2016 Iveco Eurocargo ML150E28 4x4: Review

If there's no tougher theatre for trucks on this planet than outback Australia, then this Iveco Eurocargo has reserved the most remote and challenging bits as its office – and it's taking it all in its stride, one kilometre at a time.

With its striking camo livery, massive Michelin X tyres and phalanx of off-road accessories, it 'talks the talk' but it also 'walks the walk', as it's proven over 70,000 kilometres since it signed on with Daryl Beattie Adventures in 2016.

If that name rings a bell, it's probably because Daz, as he's more commonly known, came second in the 500cc World Motorcycle Championship in 1995, finishing a handful of points adrift of one Mick Doohan. These days Daz is also a part of the sports commentary team on Network Ten – or at least he is when he's not guiding a gaggle of Honda dirt bikes or adventure bikes on his fully-supported tours.

The mothership
That's where this Eurocargo ML150E28 4x4 comes in, serving as a mobile base and backup vehicle for the tours – the 'mothership' that carries everything from food and fuel through to spares, tools, tyres and tour participants' luggage.

The tour company has been operating for five years now, its trips across the Simpson Desert and up to the tip of Cape York now complemented by a range of (slightly) less arduous runs centred around Honda's Africa Twin – a heavier, more powerful machine than the Honda CRF450X enduro bikes used on the more technical trips.

I was recently privileged to jag a ride aboard an Africa Twin with the company on a 2600-kilometre odyssey through the Kimberley in northern Western Australia. However, in the middle of seven-day epic, I managed to prise the key to the Eurocargo from the grip of driver Lachlan 'Scooter' McLean – no mean feat given it's his 'home away from home', and the crucial role the truck plays in the firm's operations!

"It's a shame you're not getting a drive of it through some really tough country, like the Simpson," Scooter remarked as I climbed up behind the wheel, a relatively flat expanse of the infamous Gibb River Road stretched before me.

Still, my relatively brief run east through this remote slice of Oz gave me a taste of the Eurocargo's ride, while relying on the vehicle for food, water and more at the end of each day underlined just how pivotal a role it plays.

Fit for purpose
The result of a collaboration between Iveco Australia and Daryl Beattie Adventures, the Eurocargo ML150E28 (as in, a 15t GVM/GCM and 280hp) 4x4 features a custom body by Gold Coast-based specialist UNIDAN Engineering, and it tows a custom Barra Tracker trailer made by Atherton-based manufacturer, Tait Welding.

It rolls on parabolic leaf springs with a single shock at all four corners and its rims are shod with Michelin X off-road tyres in hefty 395/85-20 dimensions.

Powering the show is Iveco's 'Tector' in-line six-cylinder turbo-diesel; a relatively compact 5.9-litre unit with selective catalytic reduction to meet Euro5 (ADR 80/03) emission compliance, and boasting maximum outputs of 205kW (279hp) at 2700rpm and 950Nm between 1250rpm and 2100rpm.

The drive is fed via a ZF constant four-wheel drive set-up (33 per cent to the front wheels, 67 per cent to the rear) via a six-speed synchromesh manual transmission and dual-range transfer case, while triple diff locks – front, centre and rear – can also be called upon in particularly rough going.

When fully loaded for a tour the truck and trailer come in at around 13.5t, utilising the majority of its 15t limit, and when you consider everything that needs to be carried it's easy to see why.

The long-range 600lt diesel tank is complemented by a 500lt petrol tank, the latter used to refuel the Hondas when necessary (fairly often, given the distances between services in the outback). Then there's the 1000lt drinking water tank (filled at Daz's Gold Coast base – sure beats drinking stinky bore water) and a 400lt tank with hot water system for showering and washing dishes.

Behind the wheel
Inside the Eurocargo's three-seater day cab it's all pretty standard fare, save for the array of screens mounted on the dash. There's a dedicated tablet for the GPS (with Hema off-road mapping), plus another for the camera at the rear of the truck. This allows Scooter to monitor the trailer, which could otherwise be dragging on its bare rims unbeknown to anyone…

There's also a GPS tracking device that reveals the truck's exact location via a page on the Daryl Beattie Adventures website – some consolation for tour-goers' concerned friends and family – and a satellite phone and UHF radio for comms.

