Oi! Get in the Kew...! Biglorryblog is grateful to Alex Saville in Scotland for reviving memoriesof that great '50s B&W homage to the British haulage industry...yes 'Hell Drivers'! And he says: "Brian, here are a few photos from further north than Helmsdale, John Gunn's of Lybster, Caithness, Kew Dodge tipper. Sitting in the sun by the side of the A99 thinking of missing out on the fame in Hell Drivers with Stanley Baker!"
Alex continues: "You may not see this on your way north to Orkney if you turn left at Latheron to go to Scrabster for the ferry. If you go up by Wick to Pentland Ferries, however, you might be in luck!" Now click through here for more of that Dodge Kew and 'Hell Drivers!'
I'm assuming Perkins power by the badge on the grille...did it come with a choice of engines?
Kerbweight: 3 tons, 8 cwt, 2 quarters... But back to Hell Drivers. If you haven't seen it I'd recomend it (available from Amazon) as it's the ultimate UK trucking film... The 1957 epic featured the rough tough world of British aggregate haulage! Phew!!! It's line-up was a veritable Who's who of British character actors including the aforementioned Stanley Baker, Herbet Lom, Patrick McGoohan, Willam Hartnell, Peggy Cumming, Sid James, Gordon Jackson, David McCullum and even a young Sean Connery play second-fiddle to a fleet of rip-roaring Dodge Kews (although many think they were Leyland Comets) travelling at speeds of up to (gulp) 50mph! Indeed, to quote the great Barry Norman: "And why not?" the story line involves ex-con Baker trying to go straight working in the only business he knows - aggregate haulage - whilst battling with a dodgy boss and a bullying foreman. Sounds familiar?
Anyway now you know why 'Hell Drivers' is in Biglorryblog's all-time Top 10 of Trucking Movies! Check it out and let me know what you think of it.
Looks like that 'Kew' is shod with Michelin 'XB's at the back -- brilliant tyres, we swore by them on Central Africa's dirt roads.
The Dodge was also available with a 6 cylinder side-valve petrol engine.