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I ran Iraq in 2003. Washington hadn't prepared for the aftermath of war By Paul Bremer, former U.S. occupation head of the Coalition Provisional Authority (CPA) in Iraq. The Guardian / July 6, 2016 “The problems of victory are more agreeable than those of defeat, but they are no less difficult.” Those are the words of Winston Churchill, and they seem particularly appropriate at the moment. Wednesday saw the release of the Chilcot report into the Iraq war, commissioned by the British government. As the former head of the Coalition Provisional Authority (CPA) in Iraq, I believe there is some truth in its findings. There is much in the report which mirrors problems the American government experienced. A fair assessment of coalition decisions should take account of the challenges in the immediate aftermath of Saddam’s ruinous three-decade rule. At every turn, we found ourselves faced with bad options – and worse ones. Prewar planning was “inadequate”. Chilcot notes that much of what went wrong stemmed from that lack of preparation. The same can be said of American planning. The key assumptions by the American government were that after the war there would be large-scale human migrations within and to Iraq and massive destruction of Iraq’s oil facilities. As often happens, planners were basing assumptions on the 1991 post-conflict experience in Iraq. Revealingly, the American organization set up in early 2003 was called the Office for Reconstruction and Humanitarian Assistance. According to Chilcot, the British government was driven by “a consistent desire” to reduce its military presence in Iraq. The commission noted that that “bad tidings” tended not to be heard in London. The same was true in Washington. Before the war, a few American military officers suggested the need for a substantial post-conflict military presence. They were not heard. Before leaving for Iraq, I read a report by the nonpartisan thinktank Rand. Studying previous post-conflict experiences, it concluded that the coalition would need some 480,000 troops to provide adequate security. We had less than half that number (some 180,000 Americans and 20,000 British). I sent the report to Secretary Rumsfeld and raised it with the president. The only positive result was that the Pentagon slowed down its plans to withdraw about 150,000 troops by September 2003. The Chilcot report rightly focuses on the postwar looting. When I arrived in Baghdad, all of the Iraqi government ministries had been looted. Some were still afire. We had about 40,000 coalition forces in the capital, but their very restrictive rules of engagement (ROEs) did not allow them to use force to stop the looting. Throughout the 14 months I was in Iraq, I objected in private conversations and cables to the under-resourcing of military forces and to their restrictive ROEs. I also reported to Washington that we lacked an appropriate counterinsurgency strategy, a failure which was not corrected until 2007. As David Richmond, one of the able British CPA colleagues told the commission, the coalition “never got on top of security”. So the coalition gave the impression to Iraqis that we were not serious in this most important goal of any government. No doubt this failure encouraged some members of what became the resistance. On two specific points I disagree with the Chilcot conclusions. The first is de-Baathification. Saddam modeled the Ba’ath party on Hitler’s Nazi party. Party members, though only 10% of the population, held all key government positions. They ran all political and social institutions, even sports teams. Every Iraqi neighborhood had a party cell to report on neighbors. Like the Nazis, the party recruited children to spy and inform on their parents. Opposition was ruthlessly punished. As Chilcot notes, some level of de-Baathification was “inevitable”. The state department’s prewar planning had concluded that “a program of deBaathification of all aspects of Iraqi life has to be put into effect”. The Iraqi program was much narrower than the similar de-Nazification program in 1945. It affected only the top 1% of party members and only forbade them from holding government positions. They could set up a business, open a newspaper or become farmers or journalists. I mistakenly gave Iraqi politicians responsibility to implement this narrowly drawn program. They greatly expanded its scope to settle political quarrels. I reversed their actions, for example by working with the Iraqi minister of education to reappoint 11,000 teachers who had been unjustly affected. De-Baathification remains contentious in Iraq – not because the effort was ill-advised but because true reconciliation remains difficult in a traumatized society. The second point of disagreement is over whether we should have overthrown Saddam Hussein. I do not share the commission’s assumption that in early 2003, the “strategy of containment” was adequate to the challenges posed by Saddam’s Iraq. Context is essential to the decision to go to war. The September 11 attacks showed a massive new threat, particularly if terrorists could get their hands on WMD. Iraq had been designated a state sponsor of terror by successive American presidents of both parties. After 9/11, no American president could dismiss the possibility that a state sponsor would provide devastating weapons to terrorist groups, or use them itself. Iraq had WMD programs for nuclear, biological and chemical weapons. Saddam had used chemical weapons against Iraqi Kurds in 1988. Since 1991, the United Nations security council (UNSC) had passed 17 resolutions, with the force of law, demanding that Saddam come clean about his WMD programs. He didn’t. The international inspectors had found his biological weapons program in 1995 only because of information from Iraqi exiles. At the same time, the international sanctions imposed by the UNSC were beginning to erode; countries like France, German and Russia were arguing for a new approach. Containment was no longer a viable option. I believe history will agree that it was the correct, if difficult, decision to remove Saddam Hussein. Had we not done so, today we would likely confront a nuclear-armed Iraq facing off against a nuclear armed Iran. Bad as the unrest in the region is today, that would be worse.