With medical services usually so far away, safety is something the company takes very seriously. Both the ride leader (Peter 'Buddha' Luczkowski, who actually served as chief mechanic for Mick Doohan and later Kenny Roberts Junior in the World Motorcycle Championship) and sweep rider (Daz) carry comprehensive first-aid kits and are remote-area first-aid trained, and the truck carries a comprehensive first-aid kit with a defibrillator.

Penthrox is also carried for severe pain relief – if you're ever needed 'the green whistle' yourself I'm sure you'll be glad you had one at the time…

The truck's custom body is divided in three sections. The first third is a storage area for participants' luggage and the supplied 'Bunker' stretcher beds (which fold out in a flash and feature integrated midge/mozzie-proof netting), plus a 'media station' which features no fewer than eight charging points (a mixture of 12-volt and USB) and a 3000-watt inverter.

The middle third has four 110lt Waeco freezers for food, with all the meals stacked in order of the days on which they'll be consumed. There's a massive fridge too – nothing like a cold beer at the end of a solid day's riding in 30-plus-degree heat. There's also more storage here for everyone's bedding – with up to a maximum of 13 people on any given trip, that all takes some space.

The leaves the final section as the truck's workshop, with all manner of spares and tools to keep both the truck and the bikes operational through areas where the nearest proper workshop could be days away.

Lighting the way
Then there's all the myriad accessories dotted about the vehicle to make life on the road that little bit easier. There's a bank of four Narva Ultima 215 LED lights up front (click here for our separate review) plus a Narva LED light bar on the roof, which together light the way for well over a kilometre ahead.

At the start of the Gibb River Road we passed a sign stating: 'Warning, stock on road, next 645km'. These parts demand a top lighting system – so you can avoid a major incident before it occurs.

Twin ladders on the back of the truck give access to the roof, where there multiple spare tyres for the bikes and a mini crane to help lower either of the two spare truck tyres located immediately behind the cab. Also on the back are the recovery tracks for use if the truck becomes bogged (a rare occurrence, by the way) while on the offside, just behind the cab, is a compartment for storing the Honda generator.

The side of the body has two nearside doors that open up on hydraulic struts, giving a heap of shade and protection from the elements, and there's a sturdy ladder for access (to anything in the truck's body, but especially the beer fridge!).

There's also a variety of LEDs to light the immediate vicinity after dark, as well as the huge slide-out barbecue. Hell, there's even a Nespresso coffee machine, for crying out loud!

The custom Barra Tracker trailer is fitted out to hold up to nine Honda CRF450X dirt bikes, while another two can be squeezed into the rear workshop section of the truck if required. The trailer rolls on four wheels with independent trailing-arm airbag suspension and the rig really cops a hammering, being towed along in a constant plume of dust and debris. It's also used to haul firewood, which sure beats collecting the stuff at the end of a long day.

Both Scooter and Daz speak highly indeed of the tyre self-inflation system. AIR CTI is the firm responsible, and it allows the driver to constantly monitor the pressure in all four tyres and inflate or deflate them as conditions dictate. The air lines can occasionally become snagged on roots or foliage on tighter tracks (not an issue on the Gibb River Road), but Scooter reckoned the benefit offered by the system is huge.

"It can save us 20 or more minutes per pressure adjustment compared to regular manual tyre deflators," he said. "And over a long day that can be the difference between getting into camp before sunset or not."

With the amount of wildlife and stock wandering about in Australia's remote regions, driving after dark should be avoided unless absolutely necessary.

On the road
A six-litre engine mightn't seem like much to power all this but the Eurocargo gets along just fine, maintaining an easy 100km/h on sealed roads or 70-80km/h on the dirt. Depending on conditions, you don't really want to go any faster, lest you get caught out by a sudden washout, floodplain or creek crossing.

Going easy is the key to mechanical survival out here, and carrying excessive speed has been the undoing of many an off-road tourer – bikes, cars and trucks alike.

