Welcome to Will’s Roadtransport Revival – my new daily photo blog of commercial vehicles from yesteryear. Every day I’ll be bringing you photos, press pictures, film stills, brochure shots and advertisements from my own personal collection and from the extensive Commercial Motor and Motor Transport archives.
I’ll want your help too. If you’ve got historic images of commercial vehicles then please email them to me.
And if you spot any mistakes (and I’m sure there will be a few), please let me know.

It might look like a photo-shoot from the mid-1970s, but in actual fact I took this picture 18 months ago in Southampton at the Ford Transit’s 40th birthday celebrations. The “S”-registered MkI Transit at the front has the extended “diesel nose”, which was required to house the Perkins engine. This was one of several early Transits that journalists were allowed to drive on the day.
It was in immaculate condition and drove exactly as it did the day it left the factory – in other words it was loud, underpowered, had appalling ride and handling characteristics and a sliding door that almost amputated a limb whenever you touched the brakes. What’s more, the interior was about as appealing as a fortnight’s holiday in Guantanamo Bay. Hard to believe that this van was class-leading in its day.
The similarly aged Bedford CF ice-cream van was nothing to do with the event and just happened to be parked there.

According to the scribblings on the back of this old Motor Transport photograph, Wolverhampton-based brewer Frank Myatt took these football fans to the 1921 FA Cup Final. They all look quite excited about the prospect of watching local team Wolverhampton Wanderers play Tottenham Hotspur.
When you consider that the game was 135 miles away at Stamford bridge, the dray had a top speed of about 20mph, solid tyres, not much in the way of suspension and bugger-all protection from the rain, this must have been quite a long and miserable journey. You can bet your life the return leg was even more depressing though as Wolverhampton lost 1-0.
Hopefully Frank supplied a few barrels of beer to help them drown their sorrows.

No you aren’t seeing things – it really does say ‘1981’ on the front of this Citroen Type H van. Admittedly this is the last ever one to roll off the production line, but it’s still incredible to think that this vehicle made it into the 1980s.
The Type H (or H Van/H Type/HY) first went into production in 1947, meaning it’s celebrating its 60th year. The first examples used Citroen Traction Avant running gear, later to be replaced by Citroen DS mechanicals. And there’s no prizes for guessing that those headlights were also found on the 2CV.
Over its 34-year run the Type H was built in France and Belgium, and found close to 500,000 buyers. As well as being particularly popular on the home market, it was also a huge seller in the Netherlands.
This example was pictured at the 'Conservatoire' – an amazing museum of automotive oddities at Citroen’s Aulnay factory in the north-eastern suburbs of Paris.

Back in 1907, when Motor Transport was just two years old, it got quite excited about this photograph. Not because the petrol-powered Dennis Bros 3-ton dray was particularly unusual, but because Wm Hancock & Co was one of the UK’s first brewers to use motor transport instead of horses to deliver its beer. I have to confess that I got rather excited about the picture for another reason – back in my university days I used to consume gallons of this stuff.
One-hundred years on and both Hancock’s beers and Dennis trucks still kind of exist today – albeit in somewhat different guises. Hancock’s branded beers are still brewed by Coors Brewers at their Burton plant under license from Interbrew UK, while Dennis Eagle trucks was purchased by Spanish municipal specialist Ros Roca earlier this year.

In my opinion the Peugeot 504 pickup is one of the most underrated trucks of all time – and one of the hardest working too.
Based on the 504 saloon (1969 -1982), the pickup derivative only arrived on the scene in 1979 as a direct replacement for the 404 pickup. The saloon and estate had already developed a reputation for reliability and longevity – and the pickup only enhanced this standing. Although it sold well in Europe, the truck really excelled in Africa. Here its unburstable mechanicals and good ground clearance combined to make it the perfect workhorse. In fact, it even had considerable rallying success on the African continent in the early and mid 1980s – competing in the Paris-Dakar among other races.
While European production finished in the early 1990s (a decade after the demise of the passenger carrying derivatives), incredibly they are still being built in Kenya.
This is the cover of a late 1980s British sales brochure.

This picture may only be a couple of decades old – but how times change.
Today British Steel is called Corus and is owned by the Indians, Seddon Atkinson is owned by the Italians and no longer builds trucks, 4x2s definitely don't haul steel any more and day cabs are virtually non-existent.
The truck is one of a batch of seven Seddon Atkinsons that went into service at British Steel’s Shotton Works in 1985. They were all powered by Perkins Eagle 300 Li engines.

I have to confess that I don’t know where this photograph came from. I found it at the back of a filing cabinet in RBI towers, so it could have been published in Motor Transport, Commercial Motor or Truck & Driver magazine. More importantly, I don’t know when it was taken.
We are looking at a 1976 Guy Big J4T 4x2 tractor, which judging by its condition, is being used as a shunter by Nailstone-based JW Pallett. Whether it’s still in use today I have no idea.
This picture got me thinking – who is running the oldest shunter? If you think it could be you then please tell me about it.

Before the Nazi Party adopted the swastika, and turned it into the most potent icon of racial hatred, it traveled the world as a good luck symbol. It would crop up all over the place – including at Danish brewery group Carlsberg. Although the company dropped it from their trucks and bottles in the late 1930s, apparently you’ll still find a couple carved into huge granite elephants at the brewery entrance today.
This truck, which was photographed in Copenhagen and featured in Motor Transport in late 1935, is a 2-ton Morris with six-cylinder engine.

Back in the late 1960s Mixconcrete was one of AEC’s biggest customers. At this point it already had 150 of them on its 400-strong fleet, but was keen to purchase another 250 over the next few years. Whether it did or not, I have no idea.
This Marshall 6x4 was one of 12 similar trucks delivered in August 1969. For those of you who are interested in the technical spec, it had a 20-ton GVW and was powered by the AV505 engine, developing 151hp at 2,400rpm. It had a six-speed constant mesh transmission and two single-reduction 7.14:1 ration driving axles.

Although his old Motor Transport photo doesn’t have a date on the back, those headlight black-out covers immediately date it to some time during the WWII. Note also those white wheel arches, which were painted this colour in order to maximise its visibility to other light-starved motorists.
We are looking at an Albion, which according to the number plate, was registered in 1938. It’s being operated by Frank Pickard Haulage & Removals of Leeds – and it doesn’t take a genius to work out which of these two men is Frank. Look at the state of the driver’s overalls – do you think they have ever been washed. He certainly wouldn’t get a job at Eddie Stobarts would he?

According to Motor Transport, back in the 1960s, “Ford Motor Company of Holland developed an interesting unit for the transport of up to three heavy commercial vehicles.”
So how did it work I hear you ask. Well, no surprises for guessing that in involved a series of hydraulically operated ramps, which back in the 60s was apparently big news.
This picture shows a Ford D-Series transporter carrying three similar trucks – a pair of D700s and one D200. Other than the odd horsebox I can't remember the last time I saw a D-Series on the road. If you know of one that's still working for a living I'd love to hear from you.

It's only recently that the UK has warmed to the pickup truck concept, and when you consider what rubbish used to be available it's no wonder that we took a while to show any interest. Back in the late 1970s and early 1980s anyone wanting a pickup was forced to pick from such rubbish as the Morris Marina/Ital, the Ford P100, the Renault 12-based Dacia and this - the Hyundai Pony.
According to the 1982 sales literature, this "eye-catching workhorse" combines "economy, efficiency and engineering excellence". It also talks about the vast list of luxury items that came as standard - including vinyl-covered seats, inertia seatbelts and a warning light for the handbrake. They really knew how to spoil us didn't they?
The brochure also boasts that the front half of this vehicle was penned by famous design house Guigiaro. I've just been on the Guigiaro Design website, and funnily enough there's no mention of it!

It might look like an attempt to get into the Guinness Book of Records for the world's largest display of synchronised tipping, but in actual fact this was just JW Hurdiss of Lincolnshire's way of showing off its new fleet of 1993 Fodens.
According to Commercial Motor, the company had just taken delivery of seven 2000-Series 17-tonners. Apparently they were chosen for their strength and low weight, while the "stylish and modern narrow cabs" allowed them get into places with difficult access - like farms, building sites and sometimes quarries.
Is access really an issue with quarries?

Check out the corrosion on this 1975 British Leyland Sherpa, which I found abandoned in a South Wales quarry.
You might be thinking that this amount of rust is excusable on a 32-year old van, but this isn't a 32-year old van. The picture was actually taken in 1989 when the Sherpa was just 14 years old! How's that for disgraceful build quality?
Twenty years later and things hadn't improved a whole lot either. I've just bought myself a 1993 Leyland Daf 200 Series (which is basically the same van), and on a quiet night you can hear it rusting. I haven't bothered with a "No tools left in van overnight" sticker on the back - as I'm assuming any potential thief will simply peer through the rust holes in the back doors.

Delivering cigarettes is a high security business today - with unmarked trucks, security curtains and vehicle trackers. But it was a very different story in 1940. Looking at this picture it's easy to understand where the "off the back of a lorry" phrase came from.
These two long-wheelbase Leyland Lynxes joined the Player's fleet in January 1940.

Check out this incredible wartime photograph from Motor Transport's archives.
Birmingham played a key part in the war effort - and because of this it was a major target for the German Luftwaffe bombing offensive. The protection of the population was down to the Air Raid Precaution (A.R.P) services - thousands of men and women who voluntarily risked their lives for the safety of others.
What you are looking at here is a controlled test of ARP shelters - which have just had a building collapsed on them to see how they withstand the impact. The job of clearing up the aftermath fell to demolition contractors G Williams & Sons of Aston, which removed the rubble in one of its 1938 Bedfords.

This Iveco TurboTech was one of eight similar trucks to join the P&O Ferrymasters' fleet in 1990 - the first UK-registered 190-32s to be fitted with air suspension. This one is pulling one of 65 Montracon-Tasker curtainsiders that joined the company's Anglo-French self-drive operation that year.