Americans should pay attention to this. All said and done, I still view Tony Blair as one of the best leaders of our time. He has, in my mind, a great deal of integrity. And to be honest, at this juncture with BREXIT occuring, I would like to see Tony Blair once more take the helm. Related reading: http://www.iraqinquiry.org.uk/ http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-36712735 https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2016/jul/06/chilcot-report-crushing-verdict-tony-blair-iraq-war . .

The face of an attorney general (Loretta Lynch) who is most uncomfortable with the "script" she was forced to read by those behind the veil, exonerating Teflon Sue (Hillary Clinton) even though she is guilty of violating 793(f) of the federal penal code (Title 18). With lawful access to highly classified information, Hillary Clinton acted with gross negligence in removing and causing it to be removed it from its proper place of custody, and she transmitted it and caused it to be transmitted to others not authorized to have it, in patent violation of her trust. Related reading - https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/18/793 .

Back when, the 2-stroke Detroit Diesel was certainly the most popular engine in Australia.

What rears and suspension did your father order?

She lied to the American government and its people Clinton email claims collapse under FBI probe Associated Press / July 5, 2016 Key assertions by Hillary Clinton in defense of her email practices have collapsed under FBI scrutiny. The FBI's yearlong investigation found that Hillary Clinton did not, as she claimed, turn over all her work-related messages for release. It found that Clinton’s private email server DID carry classified emails, also contrary to her past statements. And the FBI made clear that Clinton used many devices to send and receive email despite her statements that she set up her email system so that she only needed to carry one. FBI Director James Comey's announcement Tuesday that he will not refer criminal charges to the Justice Department against Clinton spared her from prosecution and a devastating political predicament. But the FBI’s investigation left much of Clinton’s account in tatters and may have aggravated questions of trust swirling around her Democratic presidential candidacy. A look at Clinton's claims since questions about her email practices as secretary of state surfaced and how they compare with facts established in the FBI probe: CLINTON: "I did not email any classified material to anyone on my email. There is no classified material." News conference, March 2015. THE FACTS (as we’re told): Actually, the FBI identified at least 113 emails that passed through Clinton's server and contained materials that were classified at the time they were sent, including some that were Top Secret and referred to a highly classified special access program, Comey said. Most of those emails - 110 of them - were included among 30,000 emails that Clinton returned to the State Department around the time her use of a private email server was discovered. The three others were recovered from a forensic analysis of Clinton's server. "Any reasonable person in Secretary Clinton's position or in the position of those with whom she was corresponding about the matters should have known that an unclassified system was no place for that conversation," Comey said. Clinton and her aides "were extremely careless in their handling of very sensitive, highly classified information," he said. --- CLINTON: "I never received nor sent any material that was marked classified." NBC interview, July 2016. THE FACTS: Clinton has separately clung to her rationale that there were no classification markings on her emails that would have warned her and others not to transmit the sensitive material. But the private system did, in fact, handle emails that bore markings indicating they contained classified information, Comey said. He said the marked emails were "a very small number." But that's not the only standard for judging how officials handle sensitive material, he added. "Even if information is not marked classified in an email, participants who know, or should know, that the subject matter is classified are still obligated to protect it." --- CLINTON: "I responded right away and provided all my emails that could possibly be work related" to the State Department. News conference, March 2015. THE FACTS: Not so, the FBI found. Comey said that when his forensic team examined Clinton's server it found there were "several thousand work-related emails that were not in the group of 30,000" that had been returned by Clinton to the State Department. --- CLINTON: "I thought it would be easier to carry just one device for my work and for personal emails instead of two." News conference, March 2015. THE FACTS: This reasoning for using private email both for public business and private correspondence didn't hold up in the investigation. Clinton "used numerous mobile devices to view and send email" using her personal account, Comey said. He also said Clinton had used different servers. --- CLINTON: "It was on property guarded by the Secret Service, and there were no security breaches. ... The use of that server, which started with my husband, certainly proved to be effective and secure." News conference, March 2015. CLINTON campaign website: "There is no evidence there was ever a breach." THE FACTS: The campaign website claimed "no evidence" of a breach, a less categorical statement than Clinton herself made last year, when she said there was no breach. The FBI did not uncover a breach but made clear that that possibility cannot be ruled out. "We assess it is possible that hostile actors gained access to Secretary Clinton's personal email account," Comey said. He said evidence would be hard to find because hackers are sophisticated and can cover their tracks. Comey said his investigators learned that Clinton's security lapses included using "her personal email extensively while outside the United States, including sending and receiving work-related emails in the territory of sophisticated adversaries." Comey also noted that hackers breached the email accounts of several outsiders who messaged with Clinton. Comey did not mention names, but a Romanian hacker who called himself Guccifer accessed and later leaked emails from Sidney Blumenthal, an outside adviser to Clinton who regularly communicated with her. --- CLINTON: "I opted for convenience to use my personal email account, which was allowed by the State Department." News conference, March 2015. THE FACTS: Comey did not address Clinton's reason for using a private server instead of a government one, but he highlighted the perils in routing sensitive information through a home server. The FBI found that Clinton's personal server was "not even supported by full-time security staff like those found at agencies and departments of the United States government or even with a commercial email service like Gmail," the director said. A May 2016 audit by the State Department inspector general found there was no evidence Clinton sought or received approval to operate a private server, and that she "had an obligation to discuss using her personal email account to conduct official business with their offices." Courts have frowned on such a practice. In an unrelated case, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit ruled Tuesday that the purpose of public records law is "hardly served" when a department head "can deprive the citizens of their right to know what his department is up to" by maintaining emails on a private system. . ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- And yet................ No charges for Clinton, FBI says Associated Press / July 5, 2016 The FBI lifted a major legal threat to Hillary Clinton's presidential campaign Tuesday, recommending no criminal charges for her handling of highly classified material in a private email account. But Director James Comey's scathing criticism of her "extremely careless" behavior revitalized Republican attacks and guaranteed the issue will continue to dog her [a slap on the wrist]. Comey's announcement effectively removed any possibility of criminal prosecution arising from Clinton's email practices as President Barack Obama's secretary of state. Attorney General Loretta Lynch said last week that she intended to accept the recommendations of the FBI and of career prosecutors. But the FBI director's blistering televised statement [a carefully written script for the masses] excoriated her handling of national secrets, contradicted her past explanations about her emails and ensured she will remain on the defensive about voters' views of her trustworthiness and judgment. GOP presidential candidate Donald Trump said the statement provided more evidence against "Crooked Hillary" and showed anew that "the system is rigged." Republican House Speaker Paul Ryan said the decision not to prosecute simply defied explanation. The findings concluded a yearlong FBI investigation into whether Clinton mishandled classified information, either intentionally or through gross negligence. Investigators who pored over tens of thousands of emails found no proof that Clinton or her aides intended to break laws governing the handling of classified information, Comey said. But he said, "There is evidence that they were extremely careless in their handling of very sensitive, highly classified information." The statement was extraordinary, with Comey revealing his recommendation on live television from FBI headquarters rather than privately to Justice Department prosecutors, as is normally the case. Comey said he'd shared the FBI's findings with no one before his announcement, which came just hours before Clinton traveled to North Carolina with Obama on Air Force One to campaign with him for the first time this year. The announcement came three days after the FBI interviewed Clinton in a final step of its yearlong investigation. Comey directly contradicted many of Clinton's past explanations in the case, including her assertion that she'd turned over all her emails and that she had never sent or received any that were classified at the time. The FBI chief said that in the course of the investigation, 113 emails were determined to contain classified information at the time they were sent or received. He also found that "several thousand work-related emails" were not among the group of 30,000 Clinton turned over in 2014. And he raised the possibility that people hostile to the U.S. had gained access to her personal email account. "There is evidence to support a conclusion that any reasonable person in Secretary Clinton's position ... should have known that an unclassified system was no place" for sensitive conversations, Comey said. Yet after criticizing Clinton, her aides and the State Department for their actions, he said that after looking at similar circumstances in past inquiries, the FBI believed that "no reasonable prosecutor would bring such a case." "No charges are appropriate in this case," said Comey, who began a 10-year term as FBI director in 2013, meaning he would presumably remain if Clinton is elected president. House Speaker Paul Ryan said the decision defied explanation, adding, "No one should be above the law." The staff member who set up the server, Bryan Pagliano, was granted limited immunity from prosecution by the Justice Department and also agreed to speak with prosecutors. Lynch said Friday that she would accept whatever findings and recommendations were presented to her. Though she said she had already settled on that process, her statement came days after an impromptu meeting with former President Bill Clinton on her airplane in Phoenix that she acknowledged had led to questions about the neutrality of the investigation. .

