Mercedes-Benz India is gearing up to introduce the newest generation of its Actros heavy tipper for coal mining. Barely 15 months after CKD assembly was first started at a leased facility, the company has already begun pre-production assembly of the Actros 4841 MP3 four-axle tipper at its brand-new plant in Chakan towards a possible launch in June.

The Actros 4841 MP3 will replace the second-generation 4840K, of which close to 500 units have been sold since it was first brought in as a completely built-up vehicle in June 2006. It is expected to incorporate many of the optimised features from the new Actros sold in Europe except for the powertrain.

The engine is a Euro-3 version of the Mercedes OM 501 LA available in the 4840K with 408hp (at 1800rpm) and 2000 Nm (at 1080rpm) of peak torque, compared to the 398hp and 1850 Nm in the present model. The 4841 is also expected to feature a two-pedal automated version of the Telligent electronically controlled G240-16 transmission on the 4840K that allows significantly quicker gearshifting.

The Actros MP3, launched in Europe in January 2008, won the International Truck of the Year 2009 award, beating Iveco’s Eurocargo and the new Volvo FH and Scania R-Series with EGR engine into second and joint third. With this, all three generations of the Actros family have been voted International Truck of the Year, following earlier successes in 1997 and 2004. The dedicated commercial vehicle assembly hall at MBIL’s new Pune headquarters has a capacity to assemble four trucks/bus chassis a day or 1,200 a year. In addition to the new Actros, the company is looking at introducing a three-axle coach later this year, managing director and CEO Wilfried Aulbur indicated.

He is sees good prospects for Mercedes-Benz city buses, which Autocar Professional learns are in the pipeline for introduction in 2011. “We anticipate significant growth in hi-tech low-entry buses of the type Volvo sold around 240 of last year, as several Indian cities establish bus rapid transit systems, which have proved themselves as a truly sustainable mode of urban transportation in major cities in South America. Besides, a high-quality bus system is vital for cities that want to project themselves as a brand,” he told reporters.

MBIL is in the process of setting up an engineering team at the Pune plant as an extension of the Mercedes-Benz R&D Centre in Bangalore, he announced. The 10-strong team is presently focused on design-engineering seats for the Mercedes-Benz coach that is bodyworked by Sutlej.