Why we drive what we drive...

Before we start belting the daylights out of engine and truck makers...
Here is a place to put an honest account of why you drive what you drive..

i am not a fan of any particular breed....
pure circumstance i have 2 Inters...
We also run Isuzus, because they suit our need too...

My choice and why......
Transtar 4070 (1971):
For no other reason than i have liked the look of them since i was a kid..
Until i bought it i had only ever sat in a Linfox one in Sydney at about 10 years of age..
Bought this particular one, because it became available, it was a sleeper and it had a 6 cyl. Cummins...end of story.

Inter S line 2670 (1990):
I wanted to upgrade a detroit powered 8 wheel SPG540 Isuzu..
I had $35000 to spend...
I wanted:
a conventional cab, for ease of access.
'American' drive line
6 cylinder cummins engine ( they have been reliable for me)
Day cab suited as i needed the tray space.
I needed to be able to sleep in it for a short while each day, a fold down bunk could be made and fitted
So the field was starting to narrow considerably.

I had driven many makes of vehicles in the past, and sline being one of them..
Running gear was available 'over the counter'
Gal cab got rid of the rust problem, tilt front for engine access.
By no means a 'flash' truck, but very functional
To date parts have not been a problem,
I could make or adapt anything for the cab, should the need arise.
My situation changed, i have since fitted a 36"bunk.
In the cab itself , there is room for me, a bag of gear, a big fridge to feed and water a couple of us for a few days...
Thats why i drive what i drive...
7 years on...i'm still happy with the choice i made...
If she had to go....Maybe a Western Star,,,only ever sat in one of them to move it into the shed....
chocs

Great idea for a thread Chocs
My lil lady,the bank and I own a one truck and dog operation.
We run a 2007 UD CW385.
Whilst it isnt yankee iron or European comfort, I find it perfect for what I do.
We have a contract with a local sand quarry and as the work involves mostly sand deliveries to building sites in and around the Cairns area, the the UD is ideal.
It has a great turning circle, great traction on crappy ground, good fuel economy, reasonably comfortable. great brakes, freezing cold air cond, good carrying capacity and the they seem to hold their resale fairly well.
Over all very happy with it

Cheers
Big Al

Al copy and paste the "IMG code" next time, your picture will come up. Nice looking UDD too. is that a Big Rigs bin?

Thanks for that Cam.
Mate, sure who the manufacturer of the bin was as it was on the truck when we bought it. No distinguishing names on it but it does look like a lot of Shephard bins I have seen.
I believe it was a kit set.

Funny you should bring this up, 2 weeks ago while writing a eulogy for my Dad's funeral I got to thinking about all the cars and trucks he had or wanted to have over the years and it occurred to me then that most of the cars and trucks I own now were either given to me by Dad, the same as Dad had owned in the past or something he either wanted to own or had driven/worked on at some time. People have been telling me for years that I am a copy of my Dad and maybe now I am beginning to accept it. So in short I guess it is mostly my Dad's influence that shapes what I drive.

Mate of mine owns Big Rig, one of his sheds is accross the road from ours. looks like one of his, should be on the mod plate near the VIN plate, not that it matters. Shephards sell a lot of kits for tippers, yours has a Big Rig head board. They just buy the sides off Shephards and do the rest them selves.

Thanks for that Cam.
Mate, sure who the manufacturer of the bin was as it was on the truck when we bought it. No distinguishing names on it but it does look like a lot of Shephard bins I have seen.
I believe it was a kit set.

Why i dirve what i drive ? Probably because it was cheap
Not into flash jiggers, realy wanted a Western Star with a series 60 but they were still to dear plus they are 3/4 of a ton heavyer. Probably because the truck had just 400000 in 5 years and was owner driven, light tare. Mack is just down the road so parts and service are eazy and best of all it runs on the smell of an oily rag

my first trucks were aussie ..prob a bad decision at the time as the rigid jap trucks were "a bit" better than the local product"
first truck a 1610a acco .. 345 "powered" that old jigger used to run from as far as sydney to townsville ..in no time at all a 392V8 and a lpg conversion came along . . .
then came a couple of D series fords both 300ci petrol powered ... same problem no comfort for long distance and a little thirsty ..
then cam a dodge 318 powered(5 speed box with 2 speed diff) ..was a good truck esp with a worked motor and a custom interior saab bucket seats etc" ..she would do a interstate trip as quick as a modern semi also was reasonable on fuel
then cam a couple a UDs ..they were good trucks nice big cab reasonable on fuel..
then cam a JCR 500 isuzu most reliable truck ever..
current truck is a mitsubishi FM557

..other "backup" trucks weve had are 3 leylands
1 hino and a little toyota dyna ..

. . . . reason for so many trucks is i get bored easily and also average 100.000kms a year .. :-X

i always liked ACCO's, dunno why but i just do.
i wanted a diesel tray truck that was a bit on the vintage side.
one day when my dad was doing a job on an old farm he spotted the butterbox in the shed. he showed me a picture of it and said it was a perkins. i liked it so we asked the owner if he would sell it, and he did
this is the picture of where it sat for about 4 years

For me, it all started when my old man got collecting old tractors. We'd go to rally's when i was younger and watch everyone else having a ball on their "pride and joy's", but as dad was more into collecting/restoring rather than taking them out to shows, we never really participated so i thought to my self when i can afford it id love to purchase my own truck one day and have a ball with some of our "pride and joys".
I got my licence, started saving for a half decent Slimline KW, always loved the way they looked, and it HAD to be GM powered! (being young and silly, you go for the screaming noisey motor with only stuff all torque, over the quite relaxed horsepower of the Cummins variety, dont ya??!! )
So anyway the right one came along at the right price and i ended up with her.
She's by no stretch of the imagination the tidiest truck leaking oil up the hwy, but its the best one i own!
Maybe if i can tear myself away from the tractors for awhile ill do a few jobs on her but at the moment, she's half reliable, gets the job done and keeps the local bowsers low!
Cheers,
Slim