This might just look like a normal Morris Minor van - but in actual fact you are looking at a real rarity. The photograph was taken in an Oklahoma junkyard, and shows one of just a few hundred Minor vans to ever make it across the Atlantic. While the Minor saloon, convertible and Travellers were all relatively popular Stateside in the 1950s, BMC couldn't give these things away for love nor money. It seems Americans couldn't be persuaded to swap their gas-guzzling sedan deliveries.
Of the 300 or so Minor vans to be registered in the US, the vast majority were used by BMC dealers as parts delivery vehicles. So you can bet they worked hard for a living!

It doesn't seem like long ago that our roads were full of original Ford Cargos, but other than a handful of horseboxes and recovery vehicles, they seem to have largely disappeared. I can't remember the last time that I saw a tractor on the road.
I couldn't resist publishing this photo as it's almost identical to the ex-Royal Mail Ford Cargo that I took my HGV test in - complete with those massive rear windows that made the reversing exercise a lot easier than it would be in the real world.

Here's your chance to buy a one-off piece of commercial vehicle history.
What you are looking at is an eBay advertisement for an ultra-rare Hustler ice-cream van, which CM's operations editor Colin Barnett stumbled upon while trying to locate a van for our Desperate Van Challenge.
For those of you who can't remember what a Hustler is - here's a very brief history. It was devised in 1978, having been penned by William Towns (of Aston Martin and Jaguar fame). It was built around a pair of Mini sub-frames, connected by a low-slung monocoque floorpan. The exterior was a mix of glass, plywood and fibreglass while a couple of canteen chairs could be found in the quirky interior. Over a ten-year period a couple of hundred were sold in kit form. While this one has a 1.3-litre petrol engine, apparently Towns was responsible for making one with a 5.3-litre Jag engine.
Check out this fantastic website for a thorough history of the Hustler, and information on every car and van produced by BL and Austin Rover.

The 'Space Ace Van' is how the 1972 sales literature described this Commer.
"Stand back and admire the practical good looks of the Commer," it continues.
"Sleek, modern lines and a smartly curved front-end to reduce drag at high speed, save fuel and minimize wind-sway for better handling and roadability."
Is roadability a real word?
This is the Deluxe version, which had a "well-appointed interior designed for comfort and convenience with more refinements than some saloon cars on the road today". Notice the words "on the road today", and not "on sale today". These luxuries the brochure is referring to are a "cushioned driver's seat", a "large ashtray" and "grained headlining". Those boys at Chrysler certainly knew how to look after us didn't they?

OK, I admit it, not all Sherpas are rot boxes.
This rare 1982 CV306 pickup was photographed over the weekend, and appears to be totally original. Yes it has picked-up a few minor dents and scrapes over the years, but it appears to be totally rot-free.
Over the years the Sherpa wore a number of different badges on its grille, 'Leyland', 'Sherpa', 'Sherpa Austin Rover' and Sherpa Freight Rover' - and this is the final incarnation. Anybody interested in a full history of the Sherpa is recommended to visit the Unofficial Austin Rover site.

This Atkinson Borderer was one of several similarly aged tractors I discovered in the entrance to a South Wales limestone quarry in the mid 1990s.
The truck, which had been operated by local firm TS Rees throughout the 1980s, sat in the same spot until the late 1990s - at which point it was dragged away for scrap metal. Local haulier Sammy Rees, who today is in his 90s, was heavily involved in the construction of the M4 through South Wales.

Last year Dennis Eagle issued a press release about this distinctive fleet of refuse trucks it had just supplied to Southwark Council (above). And not surprisingly the story was picked up by a number of publications. But this wasn't the first time that Southwark Council's refuse trucks had graced the pages of Motor Transport. This image (keep scrolling down as I seem to have messed-up the scanning of this photo!), depicting "five Dennis machines in service in the borough of Southwark" featured in the issue of December 19, 1927.

Check out this beautiful late 1970s Scania 141- which has recently been painted in Astran's famous colours.
The truck is owned by Karl Jarmann, a Volvo driver. His son Paul tells me "it's a tribute to the lads who used to do the Asian runs in these motors". He says the trailer will soon be finished in Astran's livery too. You can expect to see the truck at the Peterborough Truckfest later this year.
If you want to learn more about Astran - then you really need to get hold of a copy of the legendary 1970s documentary 'Destination Doha' - which follows the journey of three drivers as the take on the mammoth journey from England to Qatar. It's what inspired me, and countless others, to get into this industry.

This 6x8 Multidrive MTL33 was part of an order destined for Iran, according to the caption on the back of the press photo.
Badged as an AWD, the truck featured Multidrive's famed off-road technology. A propshaft ran under the length of the vehicle, and the rear trailer bogie was both driven and steered. The truck would have featured the Cummins B-Series engine and Eaton transmission - and according to a friend who was lucky enough to drive this particular example, "it was unstoppable."

Full marks to the Seddon Atkinson press office for setting up this amazing shot of Gilbert Brown & Son's new Strato 380 drawbar outfit. The truck, which was christened the 'Lakeland Logger' by its owner, was photographed in 1998 somewhere in the Lake District.
Does anyone know whether the truck is still working for a living? More to the point, is the bridge still standing?

Ever wondered what happens when a 1971 VW Transporter has a 30mph head-on collision?
Well this overprinted 'before and after' photo shows exactly what would happen. Although the van is clearly shorter than it used to be, it hasn't fared too badly. According to the info on the back of the press picture the footwell has gone back, but is still large enough, the steering wheel has been pushed forward and the doors have remained closed. Having said that, I don't think I've ever seen anyone brave enough to banger race one.
I bought the picture on eBay a few years ago.

Check out this incredible Motor Transport photo depicting a Trojan delivery van parked outside Durbin & Allwright's Chiswick, London shop.
According to the signs on the van, the chickens, rabbits and pigs you can see hanging up have come directly from the butcher's own farms in Colyton and Honiton. I wonder how fresh they would be travelling in the back of a non-refrigerated van that would struggle to do 20mph.
The picture was published in January 1928.

Check out the writing on the front of this late Leyland Super Mastiff cement mixer. Operator Redland used the same font as the original Leyland badge that would have adorned the front of this truck, and has only needed to change two letters.

When did you last see a Citroen GS van on the road - come to think of it, when did you last see a GS car? A high price ensured that very few of these Gallic commercials found buyers, and I will be surprised if any have survived in right hand drive form.
Note the air muff on the grille of this one, which was used in winter to reduce air flow and get the engine up to temperature quicker. Every GS came with one of these in the boot, but few owners actually knew what they were for.

I don't envy the photographer at this Heathrow airport runway photo shoot - which must have been an absolute nightmare to set up in the few minutes between planes taking off!
You have to admit that he did a great job though - and I especially like the way in which he successfully managed to hide 10 out of the 11 Leyland Daf 400-Series vans in the background.

This is the scene of devastation that greeted W Jelks & Sons' employees when they came into work on the morning of November 23rd 1940.
It might look like they've caught two of their removal trucks in the act of reproducing - but I'm guessing this is the result of a night of heavy bombing by the Luftwaffe.
I wonder whether the trucks were repairable, or were they scrapped and melted-down to produce Spitfires?

I know it's not actually a van or truck, but I just couldn't resist showing you this intriguing Motor Transport picture anyway.
As you might well guess from the kid with his foot on the step, the 1920s photograph was taken in the USA. I haven't a clue what the vehicle is, but what I can tell you is that it was taken at a Hollywood film studio. The actual caption reads: "American film producers use buses to carry artists from one place to another."
Who says obesity is a 21st century problem?

We thought the BL Sherpa rusted badly - but that's nothing compared with its predecessor the Morris J. Just check out what's happened to the seams - every single one has gone and the panels are literally falling off. Standing very quietly taking this photo I could actually hear it rust!
The picture was taken in Woodley, Cheshire - in a far-flung corner of Robert Walker Haulage's yard.

Spare a thought for these two poor sods over-nighting in a Sentinel DG6 'sleeper' steam wagon back in 1928. No mattresses, no curtains and no windows either. This really would have been just one very small step away from sleeping rough.
But what they did get was a huge amount of heat from that massive boiler. I'm sure it was welcome in the winter - but not particularly pleasant in the summer months.
What¹s the worst truck you've ever slept in?

'Out by road and back by train' was the slogan often used to describe the notoriously unreliable Leyland Roadtrain.
I know it's not the most popular truck in the world, but I'm always going to have a soft spot for the Roadtrain as it was the first truck I ever rode in. A friend and I were hitching from Swansea to Paris and a British Steel driver took us from Port Talbot to Newport. I remember him complaining bitterly about the truck that he claimed 'couldn't pull a foreskin back', but I was hooked. A year later I turned 21 and immediately took my HGV test.
This 1985 example, in service with MAT International Transport, was powered by a Rolls Royce designed Eagle six-cylinder engine.

Bodybuilder Gray & Adams is celebrating its 50th anniversary this year - and as part of the celebrations I've been given access to its photo archives. And over the next couple of days I'll be sharing some of these rare gems with you.

A Foden S24 eight-legger reefer emerges from G&A's Fraserburgh, Scotland, factory.

I am reliably informed that this beautiful Volvo F88 240, in Daniel Steward colours, has been fully restored. But what was the fate of the Salvesen-liveried reefer?

Check out this beautiful early 1970s ERF A-Series with refrigerated semi-trailer.

Back in 1957, when it was founded by Jim Gray and Jim Adams, the Fraserburgh, Scotland-based company initially specialised in car and commercial bodywork repairs, but it soon progressed to building rigid bodies and trailers. Over the years it tried its hand at a number of different bodies, including some of the first insulated containers for the transport of perishable goods (like the Albion Reiver above) and tippers (like the AEC Marshall eight-legger below).

