Supplied by Thomas Hardie Commercials, the new additions will bring the number of Volvo trucks in Hadfield’s 32-strong fleet to 20. They are joined by another new addition, an FH-540 8x4 recovery truck.
The FH-500 tractors come with a factory-fitted lightweight axle; with the D13K 494bhp engine, this gives Hadfields a 30-tonne payload.
The new FH recovery truck is equipped with specialist lifting equipment by Boniface Engineering. It joins two other recovery vehicles at Hadfields, both Volvo FM 8x4s: “We’ve gone for the FH with the bigger horsepower engine and the larger under lift gear this time,” says Rob Hadfield, director, explaining that the company is targeting more heavy recovery work.
As with the FH-500 Lite tractors, fuel consumption and price were deciding factors, he says, adding: “The I-Shift gearbox is a big bonus as well, and we decided on the Volvo Engine Brake+ to go with it.”
All the vehicles are supplied on four-year operating leases with Volvo Gold R&M, and will be maintained by the dealer’s Middlewich depot.
“This way we know exactly where we are with fixed maintenance costs, especially now we’re running Euro VI engines,” adds Hadfield.