KamAZ-5490

KamAZ-5490 at a glance

The KamAZ-5490 is a heavy tractor unit built for pulling semi-trailers over long distances, not a rigid truck or an off-road vehicle. It is built by KAMAZ in Russia, a truck maker founded in 1969 in the Soviet era, and it was the first truck the company developed jointly with Daimler Trucks.

The layout is conventional for a European-style long-haul tractor: a cab-over-engine design, two axles, drive to the rear axle only and air suspension at the rear. There is no all-wheel-drive version and no hybrid; the only alternative-fuel models in the family are the diesel and natural-gas variants of the later NEO. In the KAMAZ line-up the 5490 took over from the KamAZ-5460, the company's earlier two-axle tractor, and a similar three-axle version is sold as the KamAZ-65206. The factory code for the 4x2 tractor is M1842. For the rest of the range, see all KamAZ models in our catalogue.

Development with Daimler Trucks

The KamAZ-5490 grew out of a component partnership rather than a licence deal for a whole truck. Daimler is usually described as a strategic partner of KAMAZ from 2008, and in December 2010 the two companies agreed a joint venture for axles.

On 16 September 2011 Daimler Trucks and KAMAZ showed the KamAZ-5490 to the public for the first time at COMTRANS, presenting it as the first truck they had developed together. According to the Daimler press release and the German trade magazine Eurotransport, the truck used Daimler Trucks components adapted by KAMAZ and met the Euro 5 emissions standard. Mercedes-Benz cabs were to be delivered to KAMAZ from the second half of 2012 and assembled at the KAMAZ plant, with full industrial production of the cab there to follow. A new KAMAZ model series with Daimler components was planned for 2014.

Series production is generally dated to 2013. In March 2014 a news agency reported that batch production was under way, with 96 vehicles built in 2013. Fleet orders followed: the logistics company ITECO, for example, took delivery of 50 KamAZ-5490 tractors with new semi-trailers on 30 December 2015, after agreeing the deal at COMTRANS in September 2015.

Cab and chassis

The cab is a licence-built version of the Mercedes-Benz Axor cab, and KAMAZ also used it on the KamAZ-65802. ITECO describes its trucks as coming with air conditioning and heated seats, but equipment depended on the order, so treat any single list as one customer's specification.

The chassis follows heavy-truck practice. The front axle is a rigid beam on leaf springs, and the rear axle is a rigid driven axle with air suspension, which helps keep the fifth-wheel height constant as the load changes. The fifth wheel sits 1,150 mm (45.3 in) above the ground, and the fifth-wheel load is about 10.5 t (23,150 lb).

German data list the laden axle loads as 7,100 kg (15,653 lb) at the front and 11,500 kg (25,353 lb) at the rear. The same source gives a turning circle of 15.0 m (49.2 ft) and a maximum gradient of 18% at the full 44,000 kg (97,003 lb) combination weight. The electrical system runs at 24 V, using two 12 V batteries in series.

Engine and gearbox

The standard KamAZ-5490 engine is the Mercedes-Benz OM 457 LA, a four-stroke inline six-cylinder turbo-diesel with charge-air cooling and a displacement of 11.97 litres (730 cu in). It produces 315 kW (428 PS) at 1,900 rpm and 2,100 Nm (1,549 lb-ft) at 1,100 rpm, and it meets Euro 5. A lower rating of 295 kW (401 PS) is also listed in German sources.

Peak torque arriving low in the rev range suits long-haul work: the engine can pull a fully loaded combination at modest revs, and that is where a diesel of this size is most economical. KAMAZ's own V8 diesels are sometimes linked to the 5490 in older listings, but we found no reliable source showing them as a standard engine for this model.

The usual gearbox is the ZF 16S 2221, a 16-speed manual, driven through a single-plate clutch listed as the MF 430. ZF automated gearboxes were offered as an option, and by the time of the NEO buyers could choose between two manual and two automated ZF gearboxes. A test truck driven by Indian trade journalists in 2018 had an intarder retarder with its 16-speed box, together with EBS, ESP and ASR, but that was one vehicle's specification rather than standard equipment.