This Kalmar terminal was equipped with its own fork-lift equipment to enable it to unload trailers as well as shunt them. But the big question here is what¹s the car? If you've got any idea I'd love to hear from you.

Between march 1941 and September 1945 the USA supplied Great Britain with $50bn (equivalent to nearly $700 billion at 2007 prices) worth of supplies under the lend-lease programme - including these unidentified trucks.
The British government only finished paying off its debt to the US in 2006, paying the final instalment of $83.3 million (£42.5 million) on December 29, two days before the deadline.

Tilbury-based Star Groundwork was running a 90% Daf fleet back in 1985, according to the Commercial Motor caption that went with this picture. The fleet consisted of 12 tippers, 7 mixers and one low-loader - and included this FAD 2500 DHS eight-legger.

They say things are bigger and better in America - and when it comes to auto sculptures it's difficult to argue. After all, what impresses you the most - ten classic 1950's Cadillacs planted nose-first alongside Route 66 in Amarillo, Texas, or a late 1980's Ford Transit half buried on a Derbyshire egg farm?
Just how or why the van came to be in this position is anyone's guess. But what I can tell you is that it looks a damn site healthier than Dylan's Renault Master. He still hasn't managed to get it moving, and the Desperate Van Challenge is happening next week.
If you fancy taking a look at the Transit, and an incredible collection of electric milkfloats and an electric bus, then take a trip to Happy Hens in Etwall Derbyshire. But take a hard hat!

Fancy a challenging restoration project? Then we've got just the thing for you.
Contrary to the 'OOLVO' lettering on the front this is of course a Volvo - an F84 or F85 I think. And judging by the horizontal indicators and the metal grille, an extremely early one at that. In fact I'm going to hazard a guess at 1963 - but if you know better then please let me know. The truck has been laid-up in Finland.
Volvo is celebrating its 40th anniversary in the UK this year - and its early success over here has a lot to do with this truck. Back in 1967 former haulage company owner Ian McKelvie was so impressed with this truck that he imported 150 of them. A year later this figure had risen to over 300. And so began Volvo's UK success story.

I wonder how many heads this van turned as it made its way from Kent to a Scottish natural history park with its rather unusual cargo. I mean let's face it, it's not every day that you see a 15 metre, 1.5-ton Cetiosaurus on the back of a Mk1 Ford Transit.

Dennison is best known for its skellies - but how many people remember its brief foray into truck building? Between 1977 and 1981 the Irish company built 250 trucks, a mix of tractors, four-, six- and eight-wheel rigids.
Cabs were courtesy of Motor Panels in the early years, while later examples (like the one pictured) had a Finnish-built Sisu cab. Engines came from Rolls Royce, Gardner and Cummins, while the most popular choice of gearbox was Fuller.
This late 6x2 tractor, which has been fully restored at great cost, was photographed at Dennison's Lancaster plant last week. It is one of several that the company has bought back in recent years.

Exactly why these three young ladies are in the process of hand-balling three tons of fresh eggs into the back of a Dennis truck while the men watch on is anyone's guess.
Still they don't seem to be in the slightest bit pissed-off with having to do the manual work ­ and in fact look rather happy and gay (in the 1920's sense of the word). Looking equally as gay are the two guys in the back of the truck. And what about that third bloke, who looks uncannily like Julian Clary.

The year is 1922 and the location is White Haulage's yard in London. I'm pretty sure that's Vauxhall Bridge in the background, but I could be wrong.

Completely oblivious to the health and safety laws that will plague the industry several decades later, these flat cap-wearing workers load a Foden steamer while several crates dangle precariously over their heads.

The truck is chassis number 6366, which was built in 1916. Apparently it was later traded-in to Foden and was scrapped in 1930.

Hopefully these four men - who look scarily alike - will be driving their Mini van to the dump after they've loaded it with that hideous 1970s furniture.
The Mini van, as featured in this 1978 sales brochure, was once an incredibly popular sight on Britain's roads. Buyers loved its bargain purchase price, and its size made it the perfect tool for urban deliveries. Load access was pretty good too, although the maximum 254kg payload was rather pathetic.
Also leaving a lot to be desired was the level of driver comfort. The brochure proudly tells perspective buyers that they will be treated to "the same comfort as Mini saloon motoring" - which in all honesty equated to bugger-all. We are talking "smart black and white houndstooth check cloth, a fitted carpet, a dipping mirror and a passenger sun visor."

We tend to think of kerbside recycling as a new thing but that's far from the truth. In fact it was back in 1921 that the British Waste Paper Association was established, in order to develop a trade in waste paper for recycling.
I'm not sure what suburb this photo was taken in, but what I can tell you is that the Thorneycroft dustcart was first registered in Kent in 1937.The picture was taken two years later.

This picture was taken back in the days when ERFs came with Cummins engines - 10 litres and 250 horses to be exact. This photograph, which first appeared in Commercial Motor in 1985, and depicts a 4x2 tractor that had just joined the William Nuttall fleet.
How much longer is this marque actually going to soldier-on for? The current truck is of course an MAN in all but name, and sales are virtually non-existent. Surely this famous British name is living on borrowed time.

Salford Van Hire was a big Scania user back in 1987 when this photograph was published in Motor Transport. In fact, this picture shows the handing-over of the 100th example.
That's Salford Van Hire's founder Rafaello Bacci (right) posing in front of his latest purchase - a 92M - with Stan Jones from Scania West Pennine.
Salford Van Hire was founded in 1965, and today has a fleet in excess of 6,000 vehicles.

The year is 1969 and the scene is the Turin Motor Show.
With its 12ft, 10in wheelbase, the Italian-built long-wheelbase Transit was an extremely useful piece of kit. And what better way to demonstrate its incredible load-carrying capability than by putting a short-wheelbase version in the back?

If you thought health & safety was a relatively new phenomena - then take a look at this promotional "Safety in Industry' Metropolitan - Vickers electric van.
In case you can't make out the posters - from left to right they read:
"Eyes and no eyes: Wear goggles"
"Less than one-quarter of all accidents are due to machinery! The other three-quarters can only be prevented by YOUR care and co-operation."
"He was proud of his old school tie - but it will never be the same again"
The aids to safety on display beneath the posters are a safety belt (for overhead work), leather gloves (for rough work), rubber gloves (for high voltage), goggles (for fettling or grinding), respirators (for dust or flume-laden atmosphere), steel-capped boots (for foot protection) and a rather fetching leather apron (for the welder or smith).
And don't be fooled into thinking that electric delivery vans are new either. Modec and Smith Electric Vehicles might be in the news a lot at the moment - but Metropolitan - Vickers were making them decades earlier. There's plenty of information on Metropolitan - Vickers on wikipedia if you are interested.

Ford have announced that there'll be a new 4x4 Transit in the Autumn,� but unlike Mk2 version � pictured above, it doesn't sound as though it's going to be particularly handy when the going gets really rough. Commenting on the long-awaited van, which will be offered with the 104hp version of the 2.4-litre TDCi engine, Ford sresses that it wil be known as "all-wheel drive" and not "four-wheel drive".
Apparently it "isn't designed for crossing a ploughed field, but is well suited for low friction surfaces and bad weather conditions".

I'm on a search for the worst commercial vehicle ever made. And while I'm confident that this 1983 Austin Rover Metrovan 310 isn't going to win, I reckon it definitely deserves a mention. I hope this doesn't offend anyone, but the Metro passenger derivative was a heap of crap, and the van wasn't any better. I am talking a poor payload, bad build quality and an engine that would struggle to pull the proverbial rice pudding skin off. Have any survived the scrapyard? I hope not!

Here's another definite contender for the world's crappest commercial vehicle competition, a 1970 Moskvich van. Last year I had a drive in a 1980's Moskvich saloon in Cuba, and can say with confidence that it was the worst vehicle I have ever been in. You could actually turn the steering wheel in a complete revolution in each direction without the car changing direction. And I'm assuming that the van wasn't a whole lot better.
The literature tries it best to make this shed sound good, but I doubt if it fooled anyone. It boasts that the van is "as luxurious as the saloon and estate",­ but in reality this meant windscreen washers, opening quarterlights, sun visors and not a lot else. There was a 22-piece toolkit too, which would have got plenty of use, and "direction indicator lights".
Apparently it was good for 90mp,­ but you'd have to be suicidal to attempt it.
Can anyone think of a worse van?

OK then, I think I have done it. I think I have found the world's worst commercial vehicle. Could this be the one vehicle that makes the Austin Metrovan, the Hyundai Pony pickup and the Moskovich van all look good? Not only is this quite possibly the crappest truck ever built, but aptly it seems to be carrying a steaming pile of manure in the trailer.
The only problem is that I don't have a clue what it is. If you can identify the truck, or even the decade of the picture then I'd love to hear from you.
In the meantime I¹ll carry on with my quest to find a worse vehicle, but I'm not holding out too much hope.

The CV Show opens in Birmingham today,­ and to mark the occasion I've dug out this fantastic photograph of the event 70 years earlier.
The 1937 Commercial Motor Transport Show was held in London ­but that's not the most obvious difference between then and now. Just look at how many British truck and bus manufacturers were exhibiting. We've got Leyland, Albion, Dennis, AEC, Guy, Daimler, Eagle, Maudslay, Foden, Thornycroft and Austin to name but a few. In fact, Renault and Dodge are the only foreign manufacturers I can spot.
What a difference to this year's event ­ where you won't find a single British heavy truck maker. I suppose you can argue that American-owned Daf builds trucks in England, as does Spanish-owned Dennis Eagle, but as far as I'm concerned that doesn't make either of them British. A year ago you would seen Foden and Seddon Atkinson, but both have disappeared in the last 12 months. ERF is still likely to have a presence, but they are no more than badge-engineered MANs, which aren't likely to be around for too much longer.
Then there's LDV, ­ which is now owned by Russian automotive giant GAZ. You could argue that the Ford Transit, Vauxhall Astravan, Vauxhall Vivaro and Renault Trafic are all built in Blighty, but just because a dog is born in a stable it doesn't make it a horse.
So what does that leave us with? Modec, Smith Electric Vehicles and not a lot else. Where did it all go wrong?

