The Forward Control

         Cab Over Engine also known as Forward Control. Many famous off-road vehicle manufacturer such as, Jeep and Land Rover made their forward control variant. But, what is forward control exactly?

         By its definition, forward control is a body style of a truck or van that has vertical front or flat face, with the cabin or cab of the truck sitting above the front axle. This truck configuration is currently common among European and Japanese truck manufacturers, because the laws governing overall vehicle lengths are strict and the body style allows longer trailers or a longer cargo area for the same overall length.

         In early 1907, the Sternberg Company of Wisconsin produced cab-over trucks, though by 1914 only their seven-ton model was a cab-over. And in 1933, they reintroduced the cab-over layout with their "Camel Back" model, which allowed the cab to be tilted to access the engine.

        The introduction of the first modern cab-over layout in the U.S. is credited to industrial designer Viktor Schreckengost, who with engineer Ray Spiller designed a cab-over truck for the White Motor Company in 1932. The laws of the time limited truck length to 42 feet (12.8 m) on highways. Sitting the cab over the engine saved several feet of cab length, which was added to the trailer capacity. Schreckengost patented the design in 1934.

       As for the advantages of cab-over, its design allows the vehicle's wheelbase to be shorter than the conventional arrangement. Its shorter wheelbase allows cab-over semi-trucks to have a shorter overall length, thereby allowing for longer trailers to be used or a greater length for the truck body or load area.

       But there is likely disadvantages. Some drivers have complained, however, that the shorter wheelbase in the COE trucks gives a rougher ride than those with conventional cabs, as the driver's seat is above the front axle and that the cabs tend to be noisier because the engine is directly below, though some of this is dependent on the amount of noise-dampening insulation used in the construction of the individual vehicle.

        In early cab-over models, the lack of a safe crush zone in the front made them far more dangerous in the event of a crash. However, modern designs employ stiffening beams in the doors to help prevent collapse during a front-end collision, steering columns are typically collapsible, all models include seat belts, and some models are equipped with airbags.