Mercedes-Benz has won International Truck of the Year with its new Atego.
The title is awarded annually to the vehicle which the judges feel makes the biggest innovative contribution to road haulage in terms of economy, emissions, safety, driveability and comfort.
The Atego polled 127 points from the judging panel while the second-placed vehicle scored 82 points.
Features that elevated Mercedes’ entry included its comprehensive list of standard equipment, and its electric hybrid drive version.
The judging panel’s verdict said: “In the new Atego family, Mercedes-Benz presents a versatile medium-duty truck with ‘two souls’. On the one hand, the short-radius distribution driver now gets equipment which not long ago was reserved to long-haul drivers. On the other hand, the progressive parallel hybrid drive promotes the reduction of the CO2 emissions of commercial vehicles.”
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l-r: Georg Weiberg, head of truck product engineering; Hubertus Troska, head of Mercedes-Benz trucks; Andreas Renschler, head of Daimler trucks and Daimler buses and Gianenrico Griffini, chairman of the International Truck of the Year jury.
The new Atego range includes trucks from 7.5 to 16 tonnes GVW, all with new styling.
The Atego 1222 BlueTec Hybrid is a 12-tonne GVW vehicle powered by a 4.8-litre, four-cylinder diesel engine, producing 160kw supported by a 44kW electric motor.
The diesel engine and electric motor work in parallel, so both can drive the vehicle individually or in combination. The lithium-ion batteries can also be fed with energy recovered during braking.