KrAZ Trucks / July 1, 2016 At the annual Rapid Trident-2016 military exercises, held from June 27 to July 8 at the Yavorov training area in Lvov Oblast since 2006 as part of Partnership for Peace military cooperation program, the KrAZ “Spartan” armored vehicles made a strong impression. Rapid Trident-2016 exercise participants include the ground forces of the United States, Ukraine, armies of NATO country-members and Partnership for Peace members. Over 200 military vehicles including KrAZ-Spartan armored vehicles are used in these exercises. Old campaigners of Air Landing Troops fought hybrid war against cadets during tactical exercises covered in military TV program of Ukraine . Ukrainian enlisted man and Spartan driver Vyacheslav Shpak said these armored vehicles had participated in assault of Donetsk airport and seizure of Butovka mine. He emphasized that no Spartan was rendered inoperative in combat and their crews remained safe and sound. He praised the easy maneuverability and comfort of the vehicles. The KrAZ-Spartan, based on a Ford F-550 chassis equipped with a 6.7-liter Powerstroke diesel engine and 5R110 5-speed TorqShift automatic transmission, has proven to be a reliable high-performer in numerous combat operations with U.S. and NATO armies in Middle East and Africa countries. The all-wheel-drive Spartan has a top speed of 110 km/hr and cruising range of 800 km. It can negotiate side slopes up to 35%, grades up to 60 % and ford water up to 1.2m in depth. Related reading: http://www.military-today.com/apc/kraz_spartan.htm http://www.armored-cars.com/newsite/index.php/vehicles/armored-personnel-carriers-mraps/item/14-spartan-armored-personnel-carrier .