It's 1922 and a team of Japanese industrialists have come over to Leyland to speak to the masters in the hope of learning how to build trucks just as well as the Brits can.
Too bad we didn't do the same 50 years later and learn how to build cars and trucks as well as the Japanese. If we had, perhaps we'd still have a motor industry of our own today.
So far the European truck industry has been largely ignored by the Japanese - but it appears all this is about to change. This year's CV Show sees new models from Hino and Isuzu to name but a few. As the world gets closer to emissions harmonisation, so Japanese truck makers no longer need to make models specifically for different markets - reducing R&D costs and making Europe a far more inviting proposition. What does this mean for the European truck industry? Only time will tell.

It's the final day of the CV Show, which means the mamoth task of moving out of the NEC is about to start. For me this means cramming a whole forest's worth of press releases into the back of my car - but for others packing away is going to be rather more challenging. In a few hours the fleets of artics will be flighting for space outside the halls as the stands get taken down and loaded up. Just imagine the stress and chaos.
For Her Majesty the Queen, it's a very different story, at least it would be if the Windsors' had a stand at the CV Show. When it came to packing-up she'd be straight on the blower to Abels Removals and Storage - which received the first and only warrant as removal and storage contractor to the Queen back in 1989 (when the picture was taken).

Here's a handy hint from The National Safety First Association in 1940:

"In country lanes
Where space is tight
No room for paths
Walk on the right"

Then again, if you see a truck emerging one of these clouds, you should be running to your closest nuclear shelter!

When Ideal Films wanted to film part of its 1922 classic "The Grass Orphan" from a moving vehicle they borrowed this Goodyear van with pneumatic tyres.
"In such work excessive vibration would be ruinous to the picture," said the press release that came with the photo. "But it was found that the big pneumatic tyres enabled a very satisfactory result to be obtained." While I see where they are coming from here, personally I think it would have made more sense to have rented a truck with air suspension.
In case you were interested this "moral melodrama" starred Margaret Bannerman and Reginald Owen - and the basic plot involved the St.John family inheriting some money from an unknown uncle.

This photograph, taken inside a Leyland engine factory in 1920, is a real blast from the past. It takes us back to the day when Britain still had a decent manufacturing industry of its own, to a time when men were proud to do manual labour for a living.
And it really was manual work too - with every engine been assembled by hand. Not only aren't there any robots, but I can't spot any protective eyewear, safety gloves or Eastern European workers!
I wonder whether any of these engines are still running today - it's certainly unlikely. More unlikely still is the possibility that one of these men is still alive. I guess the youngest worker would have been about 14 - making them 101 today.

Can anybody tell me what vans these are?
All the information I can tell you about this 1928 Motor Transport photograph is what's scribbled on the back.
"Druggists Butler & Crispe have a fleet of vans operating out of their premises in Clerkenwell Road, London."
Also, when did the word "druggist" stop being used to describe a chemist?

Despite his 1915 Commer having just won first prize in the 1928 Commercial Motor Users Association's Annual Parade, Johnnie Walker driver J Peadle has a face like a slapped arse. Then again this might have something to do with the fact that he has to drive a 13 year-old truck for a living.

I know 1970s Leylands weren't exactly renowned for their reliability, but this is ridiculous. The brand new truck had only been collected two minutes earlier - and look what's happened to it! No wonder we don't have a truck industry any more!
It was called a Marathon - as it needed a complete rebuild every 26 miles 385 yards.

Imperial Airways was using this Morris commercial to "manoeuvre the great passenger 'planes in and out of their hangers" in Karachi Aerodrome back in 1934.
I haven't got a clue what the plane is, but I'm guessing it's heavy enough to put a lot of strain on the two-tonne Morris' clutch. Check out those heavy-duty rear tyres - designed to give the truck maximum grip. Presumably the back of the truck was well laden-down too.
Seventy-something years later VW proved that size isn't important for pulling planes - when it successfully dragged a 155-tonne Boeing 747 up and down a runway with its Touareg V10 TDI .

This Volvo FL614 urban artic tractor (which was snapped at Truckfest last weekend by Volvo's John Comer) has been given a new lease of life as an RV. I know lorry drivers hate caravans - but presumably it's a different story when they're being pulled by trucks?

I have found another contender for the crap commercial vehicle awards - but don't really know what it is.
The sales brochure came from eBay - but where exactly Tudor Commercial Vehicles were made I'm not sure. The importer was based in Morley, West Yorkshire - and I'm guessing that the van was probably built in Poland or the Soviet Union.
So what exactly did the Tudor Commercial Vehicle have to offer UK buyers? Well, apparently "strength and reliability and four-wheel drive as standard." It was also cheaper than the competition - "in some cases by many hundreds of pounds". The Tudor was offered in several guises, as a panel van, a chassis cab, minibus, dropside, and best of all - a high-top panel van. I was always under the assumption that the Mercedes-Benz Vito was the ugliest high-roof van ever built - but having seen this I have changed my mind.
Two pages of the brochure are devoted to listing the numerous features that make the Tudor such amazing value for money. These include a door mirror, a reversing light, wheel trims and seats!
"Tudor is a marque you'll be hearing a lot more of in Britain" - we think not!

Weetabix is one of the leading campaigners for longer trucks in the UK - and in fact has even gone to the extent of paying for a national television advertising campaign in favour of longer artics to coincide with the launch of its new "Not-Made-From-Wheat-Made-From-Oats-Instead-abix" product.
But back in the early '90s when this picture was taken, Weetabix was still running regular sized trucks - in this case a Scania 93M.
Great press picture - but if they had pumped a few hundred thousand gallons of milk into the stream it would have looked even better.

The Mazda B1800 harks back to the day when pickup trucks were purchased as workhorses, not play things. And just to ensure that nobody accidentally bought one as a lifestyle vehicle, Mazda cleverly designed the interior to resemble a medieval torture chamber. Check out this list of standard features - and see if you can get excited about any of them. Ashtray, handbrake warning light, interior dome light, four-speed transmission and vinyl upholstery. They sure knew how to look after us in 1977 didn't they?
But is this pickup bad enough to be a contender for the World's Crappest Commercial Vehicle award - not when you compare it with what Britain was manufacturing in the same era - see tomorrow's blog.

Here it is - quite possibly the world's worst pickup truck and a definite contender for the World's Crappest CV award - the Morris Marina.
I feel so sorry for the poor sod who had to write the spiel for this sales brochure. I mean how can you possibly make a Morris Marina sound sexy?
"We've put all the instruments in a single binnacle where they are easy to find and read"
"We've included knit-backed vinyl seats that you find in our saloon cars."
"The styling includes flush-fitting external door handles....that are not only attractive, but sensible and safe" - incredibly these were to survive well into the 1990s on the Land Rover Discovery.
Check out the list of standard features too, which make the Mazda B1800 sound like a palace in comparison: Driver's seat and floor mat, driver's sun visor, speedometer with distance recorder and chromium plated hubcaps.
However you have to hand it to BL for featuring this photograph in the sales literature - as it is definitely the Marina's best side.

I can't find the original press release that went with this15-year-old photograph - but I'm guessing it must have had something about Walon drivers on the Fiat contract suffering from severe sleep deprivation. Imagine the poor driver trying to get his head down with this many early 1990's Fiats on-board - the noise of them rusting would have kept him awake all night!

This six-wheeled 1-ton Chevrolet horsebox is owned by Major Clark of Brook House, Ardingley, Sussex, according to the scribblings on the back of this 1927 Motor Transport photograph. It is being unloaded at "the meet of the Crawley and Horsham fox-hounds at Crab Tree, Cowfold, Sussex.
You probably can't make it out from this picture, but inside the van, hiding in the shadows, I'm convinced I can see a bloke urinating in one of the horse's troughs.

The M1 was a bit quieter back in 1969 wasn't it?
We are looking at an AEC Mammoth major six-wheel tractor, which was the first of its type to enter service with Bedfordia Plant. It was being used seven days a week to carry tracked vehicles throughout the south of England.
And here's the technical spec that came with the press release:
"The double-reduction two-axle drive Mammoth Major is powered by an AEC AV760 engine producing 201hp at 2,000rpm and 571 lbf-ft torque at 1,500 rpm, making it well-suited for the rapid-delivery road work and occasional heavy site conditions which are involved in plant deliveries".

The sight and smell of 60 Scottish fisher girls being paraded through the streets of Great Yarmouth on the back of a truck has proved too great a temptation for these two local men who are frantically trying to climb aboard.
According to the caption on the back of this 1932 photograph, hundreds of Scottish women have travelled down to Great Yarmouth to help with the herring harvest - which sees ten million of the fish arriving on the docks.
Can you imagine what these women must smell like after a hard day's fish curing? It's no wonder they are being carried in the back of an open truck.
Apparently the herring harvest was killed-off by the arrival of fish fingers in the 1950s.

I photographed this late Bedford CF van just outside Turin last week, and as you can see, it's not in the best of condition. I think just about every panel is dented, but then what do you expect? This is Italy after all.
The quality of driving in this country is absolutely appalling. On the way back to the airport I actually witnessed a kamikaze Fiat Panda driver reversing up the inside lane of the motorway.
But the highlight was having a race with a hearse. While testing the acceleration and handling skills of the new Fiat Scudo Panorama we looked in the mirror to discover that a hearse was hot on our tail. I'm pleased to say that we beat it, but only just.

