Fuso Fighter 2427: Review

Name: Fuso Fighter 2427: Review
Brand: Fuso

Designed for medium/heavy duty in the general freight and specialised vocation work sectors, the Fighter FN range has been quiet achiever for quite some time…

Although the Fuso Fighter has been around in its current configuration for a few years now, the range remains popular in this country for its strength, reliability and no-frills honesty.

The Fighter was upgraded in 2011 to Euro 5 emissions using basically the same Fuso 6M60 six-cylinder in-line four-valve engine. Since then, the Fighter has received minor upgrades but remained as basically the same truck as launched.

In its current form, the 6M60 puts out 199kW (270hp) at 2500rpm and 784Nm between 1100-2400rpm.

The FN Fighter comes in a few different configurations including 6x2 and 6x4, manual and automatic transmissions and differing wheelbases.

Our test vehicle was the 6x2 with the ‘XXLWB’ of 6530mm and a GVM of 23,200kg. Transmission was Allison MD3500 six-speed auto.

Our first look at the Fighter 2427 was outside the Daimler Trucks and Bus offices in the Melbourne suburb of Mulgrave, and parked kerbside the truck looked bigger than expected. I was really expecting something slightly larger than a Canter but was greeted with the sight of this big, long and low truck.

Overall length is just over 11 metres and the cab is Fuso Wide cab with a width of 2450mm. The standard 275/70 tyres give a reasonably low tray height but the overall effect is of a pretty big truck.

Our test truck was set up as a 14-pallet curtainsider and we were loaded to around 16.5 tonnes.

The axles are also Fuso with the front being rated to 6300kg and the rear at 17,200kg with a ratio of 5.857:1.

Home sprung

Suspension on the Fighter is conventional parabolic leaf on the front and air suspension with trailing arm on the rear. According to Fuso engineer Romesh Rodrigo, who was on the test with us, the suspension is all Fuso: "It's a big advantage having our own suspension," he said. "It makes us the master of our own destiny and we can tweak it however we want to suit the truck and its application."

And the suspension certainly proved its worth over the course of our full day of driving in around Melbourne and its outer environs.

The truck rode really well with a good front-to-rear balance. There was no shudder from the rear and it all acted in a very civilised manner that one might expect from – dare I say it – a more expensive truck.

Big and roomy

In the cab, the first impression is one of space. The Wide Cab is just that – wide. The driver gets an Isri seat, the passenger a fixed but comfortable perch and the middle seat, should you need it, features a full-width base and a high back.

Over the back there is enough room to throw a mattress and have a kip, and it's ADR 42 approved so you can do your rest time in there if necessary. I did notice a curtain rail on the roof as well so you can get a bit of privacy should you need it.

Vision from the driver's seat is great with the big windows aided by the quarter windows in the rear of the cab which can help with peripheral vision, and the 'transom window' in the lower section of the passenger's door.

Instrumentation is comprehensive and easy to read with a little info screen between the speedo and the tacho displaying trip computer info and other handy data for the driver.

The transmission is handled by a T-bar shifter which has a digital readout and a button for power and economy modes.

The fascia is flat with old-style HVAC controls close to the driver and the rest of the switchgear within handy reach. The right-hand stalk has the cruise control gear while the left has the exhaust brake and wiper controls.

In the centre of the fascia is the multimedia unit that apart from the usual audio system incorporates the sat-nav and rear camera. The camera also has audio so you can hear your co-pilot scream instructions as you back into someone's car in the parking lot.

In terms of storage, I found the cab a little light-on. There's a small overhead storage unit above the driver, a small box in the fascia and the usual spaces in the fold-down middle seat. Apart from that there are map pockets in the doors and storage behind the seats in the bunk and that's about it.

On the road

Our test route took in a bit of freeway driving, some urban roads and then some testing hilly sections on the south-east outskirts of Melbourne which I was particularly looking forward to.

On the freeway the Fighter is a dream, smooth and quiet, and it cruises effortlessly at 90km/h at around 1750rpm. A top-limited speed of 100km/h sees the revs at just under 2200rpm, which is very near the maximum of both power and torque.

Our urban drive revealed the truck to be quite manoeuvrable despite the XXL wheelbase. Claimed turning circle is 22 metres but it felt less – or maybe I just got used to it. In traffic, the auto box made for light work with smooth and quiet shifting both up and down.

On the hilly sections, the torque came to the fore and the engine lugged down around 1100rpm before down-changing in the higher gears. I did notice a pretty big step between third and fourth, which Romesh said may be addressed in future models depending on their task.

In the Allison box, fourth is direct drive while third is 1.535:1. Obviously, both fifth and sixth are overdrives at .749 and .651:1 respectively.

On the test, I left the Fighter mainly in Economy mode only switching to Power on the way to lunch… I found the Power mode does get the truck going a bit quicker but it is discernibly more harsh and revvy and consequently a bit more noisy than in Economy.

The Power mode also hangs onto fifth a lot longer and only hits sixth on dead flat roads and downhills when you're north of about 80 or 90km/h. Not ideal for fuel economy.

Power mode might have got us to the lunch stop a bit earlier, but I preferred the more sedate and civilised shifting of the Economy mode.

As with all autos, the Allison can be driven manually by shifting the T-bar to the left and flicking up and down through the gears. It held well on a couple of steep descents where I kept it down in third rather than use the brakes and it worked faultlessly (as you'd expect).

It's interesting to note here that in the little screen on the dash your gear selection is displayed, which I found handy a couple of times.

There are few other little idiosyncrasies with the Fighter which Romesh said are just part of the constant development of the truck and which, although they're not going to deal-makers or breakers, combine to give the Fuso a difference, if not an edge over the opposition.

In terms of economy our readout was telling us that the fighter 2427 was returning around 3km/litre but Romesh, who has spent a lot more time in these vehicles, said that the real-world figure would be between 3-4km/litre depending on usage and load.

Overall, I enjoyed my day in the Fighter. It is a very easy truck to drive and live with. It's roomy, comfortable and quiet and not at all as rudimentary as I expected. It is well appointed for its task and it's not surprising that these trucks have proved so popular for so long.

Service and Warranty

Fuso is offering a very keen 30,000km, 12 month or 600 hour service interval (with a rider for severe conditions), which is up with the best in the market, as well as a five-year warranty which we’re told is the best in the business for this class of vehicle.

Fuso Fighter 2427 pricing and specifications:

Engine: Fuso 6M60 six-cylinder in-line OHC four-valve turbo-diesel

Displacement: 7.5 litres (7545cc)

Power: 199kW (270hp) at 2500rpm

Torque: 784Nm at 1100-2300rpm

Transmission: Allison MD3500 six-speed automatic

Configuration: 6x2 (6x4 available)

GVM: 23,200kg

Fuel: 400 litres

AdBlue: 40 litres

Brakes: Fuso full air, dual circuit, ABS, auto brake adjust

Wheelbase: 6530mm