Second double-podium in a row for Ford GT as Ford Chip Ganassi Racing Finishes p1-2 at Sahlen's Six Hours of The Glen Ford Chip Ganassi Racing went p1-2 at the Sahlen’s Six Hours of The Glen after finishing the Le Mans 24 p1, p3 Richard Westbrook drove the eventual winner to a track-record crushing pole, the first IMSA pole for Ford GT, on Saturday WATKINS GLEN, N.Y., July 3, 2016 – The Ford GT is on a winning streak. Ford Chip Ganassi Racing earned its second double-podium in a row as the No. 67 Ford GT duo of Richard Westbrook and Ryan Briscoe cruised to victory lane for the second time together, this time at the Sahlen’s Six Hours of The Glen, while teammates Joey Hand and Dirk Müller backed up their win at the Le Mans 24 Hours with a runner-up finish. Westbrook, who handled all driving duties Friday and Saturday while Briscoe went home for the surprise birth of daughter Blake James, put the No. 67 on pole with a track-record crushing 1:41.301, then, incredibly, set that bar even higher on race day. “It’s just such a good period for us at the moment,” Westbrook said. “Confidence is so high. It’s just a pleasure going to work every day in this Ford camp. It’s just been an amazing 30 days especially, really. First the Le Mans 24 Hours and now this. It was a great race out there. We had a really great battle with the BMW for most of the race. At one point, I thought we didn’t have enough for them, but at the end, we just seemed that little bit stronger. It was a really good race. A good race to be part of. I’m really happy for my teammate that he actually made it to the track and he has a nice trophy to bring home to his girls.” Westbrook and Briscoe earned Ford GT’s first win at Laguna Seca. Then they stood on the podium at p3 while teammates Hand, Müller and Sébastien Bourdais won on the 50th anniversary of Ford’s fabled 1-2-3 finish at the Le Mans 24 Hours in June. Now they’re back on the podium after Westbrook earned the team’s first IMSA pole in GTLM. “It’s really good to be back here at Watkins Glen,” Briscoe said. “Obviously it was a really busy weekend of driving on the freeways back and forth to Connecticut from Watkins Glen, but it’s been exciting and it’s been fun. It was really strange not being here at the track. I was on the phone a lot with Richard and our engineer and Richard was on fire. He led two practice sessions and got the pole. So I’m coming in last night, and I was kind of nervous. I thought ‘I don’t want to step in here and let the team down.’ I’m glad we got the win and it’s all worked out well. I’ll be hitting the road as soon as I leave the track to go back to the hospital and see my girls. Thanks to the team and for Richard for sticking it out for me while I was gone. It’s been awesome being in the car today. It handled really well. It’s nice to lead some laps and get the win.” The move of the race for the No. 66 happened in the closing moments, when Hand passed the BMW the team had been dueling with around the outside for p2. “Clearly we have a little roll going here,” Hand said. “(Briscoe and Westbrook) won at Laguna Seca, we both had fast cars there, then we went to the Le Mans 24 Hours and had a great run there and ended up first and third between these two cars. This Ford Chip Ganassi Racing team, we’re hitting our stride. We got along really well from the beginning, but I think with the whole team, everyone is just flowing really good and we’re getting great support from our partners like Michelin and Castrol and IHG Rewards Club. There’s just a lot of good mojo. This is when it’s great to drive for a race team like this. They figure things out. We struggled on the No. 66 car. We thought we broke something. We struggled during qualifying. Even during the race, something didn’t feel right. There was so much rubber on the race track. It took a bunch of rubber to make the car feel normal, but after that…we had one bad pit stop that put us back to eighth and it was a dog fight to get back from that. The car was good. I was able to get through. We had some great racing. This IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship right now, in GTLM, is pretty awesome. We have some great cars. It’s cool for the fans.” Like Hand, Müller credited the team for fixing an issue they dealt with early on in time for the race. “I love every single second in the car,” Müller said. “The car was awesome. We had a little issue with the car yesterday and we found it, so thanks to the team. Ford Chip Ganassi did a great job with the car. It was really, really fast.” Photo Gallery - https://media.ford.com/content/fordmedia/fna/us/en/news/2016/07/05/second-double-podium-in-a-row-for-ford-gt-as-ford-chip-ganassi-r.html

