From Euro 0 …
I’ve been driving a 1989 military Iveco Daily 40.10WM for about 16 years. And I loved it. The truck had an appearance full of character, leaving a feeling of what you see is what you get. Yes, call it a straightforward Land Rover-like look. Simplicity, ruggedness and… even comfort. The truck was very noisy, but I made substantial efforts to bring the noise down by about 10 dB, which made a huge difference for the ears. I liked the sound of the engine. It sounded powerful, trucklike and indestructible. And indestructible it was. When the truck had been down for say half a year – because often I left it abroad – the engine started as if it had been driving happily up until the day before. The smoke and the smell of the exhaust was precisely what you would expect from a Euro 0 engine. Disgusting.
Beautiful memories of the old Iveco 40.10WM military version, exploring Beni-Snassen mountains, south of Berkane – Morocco
The truck had five forward gears, of which the first I only used in case of steep slopes or very slow driving. Of course, it had low gear, as well as rear and front differential locks, which made it a capable off-road vehicle. The Iveco didn’t like driving on highways. Already at 80km/h the engine revved about 2800/min. I mean, it was no problem for the truck. It was rather me who didn’t like driving it on highways.
I remember with pleasure the fantastic adventures with this truck all over Europe, in Morocco, Tunisia, Turkey and up to Syria.
The driver’s cabin interior was straightforward and simple. No electronics whatsoever. And, of course, from this perspective and experience, I was very sceptical about switching to a Euro VI engine for overlanding.
… to Euro VI
In the meantime, I changed my mind.
Driving an old car is nice. But driving a new one is nicer. Because it means less noise, less toxic exhaust, a more comfortable cabin, airco, probably a better payload, etc.
It took me a substantial amount of time to convince myself of the idea of selling a beautiful and reliable 1989 Iveco Daily 40.10WM Euro 0 truck, and exchange it with a modern chassis and all the electronic stuff involved. In the meantime, and after successfully tackling the Silk Road with the new one, I’m completely at ease and glad about my decision.
The new Daily 4×4 Euro VI taking a break in the High Caucasus – Georgia
Nevertheless, when you’re making plans for overlanding outside of Europe, it’s always a good idea to inform yourself about the intricacies of a Euro VI engine. Especially the sensitive exhaust system, in order to be at least mentally prepared for what might go wrong (but probably won’t).
To somewhat reassure you, if you need a spare part, you probably won’t find it anywhere. It will have to be sent from Europe. But that’s not the end of the world, and one can live with that idea. In many cases, you would encounter the same challenge with an old truck. In any case, don’t leave without a diagnostic computer. It will help you tackle small problems, erase fault codes, and sometimes better gauge beforehand when things could go wrong.
As I found the Iveco E.A.S.Y. Eltrac to be scandalously expensive, I opted for FICOM diagnostic software. The system is far from as extensive and detailed as the E.A.S.Y., but it helped me a lot. For example: in keeping an eye on the exhaust system and more specifically the DPF and SCR, resetting the CPU after service, clearing fault codes, etc. Ultimately, it allowed me to drive home from Kirgizstan in spite of a rather alarming and recurring message from the AdBlue system, which I was able to clear everytime it popped up (and it did a hell of a lot of times).
The people at FICOM are willing to solve your issues, by adding new possibilities to the software. They try to maintain compatibility with Iveco E.A.S.Y Eltrac as much as possible. I asked them for instance to add a manual regeneration of the DPF, which they installed for me within a few weeks. But, the DPF – which was my biggest concern – worked flawlessly during our 2019 Silk Road expedition. It even introduced an automatic regeneration at an altitude of 4500m, just before arriving on top of Ak Baital pass in the Pamirs. This felt like a kind of symbolic event. Yes, this truck is capable of traveling the world’s most remote places.