Being the start of the dry season, the Gibb River Road was actually in pretty good nick, with many sections having recently benefitted from the attention of a grader. Give it a couple of months, however, and the stream of four-wheel drives, caravans and road trains that travel this far-flung route will have chopped it up and formed the teeth-rattling corrugations for which 'the Gibb' is infamous.

The clouds of dust thrown up by traffic present a very real threat. Overtaking another vehicle should only be accomplished with the assistance of radio contact, just to be certain the road ahead is clear, while pulling over and stopping is the only smart option when a three- or four-trailer road train is headed your way.

Vision to the rear? Forget it – beyond the camera view of the trailer there's nothing but an impenetrable haze.

Willing and able
The Eurocargo feels happiest between 1500 and 2100rpm. Uphill grades require a downshift to fifth or fourth, but it's impressive in the manner in which it'll happily hold fourth up some extended climbs.

Let the engine revs drop below 1000rpm and it bogs down, so keeping the revs up pays dividends. Redline is indicated on the tacho at 2750rpm, but if conditions require it it'll happily rev to these speeds without any issue.

Water levels in the many creek and river crossings we encountered had already fallen significantly, but rest assured this high-riding beast doesn't lack for ground clearance or fording ability. The maximum approach angle looks healthy indeed – less so the departure angle, due to its rear overhang – and there's sturdy-looking front under-run protection.

As far as cabs go, the Eurocargo's is really pretty decent in terms of comfort. It's a day cab, giving as much room as possible for the truck's custom body, and so there's not much in the way of storage room, but the driver gets an adjustable air suspension seat and all the controls are just a short reach away.

On this particular trip Scooter had none other than Jeremy Burgess riding shotgun, former crew chief to multi world motorcycle champs Mick Doohan and Valentino Rossi. Yep, it was a veritable travelling mini motorcycle GP reunion!

As for gripes, Daz says they're few and far between, but he is looking to improve the cab suspension.

"The damping settings aren't right for really rough going, like over the dunes in the Simpson," he says.

"We're working on a solution for that now."

Not that I experienced any undue 'wallowing' of the cab on the Gibb. On the contrary, the suspension effectively ironed out the worst of the corrugations, dips and potholes we encountered, and the cab suspension and driver's air suspension seat took care of the rest.

Top support
Daz spoke highly of the backup he's received from Iveco Australia throughout his association with the brand.

"Nothing's been too much trouble – they've been there to assist us every step of the way," he said.

And when that work entails repeatedly tackling the Simpson, the Cape, the Kimberley and the Red Centre, it's that first-rate back-up that makes all the difference.

Related reading:
Iveco Eurocargo race transporter: Review
Iveco Daily 4x4: Review

2016 Iveco Eurocargo ML150E28 4x4 specifications
Engine: 'Tector' F4A E28 5.9-litre in-line six-cylinder turbo-diesel
Power: 205kW (279hp) at 2700rpm
Torque: 950Nm at 1250-2100rpm
Emissions: Euro5 (ADR 80/03)
Transmission: ZF six-speed synchromesh manual with dual-range transfer case and triple diff locks
Configuration: Constant 4x4 (33/67 split front/rear)
Front suspension: Parabolic leaf springs with shock
Rear suspension: Parabolic leaf springs with shock
Front axles: Iveco 5956, hub reduction with diff lock
Rear axles: Iveco 451146/1, hub reduction with diff lock
GCM: 15,000kg
Wheelbase: 2450mm
Diesel capacity: 600lt
Petrol capacity: 500lt
Drinking water capacity: 1000lt
Shower water capacity: 400lt
AdBlue: 25lt
Brakes: air/drum, with ABS and three-stage exhaust brake
Cab: Day cab, seating for three
Body by: UNIDAN Engineering, Qld
Trailer by: Barra Tracker Trailers by Tait Welding, Qld
Tyres: Michelin X, 395/85-20 XZL
Tyre self-inflation system: AIR CTI, Vic
Web: www.iveco.com.au