F-150 Raptor Terrain Modes: “Where We're Going, We Don't Need Roads” Ford Motor Company Press Release / June 5, 2016 The all-new Ford F-150 Raptor features six terrain modes designed to handle the most demanding terrains. From off-road rock crawling and desert running to on-road sport mode, Raptor is ready for any type of driving. Here’s a breakdown of each mode. Normal For everyday on-road driving duties, normal mode is a perfect balance of excitement, comfort and convenience. Sport Mountain passes are no longer just for Mustang, thanks to Raptor sport mode. For spirited on-road driving, sport mode increases throttle response and provides a sportier steering feel – along with quicker shifting. The transmission holds gears longer to keep you in the power band. Weather When road conditions are less than ideal, weather mode inspires confidence without compromising driving pleasure. Snow/wet mode automatically engages 4 Auto. AdvanceTrac, throttle response and the shift schedule are optimized for greater confidence in slippery conditions. Mud/Sand For tackling trails and other off-road treks, the mud/sand setting is your best friend. 4 High and the electronic locking differential automatically engage for driving over loose or soft ground, and optimized AdvanceTrac settings help Raptor keep its footing. Steering is set to comfort, which makes it easier to navigate along tight trails and over obstacles. Baja Baja mode is where Raptor eclipses the competition. Designed for high-speed desert running, Baja mode places the vehicle in 4 High, AdvanceTrac is programmed to the least intrusive settings, and the throttle map is adjusted for more linear power and improved engine response to give the hardcore off-road driver greater control. The transmission has quicker shifts and holds gears longer – keeping the vehicle in its power band. Rock Crawl This setting is for intense off-road driving and rock climbing at low speeds. Rock crawl prompts the driver to place the vehicle in 4 Low, the electronic locking differential is automatically engaged and AdvanceTrac is set to the least intrusive settings for optimum rock-climbing ability. Throttle modulation and transmission response are optimized for greater control. Additionally, the front camera allows the driver to see what’s right in front of the truck, and it can be kept on at speeds up to 15 mph. Along with the individual AdvanceTrac settings tied to drive modes, Raptor continues the Ford Performance tradition of allowing the driver to program the system’s settings to match conditions and skill level. The driver can reduce traction control but keep stability control on with a single press of the electronic stability control button; or, by holding the button for five seconds, the driver can turn AdvanceTrac settings off. .

Want free government money towards upgrading to a new truck? Your ship is coming in.

Heavy Duty Trucking / July 5, 2016 Part of Volkswagen AG’s recent settlement with the Federal Trade Commission over its emissions-cheating scandal will be used to fund diesel emissions-reduction efforts in the heavy-duty truck industry. Announced last week, Volkswagen has agreed to pay up to $15.3 billion in a settlement with regulators requiring the automaker to buy back vehicles and set aside funding for cleaner technologies. The company is setting aside 2.7 billion as an environmental remediation fund. The emissions-reduction funding will be used to incentivize replacing older heavy-duty diesel vehicles with newer, cleaner-operating replacements, similar to the EPA’s current Diesel Emissions Reduction Act (DERA) program. The Diesel Technology Forum said that as of the end of 2015, only a quarter of all commercial vehicles are of the newest generation of clean diesel technology vehicles, produced after 2010. The technologies included in vehicles after 2010 were designed to create fewer harmful emissions and replacing older vehicles is the fastest way to significantly reduce emissions, according to DTF. “Accelerating the turnover to the new technology clean diesel engines will achieve substantial NOx reductions,” said Allen Schaeffer, executive director of DTF. “Significant air quality benefits will accrue to communities across the country if more of these older commercial vehicles are replaced with new or newer diesel engines.” While the DERA program has provided funding in the hundreds of millions of dollars since 2008, the money from VW’s settlement would represent a significant boost to efforts to replace older, polluting vehicles. In a recent report, EPA found the DERA had eliminated 335,000 tonnes of NOx emissions since it began. “The DERA program has a proven record of successfully modernizing and upgrading older vehicles engines and equipment in communities across the country,” said Schaeffer. “Consumers will continue to find the new generation of clean diesel cars, trucks and SUVs a competitive choice to meet their personal transportation needs, and clean diesel technology is a key strategy to achieving current and future energy and climate goals.”

Sean Kilcarr, Fleet Owner / June 5, 2016 COO & executive VP: William “Billy” Hupp Company: Estes Express Lines Operation: National LTL carrier with a fleet of 6,819 power units and some 25,707 trailers PROBLEM: William “Billy” Hupp will tell you he followed the old-school trucking pathway of industry advancement—by starting out in an Estes maintenance shop. He worked alongside Robey “Rob” W. Estes Jr., who went on to become the LTL carrier’s president in 1987 and who remains in that position today. The company was founded back in 1931 by W.W. Estes, Hupp’s grandfather. That shop floor experience came in handy for Hupp when he found himself confronted with the issue of replacement parts for some of Estes’ older tractors a few years back. A minor fender bender had left a vehicle in need of a new hood, so one of Estes’ technicians went online and found a perfect replacement for $1,500. Yet that replacement hood turned out to have an interesting history: It actually came from a tractor Estes had previously sold into the used-truck market. Paying money for parts that came from the fleet’s own trucks rankled Hupp a bit but fostered an exploration of how to extract the best value from the company’s older equipment. “The trade-in value is always fluctuating on the used market,” he explains. There had to be a way for Estes to get its money’s worth out of its older units. SOLUTION: The solution has proved to be simple yet more than a little unusual: an in-house “chop shop” staffed with Estes technicians who expertly strip down older trucks destined to be cycled out of the fleet for a range of spare parts. Some of those parts, however, are also marked for sale, as Estes found that often the individual pieces of a truck can be worth more than a whole unit put together, Hupp said. “We keep some of the parts and sell some of them, especially the engine blocks, on eBay” as well as via other online marketplaces, he noted. The program was so successful that Estes now operates two internal “chop shops” that also do double-duty configuring glider kits into tractors for its pickup and delivery (P&D) operations, Hupp adds. “We do about 200 glider kits a year; it helps us put good trucks into our P&D service,” he explains. Hupp points out that exploring new approaches to old problems is one of the ways Estes has managed to stay profitable as it’s grown from $100 million in revenue back in 1991, to $1 billion in 2004, and to over $2.28 billion last year. “A lot of things are out of our control in this business; the only good thing is that our competition has the same challenges we do,” he says. “We remain family-owned, and we plow a lot of that money back into the company. And LTL service is still our bread and butter, our ‘mother ship.’ It still pays the bills.”

