Yes, I absolutely agree! The man in the film said, "very robust". Driving downhill, using the TELMA mostly ... TELMA gets hot and if you stop the vehicle after using TELMA - there's not enough time for it to cool so either it starts burning (rarely) or even it will take a bit damage. So if you have to drive in the Alps (for example like me everyday with the school bus) and you have to stop right after the hill - either you do not use the TELMA very often or you will destroy it sooner or later.
What I know the telma is almost gone now and has been replaced by the hydraulic or hydroretarder and also Volvo uses VEB. And same with Mercedes and Scania they do not use it any more they use a "regular" retarder.
I've known of the name Telma for decades and knew it was an electric retarder but never saw an explanation of how it works. This is different to other retarders that use oil and impellers to slow the vehicle.
i know for a fact that volvo do not use these, they use a combination of engine and exhaust brake to slow the truck and i bet its a dam sight more reliable than this!
AGDemo a good thing of the retarder like Telma or a voith is that if you put a drive axle in the the trailer with a retarder is easier to go down a Hill without worrying of doing a donut and crashing with the trailer
Single axle drive on the truck with triple axle on trailer? My big old american piece of junk runs at 93K (legally) and those little euro trucks can almost fit in my grain box, by weight or size. European trucks are a little more efficient but ....petite. american companies are adapting much euro technology to save fuel, etc...but there are growing pains... breakdowns of Mann, Mercedes and Volvo.... many of them don't even work when it's 25 Oil pump shafts twisting off, crankcase ventilation systems plugging with ice and fuel systems that don't heat the fuel . I see plenty volvos and freightliners with mercedes engines dead on the northern plains highways. with two decades involved in auto and heavy truck parts I might know what I'm talking about. t I'm happy with my old N14 Cummins. in addition to my very loud Jake and six axles worth of brakes, I'd like to have that Telma retarder
European engines can't handle the poor quality high sulfur diesel used in America, that's why they break down. Scania and Volvo driven in Europe can handle 2,000,000km (~1,200,000 miles) with only oil-changes and filter replacements (regular service) at 100,000km intervals. The engine, nor the gearbox need any rebuilding or major repairs. In Sweden they haul 60 metric tonnes, Finland hauls 74 tonnes, both on 25.25 meters total length. And both countries are trying out ~90 tonnes on ~30 metres length with 730-750hp (3500-3550nm/2580-2620lb·ft) 16 litres engines. The rest of Europe has smaller roads and only allows 40~50 tonnes and 17~22 metres (depending on region). The mover isn't what's counting when talking lorries, you aren't paid for the biggest and heaviest engine, but for the goods hauled. Light trucks and trailers means that you can load more and use less fuel.
Andreas Nyman North American diesel has been ultra-low sulphur since 2006, so I'm not sure where you're going? And it's the fuel system that shits out, not the engines themselves.
GusCowMiller Exactly. 15 ppm is the maximum for sulfur allowance in diesel in the United States. Also higher sulfur is bad for the environment, but good for lubricity, that has nothing to do with how poorly engines run. However the cetane number for U.S. gas is different than in Europe, so the engines perform more poorly in the cold do to that. Europe has a typical cetane number of 51 to 60, while in the U.S. it's more like 42 to 45. In California, however, it's the law to have a cetane of 53. I don't see why Scania, Volvo etc wouldn't make their engines with engine management that would adjust for this number in the same way a turbo car adjusts for different octane fuels as it's basically the same concept.
"foreign" trucks has air brakes and some have manual transmisson and if "foreign" trucks are pieces of shit then why are so much ahead in technology than american trucks? also an american truck wouldent fit in europe we have smaller roads