Have you ever seen such ridiculously proportioned wheels on a vehicle?
I'm no military expert, but a quick search on Google reveals that this is some sort of Circa 1952 Spa Fiat artillery truck. Does this mean anything to anyone? If so then please let me know. I'm particularly interested in learning the technical specification. But no polically incorrect jokes thanks. I don't want to know what the top speed is in reverse gear and I certainly don't want anyone telling me that the Italian flag looks better without the red and green stripes!

A few months ago we noticed the spooky similarity between an original Renault Master and a skip.

Well now we've found another one. What do you reckon?

This picture reminds me of that episode of South Park where America goes hybrid-crazy - and drivers have huge big 'hybrid' signs on the sides of their Toyota's to let the whole world know how great and environmentally friendly they are. But everything starts to go wrong when the hybrid owners create huge clouds of 'smug' that threatens to destroy the world!
OK Austin, we get the idea, the truck runs on gas. I bet that non-aerodynamic sign did little for gas mileage though.
As you can tell from the blackout headlight and white bumpers the picture was taken during WWII.

The Citivan - not exactly Fiat's proudest moment was it?
This piece of crap was derived from the Fiat 127 and featured a 903cc engine which took the van up to a top speed of 60mph.
Does Fiat seriously expect us to believe that all this fruit and veg fitted inside the back? Even if you did manage to wedge it in the van would have been seriously over-loaded and would have struggled to exceed 30mph.

I like the picture of this 1978 London street scene though, complete with Austin Maxi, Triumph 2000, MkI Escort van and Rolls Royce Silver Shadow. Too bad there's a Fiat shitivan View image spoiling the view.
This is another van for our World's Crappest Commercial Vehicle competition.

I know these look distinctly like buses (so shouldn't be allowed anywhere near this webpage), but in actual fact these 1936 White buses are 2007 Ford trucks.
Between the mid 1930s and the mid 1960s the Yellowstone National Park in Wyoming ran a large fleet of these White buses - which were used to transport tourists around the park. But at the grand old age of 40 they were pensioned-off, and sold on. It was the end of an era - or so people thought.
Anyway, a couple of years ago the decision was made to put these yellow icons back on the road, and eight of them were located in Alaska and promptly purchased. The years hadn't been kind to them though, and all needed a serious restoration. More to the point they required totally new running gear in order to comply with modern emissions regulations.
So, what you are looking at here is a 2007 Ford F450 truck with the original restored bus body on the back. Everything painted black is new and everything yellow is old.
The pickup-based buses went back on the road two days ago, exactly 71 years after they first went into service.

Check out this incredible photograph of Piccadilly Circus in 1930.
There seems to be some sort of demonstration taking place - a campaign to get freight off of trains, canals and rivers and onto the road. In case you can't make out the placards, they read:
"Send it by Road, Best for Perishable Produce"
"Send it by Road, Motor Transport for Prompt Delivery"
and
"Send it by Road, Motor Transport for Door to Door".
Well I think it's safe to say that this was the most successful campaign in the history of campaigns!

How's this for a case of the blind leading the blind?
The early '60s Chevy wrecker in the background has broken down and a similarly archaic Chevy has come to the rescue.
Hopefully it made it home OK because the Nebraskan garage only had one other breakdown truck on its fleet, a 1920's International, and it was looking even less healthy!

The power of advertising is an incredible thing isn't it? I had originally planned to work through my lunch hour today, but for some reason this photo has made my change my mind. Instead I'm going to scour the classifieds on Roadtransport.net and see if I buy myself a Mercedes 1827 4x2 tractor!

It's not for me to cast aspersions about people's sexuality, but isn't this the gayest looking bunch of blokes you've ever seen - and I don't mean gay in the happy sense of the word!
In fact, come to think of it, they don't look very happy at all. Then again, the picture was taken in early 1914, and they were probably very worried about the imminent outbreak of war.
You are looking at the Napier football team - Napier being a British car maker. Presumably they must have built the odd bus or truck too for the photo to have appeared in Motor Transport.

Does anybody know what this unusual ex-ambulance is?
The badge on the grille appears to say 'SF' - but this doesn't mean anything to me. I can't even work out what country it originates from. It's proportions would indicate that it hails from Japan, but it has a definite VW look about it.
It was photographed in a Colorado salvage yard last week - and appears to be in serious need of medical help itself.

I've just returned from the Chartered Institute of Waste Management Show (CIWM) in Paignton - and it has to be said that it's just a shadow of its former self.
In the old days this show was a huge event, and its exotic location in the heart of the English Riviera was enough to attract council workers (and some of their secretaries apparently) from the length and breadth of Britain. But times have changed. Perhaps local authority workers don't have quite as much time on their hands or freedom with their expenses these days. Then again it could have something to do with the fact that rival Recycling and Waste Management Show is growing year by year.
Back in its heyday CIWM used to attract demonstrations from angry pensioners, pissed off that that their sea front had been taken over by sludge gulpers and refuse trucks. But each year the coffin-dodgers seem to have a little less to complain about as the organisers sell less space. This year there were just four truck manufacturers present - BMC, Isuzu, Mercedes-Benz and Scania.
Although it only took me a couple of hours to explore the show, as opposed to the usual half-day, there were still a few interesting stories to be had - which you'll be able to read on the news pages very soon.
One thing I found particularly interesting was a household food waste collection body, mounted on an Isuzu chassis.

This is part of a revolutionary new idea by Surrey County Council, which will see waste food broken down into a residue before being confined to landfill. But of course it isn't all that original really is it? Although I'm not quite old enough, my parents remember a time when a 'slops' van came around the houses, collecting waste food for pigs. A quick look through the CM archives and I unearthed this photograph. It's an Austin 2-tonner, and it was in operation in Birmingham City in 1948.

I've just returned from a tin-hunting exhibition through America. Yes I know it's a strange hobby, but I like nothing more than driving through rural America, armed with my camera, searching for abandoned cars and trucks. In fact I'm hoping to do a sequal to my book Roadside Relics.
Anyway, on my travels through Nebraska and South Dakota I stumbled upon these two once-mobile cranes - both of which are craneless these days and have long since been retired. They are both FMC Link-Belts - which I have to confess doesn't mean a whole lot to me.
Check out the roof of the red and white one. I only hope the driver wasn't in his seat when this damage was inflicted.

I'm going up to Washington today to drive the Smith Edison, a new electric 3.5-tonner based on the Ford Transit. I'm expecting good things from it, after all Sainsbury's and the Royal Mail are just two of the high-profile customers who have already placed orders. I've got a feeling it's going to be a far cry from the milkfloats that the company also builds.
I spent ages sifting through thousands of old photographs in an attempt to find an elderly Smith milkfloat, and finally struck it lucky with this little collection. they were all taken at the 1957 Dairy Show.
At the top we have a Wales & Edwards milkfloat - with a difference. Not a battery in sight on this one as it's been fitted with a diesel engine.
The next one is a Smiths NCB electric Commuter milk float and at the bottom we have a Harbilt 750 electrc truck.

I have seen some boring press photos in my time, but this really does take the piss. The Ford A-Series really wasn't the most thrilling of vans at the best of time and photographing a white one with a white sky behind it does little to enhance its visual impact.
As you may have guessed from the driver's haircut, the picture was taken in 1977. Presumably then point of it was to demonstrate this aerodynamic body style.

I was appalled to find these adverts in a 1979 issue of Commercial Motor. I can't believe what a sexist industry this used to be, and am absolutely disgusted that companies thought it suitable to exploit women in this degrading manner in an attempt to sell their products.
It's so good to know that the industry has since cleaned-up its act and we don't have to be exposed to such gratuitous filth.

Semperit - Commercial Motor 1979

Concept Equipment - Commercial Motor1979

Shell - Commercial Motor 1979

Citroen "Ready, Willing & Able" - CV Show 2007

Thinking of going down to Stonehenge today to celebrate the summer solstice? Well, personally I wouldn't bother. Not only can't you get anywhere near the stones, but the place will be absolutely crawling with hippies. Luckily there is an alternative.
Carhenge was built about 20 years ago by some American bloke as a tribute to his dead father. Apparently he loved Stonehenge and old cars, so what better way to commemorate his life than by combining these two passions? He gathered all his family members together on a plot of land just outside of Alliance, Nebraska. Then during a two-week period in 1987 he created an exact replica of the original henge - only it was much better because he used old cars (and a truck) instead of stones. How's that for genius? I don't know why the druids didn't think of that!
The place is free to visit, it has a 1950s Jeep pickup truck, and when I visited there wasn't a hippy in sight. Fantastic!
I can't help but wonder what your average American thinks of it though. You can bet your life most haven't heard of the real Stonehenge, and I wouldn't be surprised if the few who do know of its existence think it's a copy of the Nebraska one.

The 1972 Duple Dominant coach driver was treated to such luxuries as "a personal heater unit", a "comfortable driving position" and "ergonomically-designed controls", but strangely what this Commercial Motor advertisement fails to mention is the hideous driver's seat. Then again, it's not like anyone's going to miss this gaudy monstrosity. This covering sums-up everything that was bad about the 1970s.
Coach drivers really are a strange breed aren't they? Can you imagine a lorry driver ever putting up with this (excluding original Iveco Stralis drivers)?

In 1972 this is what the Mercedes-Benz commercial vehicle line-up looked like. Thirty-five years later and don't they look antiquated? Hang on a second, what's that on the front left? Looks suspiciously like today's Vario to me!

Typical truck driver in 1972

Pick up a truck sales brochure today and the supposed truck drivers you see in the images are in the height of physical fitness. Spare tyres and extra chins don't exist, and most would look more at home in the gym than behind the wheel of a lorry. But back in the 1970s, before the days or organic food and celebrity TV chefs, it was a very different story. Check out this great Bedford TK advert, which depicts an everyday driver stuffing his fat face with cake.
"If you're fed up with being cramped up in a cab supposedly designed for every man yet somehow not suiting any man you should slip into a new Bedford," the advert reads. In other words, "fat bastard-friendly".