And, this same remote world is developing rapidly. Country after country advances from diesel with high levels of sulphur to (near) European standards. Although it was very difficult – and mostly impossible – to find clear and trustworthy information on the internet about diesel quality along the Silk Road beforehand, once on the road, I found out how quickly things are positively evolving. So, after reflecting on the 28,000kms along the Silk Road and back, I wouldn’t hesitate to do it again with this truck.
There’s another thing to keep in mind. Statistically, the chance of a break down with a modern engine is much lower than it is with an old engine.
Driving a Daily Euro VI along the Silk Road
Below is an overview of diesel quality as of April to August 2019. As a general rule of thumb, I only filled up at filling stations that looked clean and well maintained. If you ask their employees about fuel quality, most of them find it a strange question. They mostly seem to be unaware about differences in fuel quality. Nevertheless, some were very helpful and even went to ask their manager, who sometimes knew…
Generally spoken, Russian brand fuel stations like Lukoil and Gazpromneft would be trustworthy and deliver low sulphur Euro 5 diesel (indicated as K5 = equal Russian standard).
As a general rule of thumb: try to always fill up with Euro 5 diesel when possible. Don’t panic if you have no choice but to use Euro 4 (or even Euro 3). Try to mix the ‘bad’ fuel with the good one from the spare tank. A proportion of 1 part ‘bad’ to 3 (or even 2) parts good diesel in our case worked very well.
Overview of diesel quality along the northern Silk Road
According to my experiences and available information between April and August 2019.
| Turkey | Euro 5 everywhere as standard | |
| Georgia | Euro 3 in most filling stations Euro 5 in some filling stations Euro 5 widely available around big cities |
In recent years there has been a scandal with deceptive fuel quality from Socar, the Azerbaijani state fuel company. I avoided filling up with them. |
| Armenia | Euro 5 diesel only available at a few filling stations in Yerevan | |
| Azerbaijan | Euro 4 diesel | |
| Dagestan/Russia | Euro 5 diesel | If possible, fill up with the known brands. Be aware of fake brands that (mis)use the colours and symbols of reliable ones. E.g. Lukoil and its fake counterparts like Luxoil, Lekoil, Lukoi, etc. Caution: there are no filling stations for about 400km soon after Makhatsjkala till Liman, 115 kms before Astrachan (Lukoil station). In between we almost ran out of fuel, facing heavy headwinds which made our fuel consumption rise up to 19L/100km |
| Astrachan, Wolga delta/Russia | Euro 5 diesel | |
| Kazakhstan | Euro 5 diesel since september 2018 | I would recommend to fill up only at the well known Kazakh brands, like e.g. Helios. There is a Helios station in Beyneu where you can fill up before tackling the 520kms stretch to Nukus, or better, the 1600-2000kms (depending on your itinerary) to Lukoil in Tashkent or directly to Dushanbe in Tajikistan |
| Uzbekistan |
Euro 3 or maybe even 4? At least that’s what some people say. In fact, people here are not aware about fuel quality and what it means Euro 5 diesel (K5) only available at Lukoil Tashkent. |
I filled up two times with ?? and ?? L of local quality diesel and mixed it with Euro 5 quality from the reserve tank. I didn’t notice any negative consequence from it at all. This filling station opened up in March 2018. So far it’s the only one in Uzbekistan to deliver K5 diesel. |
| Tajikistan | Euro 5 diesel (K5) available at Gazpromneft in Dushanbe |
A few kms before Khorog, I added some diesel with unknown quality in the main tank and mixed it with good fuel from the spare tank. I didn’t notice any negative impact from it. In Murghab, I wouldn’t recommend fueling up with diesel from barrels. Neither did I need to do so. |
| Kirgizstan | Not sure about general fuel quality. No information available. | Euro 5 diesel at Gazprom in Gulcha just after the Pamir Highway. Probably Euro 5 at Partner Neft (=Gazpromneft) in Naryn |
| Kazakhstan | Euro 5 diesel everywhere | I would recommend to fill up only at the well known Kazakh brands |
| Russia | Euro 5 diesel everywhere | I would recommend to fill up with the bigger brands. |
Indication of fuel consumption being a considerate and quiet driver
From Belgium to Uzbekistan: not more than 12,5L/100km. Probably as a result of almost constant tailwinds and low average speed.
