There are many long nose trucks in large areas. So many long nose trucks, just because it looks nice I think we can all agree that it cannot be used.

Of course, long-nosed trucks in and around Europe, flat-nosed trucks in and around America although rare We see. There are several reasons why this distinction is so sharp; So let’s talk about what they are.

First let’s talk about the legal restrictions on the length of the trucks:

Most of the trucks currently on US highways are long nose (standard cab) trucks, as we just said. Average lengths total 21 metersand the length of the trailer is 16 meters. Unfortunately this was not always the case.

There was a problem with limiting the length of trucks that could travel on US highways, Motor Carrier Act. Because of this law, the length of the recovery vehicles was kept as short as possible and an attempt was made to keep the amount of freight transported as low as possible.

However, with the update of this law in 1980, the length limit was abolished and only the size of the towed trailer was limited. This allowed truck manufacturers to produce trucks of different lengths. This rule, of course, only applied to America, and manufacturers in Europe still had a rule for overall length. 18.75 meters they had to comply. So they continued to keep their noses straight to maximize the amount of payload they could carry.

As you can imagine, trucks with huge engines.

The smallest examples can start with inline 6 engines of about 10 liters and progress to 12-14 liter V8s. Of course also these huge engines. to suit it’s not an easy job. For example, the engine of a flat-nosed truck is positioned directly under the driver’s cab, so that it fits together with the necessary components. Of course, this positioning also entails some drawbacks.

First of all, because the engine is right below you. sound insulation is poor and vibrations are huge happens at level. While this is tolerated in large quantities on new trucks, it has been a major problem with trucks in the past. Moreover, due to the fact that the engine is below you. your cabin is small and the ceiling height is low happened. Given the time the trucks were on the road, this became a major problem. The solution to this was hidden in long nose trucks, which we call standard cabs.

Now that we no longer have a problem with the length, they must have thought why the engine under the driver, they added a nose to the truck and put the engine in this nose. This gave manufacturers two advantages. First and foremost the cabin: significant growth and increased ceiling height it happened.

Second, the engine away from the cabin The noise and vibration associated with it have decreased and long journeys have become more bearable. If long nose trucks have such significant advantages, why aren’t they available in Europe?

The effects of road and urban planning on the length of the trucks:

One of the biggest problems as a truck driver is that vehicles 18 or 21 meters long are in ports, in parking lots and in the city. lead. But the Americans are slightly more fortunate in that regard. As a result of American geography and structuring, cities are separated from each other. it’s far away, the roads are wide and straight, the ports and parking lots are huge too. This makes it somewhat easier to drive such long vehicles and does not make the overall length of the vehicle a critical issue.

Unfortunately, the situation in Europe is very different. Europe’s geographical structure and its very old urbanization structure; narrow roads, short distances, less room to manoeuvre what makes it happen. For this reason, you can gain maneuverability. every centimeter It becomes a huge advantage.

At the same time, if you have a little command of fluid dynamics, it’s a long nose truck. more aerodynamic You can guess what will happen. This also applies to long US highways that are traveled at high speeds and for long periods of time. by fuel consumption provides firm support.

However, contrary to what we mentioned above, travel in Europe is relative shorter and slower. At the same time, the motors are smaller and more efficient. That is why aerodynamics do not play as big a role in European trucks as in American trucks.

For this reason, although the Americans abandoned the straight nose and preferred the long nose, most likely the Europeans were even if the law allows it they wouldn’t prefer long nose trucks.

Long driving hours and the design of the trucks contribute to this:

In fact, this topic, which will be a continuation of the previous title, is also travel times related to. If you think; The comfort, living space and similar features that the vehicle will provide are directly proportional to travel times. Some trucks that can be the best example of this construction site trucks.

Since a truck on the construction site runs for a maximum of three to four hours a day and not every other day, doesn’t need a closet. But regardless of America or Europe, long-haul trucks have at least a cabin for a bed.

But of course our American and European trucks differ from each other in this. Let’s talk about travel times first. An actively working truck in the United States, on average per day 14 hours working and this is 14 hours 11 hours on the road pass. The remaining 3 hours are spent on extra work such as breaks and refueling. The rest of the day the driver sleeps in a truck parking lot and continues the next day.

In Europe, however, the situation is very different. 9 hours limited by law Although it is not possible to continue driving, there is no situation where you have to drive more than 9 hours a day. Because as we mentioned above the distances are short and the journeys are short. Therefore, European trucks can have smaller cabs than their American counterparts without disturbing the driver.

While American drivers own the trucks, Europeans are usually hired or contract drivers.

One of the major differences between trucks in Europe and trucks in America, or rather truck drivers, is that most American drivers are at the same time. owner of the truck that is. On the other hand, European truck drivers have a high percentage driving rental cars or contract drivers work like Well, if you ask what effect this has on the design of the truck, let’s explain right away.

American truck drivers usually spend all their time in their trucks as they own the truck and trailer. After picking up a load and leaving it in a different place, they refill the same trailer and continue on their way. In this process they don’t get off their truck for long. For this reason, a large living space and large storage areas are an important requirement.

For European truck drivers, however, the situation is reversed. Since European drivers usually work with contract or rental trucks, only working hours they are found. They don’t have to sit in the truck for the rest, because they will never have anything to do with that truck or trailer again.

European truck drivers, who we can call happier in that regard, obviously do not need as much space and comfort as their American colleagues. Already in a region like Europe, flat nose trucks the benefits it offers: When we think about it, it becomes clear that it is better not to have it.