Supplied by Scania (Great Britain) Limited's Maidstone branch, the vehicle is based on a Scania P 320 6x2*4 rigid chassis, featuring a steering rear-axle for maximum manoeuvrability. As a hybrid, the truck's 316bhp/1,600Nm torque, nine-litre internal combustion engine is complemented by an electric machine which delivers 175bhp and 1,050Nm of torque. Using electrical power alone, the truck has a range of ten kilometres, based on a 15-tonne load on flat roads.
The vehicle's 27-feet overall length body has been built by SBR Specialist Coachbuilders of Preston. For maximum accessibility, in addition to its rear doors, the load compartment features four container-style doors on the nearside. To allow for nights out, above the cab there is a crew-pod with two beds. The vehicle has been built to a specification which achieves a three star rating under Transport for London's Direct Vision Scheme.
Matthew De-Machen, managing director of Matthew James Global Relocations, says: "In addition to low noise and low emissions, the hybrid is a particularly economical option for use in London, where our vehicles are often stationary for significant periods of time, due to the sheer volume of traffic."
Scania offers two hybrid rigids for urban operations; a Hybrid Electric Vehicle (HEV) and a PHEV (Plug-in Electric Vehicle). Both work in combination with Scania's DC09 inline five-cylinder engine, which can be operated on either HVO (hydrotreated vegetable oil) or conventional diesel.
The electric machine is powered by Lithium-ion batteries with the energy window set at 7.4kW in order to optimise the in-service life of the batteries. The vehicle can be driven in a pure electric mode without the need of the combustion engine due to the addition of an electric compressor for the braking system and an updated electric power steering system. The driver can monitor the batter state of charge via the instrument cluster, with the most efficient way of charging the batteries being regenerative braking. If the electric machine can manage the braking needs, the energy can be recovered to the batteries. If the braking demands are greater, the service and exhaust brakes will support in the normal manner.