(This historic Mack Trucks sales marketing film deserves its own thread)

It’s great that American companies can sell them trucks. But why can’t “they” pay for their trucks.......using their multi-billion dollar opium exports? Why is the US taxpayer paying to buy their trucks which serve to create a more stabile climate for the country’s opium industry? Wouldn’t US taxpayers rather spend that money at home on much needed projects like.......for example, rebuilding Dwight D. Eisenhower’s crumbling interstate highway system, arguably the most crucial pillar of "our" economy? John. Q. Taxpayer, did you know that you fruitlessly have invested US$8.4 billion since 2002 on counter-narcotics programs to reduce Afghan opium production.......which have had no effect? Boy, it sure would be nice to have some new roads, libraries, schools and playgrounds. How about those underfunded National Parks? If we spent our money at home, we could have a modern passenger rail system with bullet trains running from city to city at a quarter of today's driving time, with tickets at a fraction of today's airline fares? And wouldn’t it be great to fund the prevention of “illegal” immigrants entering the country? https://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/apr/30/afghan-opium-production-explodes-billions-spent-us-report). http://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/heroin-use-grows-u-s-poppy-crops-thrive-afghanistan-n388081

Reuters / July 4, 2016 As Afghan troops were preparing to take on Taliban militants without NATO combat support in 2014, U.S. officials shelved plans to provide them with hundreds of potentially life-saving armored vehicles. The decision not to supply around 300 extra vehicles, taken largely for budgetary reasons, remains a sore point, as local forces struggle to implement a U.S.-led push to get them off bases and into active battle against a resilient insurgency. Since 2002, the United States has allocated more than $68 billion to train and equip Afghan security forces, [allegedly] with a view to eventually withdrawing from the country. Yet serious shortfalls in personnel and hardware remain. Masoom Stanekzai, acting defense minister before being approved by parliament recently as intelligence chief, told Reuters the Afghan government was still trying to obtain more armored vehicles from the United States. After Washington approved a large shipment of cargo trucks* NOT REQUESTED by the Afghans, Stanekzai wrote a private letter to coalition commanders last year in which he said he needed more armored vehicles, including so-called Mobile Strike Force Vehicles (MSFVs). * http://ir.navistar.com/releasedetail.cfm?releaseid=930766 "In the type of fighting we're facing, the MSFV is more effective than the Humvee," he said, referring to the smaller, less well protected vehicle more commonly provided to Afghan troops. Most important, in Afghan eyes, is the MSFV's "V-shaped" hull and extra armor, which reflect advances in engineering widely adopted to better protect troops, especially from roadside bombs favored by Afghan insurgents. So while most local troops still travel in Humvees and regular pickups, coalition soldiers rarely leave bases unless they are in more heavily protected vehicles (e.g. MSFV’s). ORDER SCRAPPED In 2013, the Afghan army already had 600 MSFVs, and they are still used in many of the most dangerous areas of Afghanistan. At the time, U.S. military planners agreed on the need for almost 300 more, and sent a request to Congress for around $900 million to cover the cost. "It provides the ANA with an armored force that has more mobility, survivability, and lethality than regular infantry units," the Pentagon wrote in its pitch to lawmakers. Congress approved the money, but the order was put on hold in early 2014. Shortly after that, Afghan army chief of staff Sher Mohammad Karimi wrote a memo to coalition commanders outlining the military's need for better armored vehicles. "Mines continue to account for nearly 90 percent of the ANA (Afghan National Army) casualties for the past year and we anticipate this will continue to be a favorite tactic of our enemy for the foreseeable future," he said. In the end, the U.S. military scrapped the MSFV order "to address overall concerns about long-term sustainability and affordability" of Afghan forces, Pentagon spokesman Adam Stump said. Instead, U.S. officials decided to provide additional upgraded Humvees as a way to provide more armored vehicles, he added. BETTER VEHICLES SAVE LIVES U.S. advisers have been pressing Afghan troops to leave their bases and launch more offensive operations [Afghan troops refused to go on suicide missions in lightly armored Humvees]. Afghan leaders say those efforts to build a more mobile army are undermined by an over-reliance on lightly armored vehicles like the Humvee, not widely used in combat by U.S. troops for nearly a decade. U.S. military officials have said thousands of American lives have been saved in Afghanistan and Iraq by switching from Humvees to "mine-resistant, ambush-protected" vehicles (MRAPs) considered better able to withstand roadside bomb blasts. That point has not been lost on Afghan soldiers and police, who suffered more deaths last year than coalition troops did in 15 years of fighting in Afghanistan. "We have observed over the past decade the coalition provided its forces with improved armored vehicles based on the same threat reality," Karimi wrote in his 2014 memo. Karimi said more MSFVs, which have MRAP-level protection, could allow the Afghan army to become a smaller, more flexible fighting force. More than 3,500 international troops have died in Afghanistan, at least 1,400 of them killed by roadside bombs. Last year as many as 7,000 Afghan soldiers and police are estimated to have died. ASSESSING NEEDS U.S. military officials say they are trying to help the Afghans field more armored vehicles, and are reducing the army's overall fleet by nearly half in an effort to make it more manageable [cost cutting]. "We continuously assess what their need is for the fight they are in," said U.S. Major General Daniel Hughes, who oversees military aid to the Afghan government. MSFVs and similar vehicles come with their own drawbacks, as they are large, harder to maneuver, and expensive [and yet, they are the standard coalition vehicle]. Hughes said he considered the MSFV a "very specialized capability" of limited use to the Afghans, noting that MSFVs already in Afghanistan are often only used defensively [BS]. U.S. planners opted to order 1,600 replacement Humvees this year [at a cost of US$448 million to US taxpayers], which at around $280,000 apiece are cheaper than nearly $1 million for each MSFV, Hughes said. About 50 additional MSFVs were ordered last year to replace losses. U.S. commanders first take into account combat needs, but ultimately they can only provide what they can afford under budgets approved by Washington, he said. "I'm General 'No.' I add the fiscal reality. You can't just say yes to everything, you have to judge it on the financial piece ... because the ultimate goal of this is that Afghanistan supports its own military."

