Mercedes-Benz » Econic I

In 1998 at the factory in Arbon, owned by the NAW Nutzfahrzeuge AG, a subsidiary of Daimler-Benz, began producing of special chassis. By the number of original solutions the Econic could be compared with a concept car. The aim of the developers was to create the optimal design, maximum extended the requests of refuse, cars haulers, airport service, liquid delivery and fire fighting companies. The chassis of Econic model to reduce its cost consists of components from Actros and Atego trucks. The chassis is available in two-and three-axle version with 4x2 and 6x2/4 wheel configurations. The maximum gross vehicle weight is 18 tons (4x2) and 26 tons (6x2/4). The engine is a six-cylinder OM 906LA diesel, turbocharged and intercooled with a working volume of 6.4 liters, an output of 231 or 279 hp at 2300 rpm, connected with an automatic transmission. The chassis is a lowframe type with a loading height of 874 mm. There are two types of cabins with a height of 2 840 or 2390 mm. The cabins have a large driver's door and bus type passenger door, to make enter and exit easy. The first step is located only 450 mm from the ground and floor is above it at 350 mm. The basis of the cabin is a spatial frame made of aluminum extruded profiles, which give it good stability and provide the necessary passive safety. Fiberglass panels are attached to the frame, and can be easily changed after local collisions. The low and forward cab mounting made necessary using an original frame. It consists of two parts, with the front part at 193 mm below the rear. Pneumatic suspension of all axles completed by the constant ground clearance system. Disc brakes with ABS are standard equipment. In 2002, the Econic, running on natural gas, has been presented. In 2003, a fire fighting chassis with 326 hp has been showed, and in 2004 - the chassis with 8x2/4 wheel configuration.