Driving Scania lorries in Norway…why not?

An offer I couldn’t refuse

I don’t know about you, but the opportunity to drive a lorry doesn’t come up very often, so when Scania rang and asked if I fancied a go I jumped at it. For most of us, if we ended up in the hot seat of an artic we’d have undergone a career change, or be putting on some brave shoes in the event of an emergency. An emergency you’re already in the cab of a lorry for while it’s driving. Perhaps a hitchhiking disaster? Anyway, I digress. 

The best place to pick a new skill quickly is in a safe environment with an instructor on hand to hold your hand and make sure you don’t cock it up, which is why Scania thought it’d be a good idea to go to snowy Norway for a go in pretty much everything it has to offer. 

Spoilt for choice

About an hour from the Trysil ski region, it laid out a shortish course with twisty bits, straight bits, nothing big to hit and essentially said ‘go nuts.’ Scania’s range isn’t as straightforward as, say, VW’s. If you want a VW there’s a set range and a handful of different engines and body styles within. You pick the one that works for you and off you go. For trucks it’s different. There’s rarely an off the shelf solution, instead, buyers can decide whether they need a small, medium, or tall cab, if they want it deep for sleeping, the number of wheels attached to it, how big its engine is, ICE or EV, and what kind of things they want to put on the back of it. The back of the truck is the most fascinating bit - when you or I think about lorries we think about a whacking great box on the back, but what if you need to move logs from the forest? Or coal? Or…anything you can think of. 

The selection of trucks to play with was incredible. To my uninitiated eyes it was rather a lot, frankly. All of them had something big on the back, none of them were running empty. Hence, a logging truck, something full of what looked a lot like rocks, and even a snow plough. I made a beeline for a small one to get my eye in - a 45 R A4X2NB. The numbers and letters in its name denote power, cab size, bed type, number of wheels, number of driven wheels, suspension, and more depending on how deep down the rabbit hole you go - messy, but helps connect the dots of what the spec is. This was a special one, not just because it was popping my lorry cherry, but because it’s electric. The two wheel drive, air sprung monster packs a 624kWh battery and lobs out 2,582lb ft ‘o twist. 

There’s a first time for everything

I’d love to say I wrestled with it, pulling off moves that’d impress the hardcore of the road. Instead, I gingerly put it into drive, and trundled around the course, cooing about how quiet it was. In truth, I was nervous because I’d never driven a lorry before. What did strike me, other than the silence, was how easy everything was. The ‘wheel is big, and assisted to the Nth degree, so my arms felt no strain. Its huge mirrors meant I could see everything going on down the sides of the truck. Unsurprisingly, power delivery is slick and smooth. If anything was going to take the edge off, a smaller EV was going to be it. 

Military service

Next, I hopped into an old military truck because…well, why not? A relic from Scania’s past, it came with a manual gearbox that, thanks to more torque than any mortal would know what to do with, could be left in second from the off. Being an older gal, it was rough, noisy, and had heavy controls. Chains wrapped around its tyres made the going lumpy. With no electronic nannies to steady my way I had to rely on my right foot to make sure things stayed moving enough to stay out of trouble. Thankfully, Scania popped a person who knew what they were doing next to me in case of the worst. Thankfully, he didn’t didn’t need to step in. 

V8 is the Nordic King

Blinded by choice, I stepped into a 770 R A6X4NB. Powered by Scania’s V8 - a huge fan favourite - it kicks out 770hp and more than 2,700 lb-ft. V8s are the jewels in Scania’s crown. Huge, torquey, and tuneful, they’re what you throw at the really big jobs. Buoyed with more confidence, I was happy to put on my big trucker boots and give it a bit more welly. 

Scania’s cabins are a feast of screens these days - while it’s a pain in car land, for trucks that need to do lots of different things depending on the jobs a screen that can adapt quickly is a good thing. The fact it’ll do Apple CarPlay as well is a bonus. 

Flipping the V8 into drive, I went as quickly as I dared. It occasionally scrabbled for grip on the snow, but quickly found its footing. With a loaded up trailer, it may not have been troubling its max 100 tonne weight, but the extra chunk can’t have hurt. Yes, the EV was smooth and quick, but the V8 felt pleasingly old school. What did let it down was its gearbox - it comes with gears in the double figures, and each shift takes its time to land. ‘Box aside, it felt rather heroic to buzz around the little course. I wasn’t done quite yet though, there was one more truck to play in: the 560R B6X6HA. The snow plough. 

Lorry driving is snow joke

A straight six kicking out 560hp and more torque than a couple of Veyrons to all six wheels, it has a salt spreader on the back and a chuffing massive spoon on its nose. Much like its siblings it was easy to get going, had great visibility (at least around that track), and I felt safe as I indulged my toddler-self’s biggest dreams. I was told to flick a joystick forward and turn right. I did both, the spoon lowered, and a snowbank was suitably knocked down a peg. Snow had been ploughed, I had done A Thing and it was excellent. 

I left Norway with a newfound respect for people who drive these things every day. They’re massive, and no matter how well you can see out of them, you know that threading them through tight cities is fraught with danger. I had everything set to easy mode. But that doesn’t take away the key points: They’re big, fun, and don’t half make you giggle.

words: Alex Goy
pictures: Scania