A new Route forward for electrification Truck News / July 4, 2016 Will the Route electric powertrain revolutionize the refuse truck industry in five years? Its developer certainly thinks so. Within five years, no one will be buying garbage trucks with diesel engines. Instead, they’ll be using Wrightspeed’s Route, a range-extended electric powertrain, according to Ian Wright, the man behind the new concept. It’s a bold prediction, but its inventor does have some credibility. Wright co-founded electric car company Tesla and also developed the fastest street legal electric-powered car in the world, the X1. Now, he has turned his attention to the truck market, where he sees the greatest potential for fuel and maintenance savings by converting to electric power. Wrightspeed’s Route powertrain completely replaces the traditional diesel engine, transmission, differentials and prop shaft. Power is provided by electric motors at each wheel, which can generate up to 300 hp for 45 second intervals or 150 hp continuously. A Fulcrum turbine, capable of running on any fuel, is used to keep charged a small battery pack that powers the electric motors. The turbine allows the Wrightspeed Route powertrain to run off a small battery bank, which traditionally has been the barrier to electric drivetrain adoption in heavy-duty applications. “Once you start doing the engineering, you realize that you can’t carry enough battery to do it,” Wright said of electrification. “You wind up with a garbage truck, in a 130-mile daily driving cycle, where you’d wind up using about half the payload just for the battery.” Wright’s solution was to use a smaller battery pack and keep it charged through regenerative braking and the use of the turbine as a range extender. The Route powertrain is unlike any previous attempts at electrification in the heavy-duty vehicle market, Wright explained, because it completely replaces the traditional powertrain. “Don’t underestimate peoples’ unwillingness to believe that,” he said. “I’ve had people actually looking at the powertrain in a truck and start talking about what we’re doing with the diesel engine. They’re looking at the space where it used to be, it isn’t there, and they still want to know about it. So, getting across to people that it is not an add-on, it is not a hybrid, it actually completely replaces the powertrain (is a challenge).” Replacing the diesel engine and exhaust aftertreatment also nets a weight savings of about 700 lbs, Wright said. FedEx is currently operating two trucks powered by the Route powertrain and Wright said the company has received orders for 250 more. FedEx, Wright said, isn’t sharing details on its real-world results because the powertrain is viewed as a competitive advantage. He noted Wrightspeed, in its own testing, has seen fuel savings of about 60% and has practically eliminated brake wear in certain applications. So far, Wrightspeed has been working most closely with Mack Trucks, since it has expressed the greatest interest in incorporating the powertrain into its vehicles. Other OEMs are wary, Wright acknowledged, because it’s a “radical” departure from traditional thinking. “Frankly, we are not out there pushing it out to truck manufacturers,” he said. “We’re responding to stimuli. People are approaching us and Mack was the first of the truck manufacturers who approached us with a pretty serious intent to get the thing into their garbage truck, so we’re working with them.” Mack and Wrightspeed showed a Route-equipped garbage truck at this year’s WasteExpo trade show. Wright emphasized the benefits of the Route powertrain will only be seen in certain stop-and-go duty cycles, and he takes a dim view of electrification in long-haul applications. His skepticism extends to the well-hyped Nikola One Class 8 long-haul truck that’s received considerable fanfare amid announcements the company has received 7,000 orders for a truck that has yet to be built. “It doesn’t work in long-haul,” Wright said of electrification. “You can’t just wish away the laws of physics. You go and do the numbers and that is not going to be worth the extra cost. You’re not going to save any fuel and it’s going to add fantastically to the cost of the vehicle, so why would you do that?” But in the appropriate applications, especially refuse, where trash trucks can burn diesel at a rate of a gallon for every 2.5 miles, Wright is confident his Route powertrain will take over – and quickly. “I think within five years, there won’t be any more diesel engines sold into that market,” he said. “It will all be done this way because it’s so compelling in that application…I think it will be completely dominant in five years, in that application. And it will make no progress at all in the long-haul application.” Wright will be the keynote speaker at this year’s Surface Transportation Summit in Toronto Oct. 13. You can find the complete agenda and registration details here.