Typical truck driver in 2007

I’ve just returned from a press trip to Turkey, where I got to drive the Mercedes-Benz Axor with the new Powershift transmission. And after 450kms and some very arduous roads, I can confirm that it’s a fantastic gearbox. You can read all about it in this week’s MT.
I’m a huge fan of auto boxes, quite simply because they are so easy to drive. It lets you concentrate fully on the road ahead – and in this part of the world the road requires a hell of a lot of concentration. I had to deal with kids driving tractors, suicidal goats, kamikaze donkeys and three-axle 1970s trucks laden to 50 tonnes attempting to climb mountains at less than 10kmph.
After spending a day in air-conditioned comfort I started to feel really sorry for the local drivers – who are forced to spend their days behind the wheel of some real old wrecks. Some of the most popular are Fords, including plenty of old D-Series tractors and rigids.

Excuse the quality of this picture - it's not easy to drive a truck, swerve around suicidal Turkish farm animals and photograph a Ford D-Series at the same time!

An original Ford Cargo climbs a hill at walking pace.

This is the current Ford Cargo - anybody know where the cab comes from?

I got a severe bout of the ‘green-apple-splatters’ while I was in Turkey last week after drinking a glass of ditch water from a truck stop. And despite being an incredibly unpleasant experience, I bet it was still better than having to spend ten minutes behind the wheel of a Faith!
You know the BMC cab that we keep seeing at the CV Show each year (and on the UK’s roads if you look VERY VERY hard)? Well, this is the cab the Turkish truck maker was offering prior to that one. If it looks vaguely familiar to you, that because it is. As far as I can tell its some sort of a bastardised old Leyland cab – kind of a cross between a Terrier and a Marathon. The Turks love them, and they especially love overloading them.

Southern Turkey is riddled with these oddities.
As far as I'm aware it's some sort of an old Dodge, but built under licence in Turkey by the Askam. While this one wore a DeSoto badge on its grille, others said Dodge or Fargo.
I've just been on the company's website, and was quite shocked to see what the latest commercial vehicle is that's been added to its extensive portfolio. Does this look familiar to you?

Turkey might be introducing Euro 4 in 2009, but it’s going to be a while until sights like this become a thing of the past. Check out the plumes of carcinogenic smoke being pumped into the atmosphere as this ageing Mk2 Transit struggles up a hill.

Picture courtesy of CM operations editor Colin Barnett

The Turks may love their Transits, and indeed build both the latest one and the Connect, but they also have a soft spot for the Leyland Daf Convoy – or Levand as maker BMC markets it.

Thanks to Colin for this one too.

In 1940 Michelin was stressing the importance of making your tyres last longer. And 67 years later its Four-Lives programme is promoting exactly the same thing. Only this time, instead of doing your bit to help in the war effort, you’ll be doing your bit to save the environment.
Back then the tips on offer for extending tyre life were cleaning-up rusty rims, tightening wheel nuts and only fitting “good condition” tubes in new tyres.
Today however it’s making a big push on regrooving – and it makes a good argument. Regrooving a tyre only costs £25 and can extend its life by 25%. In fact Michelin encourages operators to do the regrooving themselves. You can buy the tool for about £100 and go on one of its courses. I can confirm that it isn’t particularly difficult to regroove a tire – having attempted it myself on a press trip last week.
Having said that I think it would take me rather longer than the suggested 20 minutes per tyre.
As well extending tyre life, you also get more miles per gallon, or litres per 100 kms as they insist on saying on the Continent. This is because regrooving allows you to take advantage of the phase when fuel consumption is at its lowest. At its test track in Clermont-Ferrand last week it demonstrated this. Two identical Scanias were driven 62kms; one with a set of new Energy tyres and the other with regrooved Energy tyres. The latter returned a gain of 1.94 litres per 100km – representing roughly an 8% improvement.

If I can regroove - anyone can!

Commercial Motor's operations editor Colin Barnett is always gallivanting around the world, and luckily for us he never forgets to take his camera.
With this in mind, I thought we could start a new regular series on this blog called 'Where's Colin?' Each time he visits a country he takes a picture of some mysterious old trucks and it's up to you to work out what part of the world he's in. So, take a look at this picture, guess the location, and you could be the lucky winner of a 2008 Mercedes-Benz AMG 40th anniversary calendar.
Remember - you are trying to spot the country, not Colin!

Clue - That's an Avia on the right (not the far right).
Sorry Trucksalt, it's not Turkey.

TRL conducted a van crash test yesterday - demonstrating the importance of securing your load properly. At 30mph the loose bricks, generator, road cones and other bits and pieces in the back of van hit the bulkhead with enough force to badly distort the bulkhead and cause some serious damage to the dummy. I'm hoping to get hold of the footage from this test, and I'll post it here just as soon as I can. After all, everyone loves a good truck test don't they? Or is that just me?
So, this got me thinking. What are the best van and truck tests ever conducted. I've spent the morning on YouTube and I think I've found the five best. Take a look at them, and let me know which should take the title of Best Truck Crash Test Ever.

No 1 - How to destroy some crap 1970's cars

No 2 - Killing a Ford Cargo

No 3 - Driving, flying and swimming

No 4 - Pointless tanker crash

No 5 - Pickup an Escort and destroy it

We are back with the tyre theme today – only this time it is Tyresoles which was doing its bit to help win the war.
In this great 1940 Motor Transport advert the Wembley-based retreading company asks “Which would you rather import? Rubber or Food?”
It goes on to point out that “every Tyresoled tyre saves more than 80% of the transported materials used in a new tyre. Shipping space is released for food and other essentials.”
This is very similar to Michelin’s argument today – only it’s talking about saving the environment instead of feeding the nation. On a recent press trip to its retreading factory in Clermont-Ferrand, it pointed out that retreading reduces raw material consumption. “That’s because the amount of rubber needed to retread a tyre is 20% to 30% less than what is needed to manufacture a new tyre,” says Michelin UK’s head of marketing Helen Tattersall.

Apparently the early '70s Toyota Hi-Ace included "enough extras to put many a saloon car to shame". So what does that mean exactly, a walnut dash and electric windows perhaps? Or maybe power steering and alloy wheels? No, what we are talking about is "three seats (admitedly two had built-in head restraints), heater, demister, two-speed washers and wipers, cigarette lighter and flow through ventilation".
Whereas Toyota has made a huge impact on the UK car market, it has done comparatively little with LCVs. The Hi-Ace remains a rarity in Britain's fleets today.

Ever wondered how a Volkswagen T3 Transporter would perform in a head-on collision? Well, if this video is anything to go by, not very well at all. I’ve viewed a lot of crash test videos in recent weeks, but this is about the scariest of the lot. Of course we don’t know what speed the test has been carried out at, or indeed what weight the van is loaded to. But one thing’s for sure – you certainly wouldn’t be walking away from this mess!

And while we are talking about abusing VW’s, take a look at this bit of mindless hooliganism I found on YouTube.

Thanks to the people at lovemybus.com who have pointed out the following:
On the youtube vid of this test there was a guy who posted the following.
"This was a demo of the capabilities of a newly installed crash test system, NOT of the VW T3 they crashed. Note the lack of dummies, absence of timing marks on the vehicle. That junker T3 was a rusted out 20 year old German highway department service carrying 2000kg in the bed and slammed into a concrete wall at 100kmh. NO car would survive that impact."

I was suprised to discover this Morris Minor pickup languishing in a North Dakota salvage yard.
Although these were certainly more popular than the van version in the States, they certainly weren't huge sellers. Considering how scarce they were it's surprising that ithas been so well picked over by parts scavengers.

I was aware that Citroen sold its GS van in the UK in the 1970s, having already featured a photo on this very blog. But I had no idea that the aesthetically challenged Ami 8 'Service' van ever crossed the Channel.
Was the promise of all-round independent suspension, removable passenger seat, front-wheel drive and 45mpg enough to persuade any UK operators to part with their hard earned cash? If so, do any still exist today?

Back in September 1939 the Cement Marketing Company took delivery of this beautiful Albion rigid.
According to the caption on the back, the 12-ton truck weighed-in at under 4 tons, giving it an impressive 8-ton payload potential.
“The power unit is an Albion 4-cylinder direct injection oil engine” apparently – and the top speed was limited to a non-too-exciting 20mph.

Apparently the Majestic started out in life as the Bismarck – and not surprisingly was built in Germany. Build started in 1913, and at the time it was the world’s largest ship. But work was suspended for the outbreak of WW1. In 1919 it was handed over to the British government as part of the war reparations, and was bought jointly by White Star and Cunard. It was finally handed over in 1922, at which point it was renamed the Majestic. In 1925 it broke a record, when it crossed the Atlantic in 5 days – averaging 25 knots.

It was renamed the Mauretania in 1934, and made its last voyage for Cunard in 1936 when it was replaced by the Queen Mary. It briefly became a Cadets training ship, before being handed over to the Navy at the outbreak of WWII. But it didn’t see active service, catching fire and sinking at its moorings in the Firth of Forth in September 1939. It was finally scrapped in 1943. If you are interested there’s plenty more information on this website.

As for the truck – I haven’t got a clue! Does anybody know what it is?

This official Vauxhall Motors photograph was taken at the Fighting Vehicles Research and Development establishment at Chertsey, Surrey – according to the caption on the back. It goes on to say: “The new normal control Bedfords have been given the toughest testing possible. Firstly, many hundreds of hours on Vauxhall’s famous rough track, followed by hard driving over Europe’s roughest roads.”
All that testing paid off, and the truck certainly developed a reputation for reliability. These were a huge hit in parts of Africa as a result, and were still being built there until the 1980s. Check out those ridiculously long mirrors – which were far from pedestrian-friendly.