Fuel consumption was higher in the Pamirs because of bad road conditions, higher altitude and desert rides.
From Katu Yaryk to Belgium: much higher fuel consumption because of considerable headwinds, especially from Novosibirsk onward.
Overall fuel consumption during our 2019 Silk Road journey: 14,6L/100km.
Overview of AdBlue availability and consumption along the northern Silk Road
According to my experiences and/or available information between April and August 2019.
It appears that AdBlue is finding its way to Central Asia, though very gradually. Probably as a result of people from Central Asia who buy second-hand Euro V & VI trucks in Europe and drive them home overland.
| Georgia |
TEGETAMOTORS, Davit Aghmashenebeli Avenue, 5 (12th km) http://www.tegetamotors.ge MATE MOTORS 0159 Tbilisi, 2a Marshal Gelovani ave,tel: +995 32 238 00 02, mob:+995 596 22 22 22 |
| Armenia | MANNOL, Yerevan, Sasuntsi Davti St., 66 Building Found on the internet, but didn’t check this on the spot. |
| Azerbaijan |
AsMotors – Babak Avenue 29/A, Baku, AZ 1106, +994 50 894 09 09 – info@asmotors.az Confirmed via email |
| Dagestan, Wolga delta/Russia |
Mercedes-Benz service Astrachan, Ulitsa Aeroportovskoye Shosse, 109, Astrakhan, Astrakhan Oblast, Russia, 414018 I bought 2x10L with them. |
| Kazakhstan (European) | We’ve seen AdBlue at a filling station near Kulsary AdBlue at Helios Station Beyneu just before entering the town. |
| Uzbekistan |
Uz-Prista JV LLC 100084 Tashkent, 107 B Amir Temur Avenue – +99 871 1206776info@prista-oil.uz – www.prista-oil.com Found on the internet, but didn’t check this on the spot. |
| Tajikistan | Availability of AdBlue not confirmed. |
| Kirgizstan | Availability of AdBlue not confirmed. |
| Kazakhstan (Asia) | Iveco Service Almaty Address difficult to find: N43° 19.896′ E76° 58.492′ |
| Russia |
Iveco Service Barnaul AdBlue available all over the country, though certainly not in each filling station. |
AdBlue at АЗС (AZS) station n°14 near Kulsary – Kazakhstan
One tank (25L) of AdBlue, depending on the conditions, might suffice for up to 7000km. As a rule of thumb for overlanding and dealing with diverse circumstances, I would count 5000km for one tank.
Iveco service stations along the Silk Road
According to my experiences and available information between April and August 2019.
| Georgia |
Only one service point in Tbilisi. They know the Iveco Daily 4×4 Euro III (I met one on the road with a Georgian license plate). AdBlue available at Tegeta Motors on the opposite side of the road. |
| Armenia |
Iveco service in Armenia at Sayat-Nova, Masis (17km SE of Yerevan) Very friendly and helpful staff. |
| Azerbaijan | There should be a service station in or near Baku, but I couldn’t find it. I went to MAN Service Baku for a general service (oil and filters). I used my own FICOM software to reset the service interval. |
| Dagestan, Wolga delta/Russia | No Iveco service |
| Kazakhstan (European) | No Iveco service |
| Uzbekistan | No Iveco service I went to the very professional MAN Service in Samarkand for an alignment of the rear axle. |
| Tajikistan | No Iveco service |
| Kirgizstan | No Iveco service |
| Kazakhstan (Asia) |
Iveco service in Almaty Proficient and helpful. Went there for oil service and filters. E.A.S.Y. software wasn’t up-to-date. |
| Russia |
Iveco Service Barnaul Very proficient and helpful. E.A.S.Y. software was up-to-date. |