for me do to seeing coming off the scale we lease access to. 

I've no dog in the fight, but watch the videos. He's saying that they don't compare to US cab over trucks, way more comfortable with a lot of technology. What I wanted to know was could they be made to work in terms of construction and use regulations. The steps into the cab aren't straight up like your cabovers, they curve into the cab, so access isn't an issue and the interiors are all stand up

Maybe.

Are those people that he took for a ride in the original, old (1997) V8 he bought getting paid to say nice things about an essentially end of life machine?

I don't doubt Scania have been helpfull getting that new one to him, but to me, it doesn't sound like a Scania commercial, more like a little boy at Christmas. A mate of mine has a Youtube channel.

What I've seen already on here is that you say a European truck won't work because the cab is in the "wrong" place without driving a European truck, just comparing it to decades old domestic trucks. Instead of saying, "this is a really nice machine, the cab is a bit small for our tastes, maybe extend the wheel base, put a deeper cab on it and make it legal in the USA/NA and it would work." It looks to me like you would have the best of both worlds if the best features of the European trucks were but in an American truck. It seems a shame to not even look at them to me.

I’ll stick with my statement. Keep in mind I find running boards more of a hindrance than a help. 

Videos are like pretty girls, they overlook a lot.  Parts, service, people who know how to fix the item without me paying for the learning all factor into my truck fleet.  I need twin screw trucks in the fields. I also need trucks that parts are reasonable.  A $700 throwout bearing on a 26000 pound truck is not reasonable.  A full clutch pressure plate with a new throwout bearing change costs that in my trucks for parts.   Injectors are more reasonable.  waterpumps are on the shelf. about any shop can work on them.  Shops that understand my trucks are a dime a dozen. Scania shop might be 1000 miles away or more.   Breakdown in eastern Montana  might cost more than the truck is worth

The last year that I worked at M. S. Carriers they had started buying some COE Freightliners. Before that, everything had a hood. I never drove one but I did ride in one with a guy to get some lunch once. They were double bunk trucks. The intent was to give them to the driver trainers and team operations. One of the biggest problems they had with them was that some of the drivers, especially the trainees, kept running into things with the passenger side of the truck. Those cabs were W---I---D---E.

Edit to add:

My first experience in a semi was in cabovers. In my middle teens I moved by brother's Emoryville around in the field. Later learned to drive his White Freightliner with a 318 Detroit and a 13 speed. First job where I got paid was a COE KW with a 350 Cummins and a 9 speed. I've also driven Transtars and a couple of Freightliners of a mid-1990s vintage. I would have to get pretty hungry to take a job driving a COE today. Most of my miles were logged in a Navistar 9400 or KW T800, but a few were in a Volvo (as few as possible).