How sexy is this?
What exactly was Cavalier Coachman thinking when it produced the Stratus 250R?
According to the advert, which regularly appeared on the back page of Commercial Motor in the last 1970s, "The Cavalier principal is to combine luxurious comfort and interior design with practical everyday and free-time usage."
I can't find any trace of Cavalier Coachman on the internet. Does anyone know what happened to the company? More to the point, are there any Stratus 250R's still on the road? This wouldn't half turn some heads today.

Check out this motor industry executive – he’s just completed a new project and a telephone call at the same time! This amazing feat is made possible by the fact that he has the ‘Loudspeaking Telephone 4’ from Post Office Telecommunications – and all for just 60 new pence a week! It might look complicated, but it’s actually incredibly easy to use. Our executive simply talks towards it, leaving his hands free to do something else.
Whatever next? A multi-coloured puzzle cube perhaps?

I found this lovely old picture in the Motor Transport archives – with the message “Return to sender” written on the back – which was clearly ignored. But it may not be too late. I’m willing to pass it on to anyone who can claim this man as a friend or relative.
I’m not sure what year the photo was taken, but what I do know is that the Sutton & Sons ERF (Reg:DJ8802) was based in Bermondsey, London.

My girlfriend and I have just returned from a ten-day holiday to South West France, which didn’t exactly go to plan. The idea was to spend the entire time sitting by the pool – soaking up the rays. But, some dubious weather conditions put a stop to that plan. Instead we spent most of the time touring the countryside on the look-out for abandoned cars and vans for the sequel of my book Roadside Relics. Who says we don’t know how to have a good time?
This Volkswagen T2 was pictured outside an abandoned house near the town of Eauze, where it has clearly sat for a number of years. It actually makes Colin’s Desperate Van Vauxhall Midi look respectable.

The Pininfarina-designed Peugeot 403, produced between 1955 and 1966, was the first in a long line of highly regarded pickups from the French car maker. It proved to be tough and hugely reliable – qualities that would be replicated by the later 404 and 504 trucks. This abandoned example might look a little frayed around the edges, but it’s actually structurally sound.
The most sought-after of the 403 models was of course the convertible – which was made famous by TV’s Lt. Columbo. Unlike this truck, which is close to ending its days in the jaws of the crusher, they are worth a small fortune today.

And how’s this for another interesting load-lugger from Peugeot?

I found these two ageing commercials on my recent holiday in South-west France. The first is of course the legendary H-Type – which incredibly was built until the early 1980s. It was pictured outside a salvage yard in Manciet, where it awaits its fate.
As for the other one, it's a Citroen and the body was built by Lapanissieres. I’m guessing it dates from the late 1960s or early 1970s, so presumably is also based on the H-Type. Up until recently these were common-place in French markets, but they are few and far between today.

So, what possible hazards can you spot in this 1970s cafe then?

Surely this Commercial Union insurance advertisement can't be referring to the woman driver can it? Surely not, after all, that would be sexist, and the UK truck industry definitely wasn’t sexist in the 1970s!

So if it's not females behind the wheel, then what is the potential danger?

Is it the salt? We all know that salt is a killer, after all the government has wasted a fortune on TV advertisements to tell us. Or could it be referring to that pack of cigarettes, which apparently aren't too great for our health either.

Or maybe it's the cholesterol-filled breakfasts on sale, the Gary Glitter records in the jukebox or the sugar and caffeine in that cup of coffee?

No, apparently not. The real hazard in this photo is the girl and the fact that "a casual acquaintance with her can lead to a casualty ward". So are we to assume that she's going to lure our innocent driver into bed and inflict him with a nasty case of herpes?

No, wrong again. The truth is that she’s the ringleader in a truck hijacking gang and she’s about to trick the driver into revealing the contents of his load.

This is what the small print says:

"Alas, some of the most pleasant things that come the way of a driver can lead to some of the roads' most unpleasant results.

Stolen lorries. Ransacked cargoes. Even beaten-up lorry crews. As often as not, because a driver was careless enough to talk too much. If only to a harmless looking girl in a cafe.
For the way gangs operate nowadays, it's hard to know whom to trust."

In the early 1970s when this advertisement appeared in Commercial Motor there were far fewer cars on our roads. The 'spy-in-the-cab' had yet to be introduced, smoking was still a perfectly safe and legal pastime, motorway services didn't charge over two quid for a cup of crap coffee and bacon sandwiches didn't come with government health warnings. It's no wonder they look happy! I suppose the Volvo does deserve some credit too.

I have to confess that on paper this Moskvich 1500 van sounds like quite a good deal. After all, back in 1975 who else was throwing-in dual-speed wipers, heater, two wing mirrors, a 21-piece toolkit and a claimed 35mpg in a £799 van? But, as we all know, you can't polish a turd. This was one of the worst vans ever built and not even an extensive advertising campaign in Commercial Motor was enough to shift these Russian relics.

A3 Renault Master looks rather familiar

Over the past few years the fields surrounding Britain’s motorways have been turned into a commercial vehicle scrapyard. It seems you can’t travel for more than a few miles without noticing a decrepit trailer, truck or van parked by the roadside and draped in an advertisement for some website, car dealership, or fast food restaurant.

Most popular choice of truck seems to be the 7.5-tonne Ford Cargo box van, although I’ve noticed a few Leyland Roadrunners too. The most common advertisement van appears to be the Mk3 Transit Luton, although if you look carefully you’ll notice a handful of Mk2 Lutons scattered around too. Panel vans are a far less popular choice, presumably because they offer a smaller billboard area. However if you are going to use a van, I guess the vast Renault Master is the obvious choice.

Anyway, this got me thinking. What’s the oldest vehicle currently being used as a roadside advertisement? I noticed a mid-1970s Bedford CF beside the M25 the other day. Can anyone beat this?

Check out this sorry-looking Piaggio Ape, photographed by a friend of mine in Italy last week.
“I love the micro-trucks of Italy,” he says. “It’s so refreshing that in this day and age manufacturers like Piaggio, Casalini, Bonetti and Effidi soldier on. This one seems to be Tuscany’s answer to the 60-tonne Scandinavian loggers.”

And how’s this for something a bit different - a pimped-out Ape people-carrier. It looks like it’s just come off the set of Quadrophenia – or should that be Trikeophenia?

This beautiful 30-tonne Atkinson Defender tipper is photographed on the Commercial Motor test route in the summer of 1973.
The test driver wasn’t overly impressed with the truck’s performance, which he describes as “adequate rather than startling”. Its average speed for the 196-mile test route was 33.8mph. Fuel consumption was about average for the day too, returning 6.3mpg. Today we would expect a figure somewhere between 7.5 and 9mpg.
Check out some of the other traffic on the road, which includes a Leyland EA van, a Jaguar Mk2, Viva HC, Renault 16, Triumph Herald and Rover P6.
Does anybody recognise where the picture was taken?

You are looking at the Rytecraft Scootatruck – a commercial version of the slightly more famous Scootacar. This bizarre vehicle was built by the London-based British Motor Boat Manufacturing Company, which churned out miniature vehicles between 1934 and 1940. They were powered by a 250cc Villiers engine, and could reach a top speed of 40mph.

According to this website I found, none of the vehicles had proper headlamps, so therefore were not intended for road use. However this one has number plates and lights, so presumably was road-legal.

The thing that really puzzles me about this terrible truck, is where is the driver supposed to put his legs? Any ideas? More to the point, what would happen to them in the event of a crash?

This has to be one of the crappest CVs I've featured on this blog.

Commercial Motor's associate editor Colin Barnett has been on his travels again, only this time he didn't need to take his passport with him. The question is, where is he today? If you recognise the Austin A35, A55, Gypsy and Bedford CA in this photograph then you probably know exactly where he is. Let me know and if you're the first with the right answer I'll see if I can dig out some sort of a prize to send you - but don't expect anything too fantastic!

Congratulations to John Comer from Volvo who correctly guessed that Colin is at the Goodwood Circuit. There's a 2008 Roadside Relics calendar coming your way.

Motor Transport's editorial team was forced to go to the Great British Beer Festival last night. Obviously we didn't want to, but we thought it was important to cover that story about the beer delivery truck that was stolen. And yes, it did require all five of us to be there!
Which leads me neatly onto today's blog photo - which comes from MT's archives.
A Leyland is unloaded of empty casks at Ansell’s Aston brewery in Birmingham. Directly behind it is another Leyland, and that appears to be a 3-tonne BMC being loaded with full casks in the background. And if I’m not mistaken that's a Scammell mechanical horse on the far right of the picture.
I love the 'Beer is Best' advertising on the front of the truck – not that anyone on Motor Transport needs convincing! (Even if one member of the news desk only drinks fruit beer!)

The year is nineteen-thirty-something, and Ford is putting on an event to show off its entire UK product range - which includes buses, vans, cars and trucks. What a great venue to demonstrate the line-up. If I'm not mistaken this is London's Albert Hall.

“The 1972 Commercial Vehicle Show will undoubtedly go down in history as the year the Europeans tried to muscle in on the British market,” declared Motor Transport’s technical editor 35 years ago. Continued below:

OK, so I know it’s not a commercial vehicle, but I reckon its worthy of a place on this blog anyway.

This is apparently a VW Bugeroo, the camper version of the Beetle. The car was photographed outside a garage in Arizona, and the owner told me it’s one of just a handful ever made. However I can’t find any reference to the vehicle on Google. Has anyone got any information?

Toby Clark adds:

I suspect it's actually a Bugaroo, and though I haven't been able to find any more information I did find this Bugaroo/Bugeroo picture (again from Arizona) and this restoration job on eBay (from Hertfordshire, of all places).

Will Shiers adds:
I've got a feeling that red one is exactly the same Bugaroo - just after a dubious coat of paint.

Who says we work in a sexist industry?