We found no independent fuel-consumption figure for the KamAZ-5490, so we do not quote one. Real consumption for any tractor of this class depends mainly on the load, the trailer, the route and the driver.

KamAZ-5490 specifications

The table covers the original KamAZ-5490 with the 315 kW engine, using the manufacturer data quoted in German and French sources. Where they disagree, we give a rounded figure.

Sources differ slightly on the kerb weight (7,900 kg or 7,990 kg) and on the exterior dimensions, which is why those rows are rounded.

KamAZ-5490 NEO and later versions

The KamAZ-5490 NEO went into production in April 2017, with a first batch of 135 trucks announced for the end of that month. It was built alongside the original model rather than replacing it at once.

The main changes were a wheelbase lengthened by 200 mm (7.9 in), to 3,780 mm (148.8 in), an improved chassis and suspension, and fuel tanks with a total capacity of up to 1,100 L (242 imp gal / 291 US gal). The NEO kept the OM 457 LA engine with 315 kW. Six versions were planned, two of them able to run on diesel and natural gas.

The KamAZ-54901, presented in 2019, is the next step. It uses the new K5 cab, whose living space is quoted at 9 m3 (318 cu ft) against 7.5 m3 (265 cu ft) for the 2012 cab, with an inside height of 1,980 mm (78.0 in). Its engine is listed as the KamAZ-910, built under Daimler licence, with 11,946 cc (729 cu in), 331 kW (450 PS) and 2,060 Nm (1,519 lb-ft), driving through a 12-speed gearbox; permitted gross weight is given as 19,700 kg (43,431 lb). These 54901 figures rest on fewer sources than the 5490 data, so treat them as indicative.

How it compares with the KamAZ-5460 and rivals

Compared with the KamAZ-5460 it replaced, the 5490 changed almost everything that matters to a long-haul operator. The 5460 is usually listed with KAMAZ's own V8 diesel, the KAMAZ-740.73-400 with 294 kW (400 PS), and a permitted combination weight of 40 t (88,185 lb). The 5490 brought a six-cylinder Daimler engine, a Mercedes-derived cab and a 44,000 kg (97,003 lb) combination weight.

Both belong to a line that began with the first-generation KAMAZ trucks such as the KamAZ-5320 and its tractor version, the KamAZ-5410, which used tilting cabs and V8 diesels. The company's earlier history is covered in KAMAZ trucks of the era.

The natural rivals are European long-haul 4x2 tractors such as the Mercedes-Benz Actros, the Volvo FH and the MAN TGX. The KamAZ pairs an Axor-derived cab with a Euro 5 engine, so it is a simpler truck than the current generations of those rivals, but its engine and gearbox come from Daimler and ZF, suppliers that European fleet workshops know well. More heavy vehicles are listed in our trucks section.

Ownership, servicing and legacy

No independent reliability survey or long-term test of the KamAZ-5490 has been published in English, German or Czech sources that we could find, so we do not give a list of common faults. What can be said is that the main drivetrain parts, the OM 457 LA engine and the ZF gearbox, are widely used Western components, which helps with diagnosis and spare parts.

When assessing a used tractor of this type, the usual heavy-truck checks apply:

1. Ask for the full service history, including engine oil, gearbox oil and air-dryer services.
2. Check that the rear air suspension holds its ride height overnight and levels quickly with the engine running.
3. On a test drive, make sure the 16-speed manual selects every gear and range cleanly, or that an automated box shifts without hesitation.
4. Inspect the fifth wheel, its locking jaws and mounting plate for wear and cracks.
5. Look over the chassis frame, cab mounts and air lines for corrosion and damage.

In the history of the company, the 5490 marks the point where KAMAZ moved from its own V8 tractors to Daimler-based engineering for long-haul work, and the NEO and 54901 carried that approach forward.