Back in 1972 Motor Transport’s technical editor Pat Kennett was lucky enough to get behind the wheel of the all-new Austin-Morris Marina van – the successor to the infamous Minor.
Now it’s no secret that the Marina, and the polished-turd (Morris Ital) that followed it, were absolute crap. It’s therefore interesting to see how he went about writing this test.
Continued below:

Left all alone in the world, an abandoned mid 1960s Chevy truck waits patiently in the hope that one day its owners will return for it. But we know they won’t!
When I drove through this central Texas town the following year I discovered that the only thing to have changed was that the truck had been robbed of its wheels and pickup bed. I would be surprised if this wooden house is still standing, and even more amazed if there’s anything left of the truck today.
And this seems like the perfect time to shamelessly plug my new Roadside Relics 2008 calendar – which is the perfect accompaniment for my book!

According to Ford van boss Steve Kimber - one of the biggest advantages Transit has over its rivals is the sheer number of different derivatives on offer. “Transit customers get a choice of three bodies, two powertrain configurations (front- or real-wheel drive), three roof heights, four load lengths, three wheelbases and even two side loading door sizes. It allows us to listen to our customers’ requirements, and react accordingly,” he says.
Well is was a similar story in June 1973 when this mobile lunch box was built specifically for one of its customers.

You are looking at Night Scotsman and Globetrotter, a pair of wonderful old Atkinson eight-leggers, which joined the Pollock fleet in the early 1960s.
According to the Pollock (Scotrans) website, the company started naming its trucks in 1963, along with that familiar Scottish tartan. Both traditions continue today.

Well it’s not often that a vehicle manufacturer will admit that its vans are ugly is it – so good on Ford for its honesty.
Meet the Fordmonster – otherwise known as the MkI Transit Parcel Van. Apparently “it makes up in duty what it lacks in beauty”. The small print goes on to say:
Continued below:

This is the truck that struck fear into the hearts of every parent – the BMC FG -
the paedophile’s favourite truck! Just look at the reaction it got when it pulled up in this 1967 suburban street. Anyone would think it was carrying a load of puppies!
Continued below

I love this British Aluminium Company advertisement, which appeared in Motor Transport in the early 1970s.
It’s basically saying that old trucks were crap, built poorly, and rotted quickly.
“They used to build lorries with steel sheets, reinforced with wood and screws and finished with iron, steel and brass fittings,” it says.
“The result was a body that rusted, split and chipped. In the past there was a very good reason for building wagons like this. They had no choice.”
OK fair point, aluminium doesn’t rust, but I think they’re being a bit hard on what appears to be a late 1920s Ford AA. It’s over forty years old when this picture was taken. I can’t imagine that a 1967 Ford Transit would look any healthier today – even if it did have an aluminium body on the back.
And if you like photos of old American cars and trucks please check out my book Roadside Relics!!!!

I’ve been looking through my photo album, and thought I’d share this handful of Cuban trucks with you.

This Chevy truck is in remarkable condition considering that the country has been starved of spares for the best part of 50 years. GM cars and trucks are held in high regard by Cubans, having proved to be more reliable than both Ford and Chrysler products of the same era.
Having said that, the original petrol engine in this early 50s truck has been replaced by a Russian-built diesel that kicks out plumes of carcinogenic smoke.

Continued below

Here’s a blast from the past – the Bedford HA.
There can’t be more than a handful of these left on Britain’s roads, most having rusted away many years ago. I certainly can’t remember the time when I last saw one.
It’s hard to believe that these were still selling in 1982, some 18 years after their launch and 16 years after the Viva HA car on which it was based was discontinued.
Although I’ve got a soft spot for HA’s (and remember trips to Hastings in the back of my gradfather’s Bedford Beagle in the mid 1970s), I think it’s fair to say that it deserves a place in our crap cv list, even if they did only cost £9!

Motor Transport’s old technical editor Phil Reed tells me that the Bedford Chevanne was one of the worst vans he ever had the displeasure to test. Apparently during the course of a week both the front windscreen and the side window both broke!
That said, Phil did manage to find a few positive things to say, including “good ride and predictable handling”, “one of the most comfortable vans I have driven” and “great economy on two-star petrol”. But he was keen to point out a few criticisms too, most notably “a high level of mechanical noise” and “the smell of burning clutch”!

Back in the 1920s Leyland ran this advertisement in Motor Transport – announcing that the Iraq Petroleum Co was buying a number of its newly launched Beavers. Apparently it wanted them for “the transport of supplies on its colossal pipe-laying scheme”.
I’m looking forward to your comments!

I know it's not a commercial vehicle - but this story did appear in Motor Transport and I felt the urge to share it with you.
Apparently 50 "top of the range Princess 2200 HLS automatics with electric windows and sunroofs" were used as Wimbledon courtesy cars in 1980. Wasn't BL generous?
It's no wonder we don't have any decent tennis players today - a whole generation of potential tennis stars were probably scared off by the thought of having to travel in one of these!

Does anyone want to buy a big 'A' badge?
I've just received this email from Chris Cambell in Stirling:

"I have the aluminium cast 'A' radiator badge from reg,KSX 255,a 1963 Atkinson 24t GVW tractor unit which belonged to British Road Services Alva branch.The vehicle had single headlamps,a Gardner 150 LX, 6 speed David Gardner box and ratchet handbrake,and no power steering. It was used on the Alva to Bolton trunk with Carlisle changover point. As a teenager back then this was the ultimate lorry!
I was going to buy it for £100 when it was due for retiral in 1970 but before that happened one of the drivers managed to roll it over in the Bonded Whisky Warehouse at Menstrie. I wonder how he managed to do that?
Any offers for the big 'A' badge that I salvaged from the wreck?"

While I was in Moscow last week I missed an email from Andy Elphick - who spotted a real http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&rd=1&item=120153302482&ssPageName=STRK:MEWA:IT&ih=002
As you can see it's a brochure for the Peugeot J7, and it's in English. So does this mean they were actually sold over here? I can't remember ever seeing any in RHD.
Can anyone shed any light on this?

My friends on www.autoshite.com, who read my Moscow Motor Show report, have drawn my attention to one of the key reasons why Chinese cars aren't already in Europe.
This is frightening stuff:

They might look like a Mk3 Ford Transits, but in actual fact you are looking at a pair of Gaz Gazelles – Russia’s most popular van.
Incredibly Gaz finds buyers for more than 180,000 of these each year – which presumably has a lot to do with the $10,000 price tag. I am reliably informed by LDV boss Steve Young that the Gazelle’s closest competitors are the Ford Transit and Mercedes-Benz Sprinter – which achieve combined annual sales of just 6,000.
But the Gazelle is about to face some stiff competition in the form of the LDV Maxus – which was launched at the Moscow Motor Show last week. Gaz is hopeful that the Maxus will fight off the foreign competition, and expects it to ultimately find 50,000 Russian buyers each year.

Over the course of the last few months I’ve been on the look-out for the world’s crappest commercial vehicle – and I think I’ve found a potential winner. Well at least it’s got to be up there in the top 3, along with the Moskvitch van and the Hyundai Pony.
Continued below

In a desperate attempt to shift a few more copies of my book I've made a slideshow - and put it on YouTube.
The music is courtesy of my brother's band, the Small Hours.

Why are they almost always Land Rovers, asks this 1972 Motor Transport advertisement. As you might have guessed it then goes on to answer its own question - "No other vehice can cope so dependably with such demanding work. Its four-wheel drive and ten-speed geartrain will pull almost anything out of trouble, on or off the road."
continued below

Check out the state of this ancient Kamaz, which was photographed on Moscow’s outer ring-road last week.
Although there are still plenty of these old sheds around, and in fact they still build one that looks rather similar to this, there popularity seems to be dwindling fast.
The problem is that Russian hauliers have discovered Western European trucks, which are vastly more modern and have interiors that don’t resemble Stalin-esque torture chambers! It’s Russia’s (and the rest of Eastern Europe’s) insatiable demand for Western trucks that has led to the incredibly long lead times we are experiencing at the moment.
But while the Kamaz range may not be as sophisticated as some of the trucks we are used to, what they do have going for them is robustness and reliability. Kamaz trucks have won the gruelling Dakar rally no less than seven times, including 2002 right through to 2006.

Can anyone shed any light on the Dennis Vulture refuse collector?
I couldn't even find a reference to it on my favourite website!

Richard Stanier writes...
Only guessing, but I wonder if the adaptation to the front of the vehicle contained some sort of conveyor belt which would have facilitated frontal loading? If this was the case it would certainly have made life a bit easier for the bin men becasue they could have loaded from the pavement.

Harry Richmond writes...
It could be a thoughtful measure taken by the local council, which allows the vehicle to scoop up any drunkards left in the gutter in the morning?

Gert Fröbe writes...
I like your favourite website.
It does (now at least) describe the the Vulture on this page...
I drove a Dennis Eagle for a few years and what was badged as a 'Seddon Atkinson Municipal' (SAM) vehicle. Can find no reference on the web though.

Back in the early 1970s Commercial Motor ran a group test – whereby five of the best light vans went head to head,
So what little gems were they lucky enough to be driving on this occasion?
Well on the far left, then in its 13th year of production, we have the British Leyland Mini. At £645 it was by far the cheapest in the group – but “ridiculously awkward both to get in and out of”.
Next we have the Ford Escort Mk1, which all the judges agreed “looked good inside and out”. They also praised the “parcel shelf and headlining over the driving compartment” – but would this be enough to beat the Morris Marina?
Although the Marina was by now widely considered to be a big pile of steaming crap, this fact didn’t seem to worry our judges too much. Incredibly they chose to use words like “handsome” and “well built” (we kid you not) to describe it. Although braking was considered a bit poor.
Then there’s the Bedford HA – which looked archaic in 1973, and would incredibly soldier-on for further seven years. Our judges praised its performance, but were a little perturbed by floor panel vibration.
And finally, the newest of the bunch – the Reliant four-wheeler. I’m not too sure why they actually bothered to include this one, after all