Driving the Volvo VHD with I-Shift crawler gears Truck News / July 4, 2016 Volvo’s crawler gears offer better control when even 1 mph is too fast Sometimes, you just have to take it slow. Really slow. And in vocational applications where low-speed precision is required, the automated manual transmission (AMT) tends to be overlooked in favor of fully automatic Allisons or manual transmissions, which can allow greater low-speed control through clutch manipulation. Volvo aims to change that, with the addition of two new crawler gears to its I-Shift AMT. “This gets us into all the applications we haven’t been able to play in with an AMT,” said Wade Long, director, product marketing with Volvo Trucks North America, when introducing the new product to truck editors. The new 14-speed I-Shift (aka. Mack mDrive HD 14-speed) with two crawler gears was demonstrated in several Volvo VHD 200 dump trucks at Volvo Construction Equipment’s sprawling customer center in Shippensburg, Pa. The facility boasts an off-road course with grades of up to 21%. The trucks were loaded with 26 tons of gravel. The crawler gears allow the truck to creep at speeds as low as 0.6 mph – even up and down that 21% grade – providing the operator with exceptional control of the vehicle. It’s also an ideal fit for mixer applications, where crawler gears can be used to slowly and consistently pour cement, or chemical and livestock applications, where smoothness at low speeds is equally important. Volvo also demonstrated the benefit of crawler gears in a paving application. Long said the new I-Shift offers better low-speed maneuverability and control while also offering efficient performance at highway speeds. This also makes it ideal for heavy-haul applications in the VNX, where loggers, for instance, may want the low-speed precision offered by the crawler gears while in the bush but also demand efficiency at highway speeds. “With the VNX heavy-hauler, we’re bringing fuel efficiency to a market that’s just been focused on getting to the top of the hill first,” Long said, noting the new I-Shift offers great startability off-highway and lower cruise speeds on-highway. The I-Shift is rated for gross combination weights of up to 220,000 lbs, and possibly more, with special permission. Magnus Koeck, vice-president of marketing and brand management, predicted the addition of crawler gears will all but eliminate manual transmissions in vocational applications within five years. “The I-Shift we have now with crawler gears can do all the work the customer needs,” he said. Already, 88.8% of all trucks Volvo sells in the North American market are being spec’d with the I-Shift. I drove a VHD 200 with 500-hp D13 engine rated at 1,850 lb.-ft. of torque. The transmission shifted smoothly and the C1 and C2 crawler gears allowed me to easily and safely maneuver the truck in ultra-slow-mo. Other features of the I-Shift 12-speed have been carried over to the new 14-speed as well, including Hill Start Assist and Power Launch. I experienced Hill Start Assist by stopping the loaded truck halfway up the 21% grade and then removing my foot from the brake. The transmission held the truck in position, providing ample time to move my foot to the accelerator. Power Launch helps the driver break free of mud or sand, by building up torque and then thrusting the truck out of whatever sticky situation it finds itself in. Collectively, Volvo feels these features offer vocational truck operators all the tools they need to do even the most demanding off-road vocational jobs with an AMT. “This is going to open the door for a lot of applications,” said Volvo’s Ash Makki, who was my co-driver on the course. “A lot of our construction guys in the business are really excited.” These trucks were also equipped with Volvo’s 2017 engines, marking the first time the revamped engines have been provided for test drives. The new D11 and D13 feature a new common rail fuel system, which is fully encased underneath the valve cover, where Long said it’s less susceptible to damage. Also new is a patented wave piston, which Volvo claims allows for a more complete fuel burn and less soot accumulation. “It improves flame propagation for increased efficiency and reduced soot,” Long explained. The six tabs along the rim of the piston force the fuel and oxygen to better circulate, providing a cleaner burn, Volvo claims, adding soot in the cylinder has been reduced by 90%. Volvo says the engine enhancements will provide a 2.2% fuel economy improvement in the D11 and 2.5% in the D13, making them GHG17-ready. Power in the D11 has been boosted to 425 hp and a new assembled camshaft reduces weight by 27 lbs. Long said moving to the D11 from the D13 allows an operator to shave off 390 lbs and this is now viable, thanks to the extra power, in applications topping out at 80,000 lbs gross. The D13 features the same improvements as its smaller sibling, as well as a 44-lb weight reduction in the block, which when combined with the lighter assembled cam, affords a 71-lb total weight savings. The D13 now has an extra 100 lb.-ft. of torque, allowing drivers to get up to road speed faster and maintain top gear longer. The new D11 goes into production in January 2017 while the D13 improvements will begin rolling off the production line in November of this year. Also new, but not yet made available for test drives, is a D13 with turbo-compounding, which Volvo says will improve fuel economy by up to 6.5%. The turbo-compounding system collects previously wasted exhaust heat and converts it into 50 additional hp, which is then transferred back into the engine. When spec’d with a 2.47 rear axle ratio and the XE powertrain package, Long said the new D13 with turbo-compounding will allow a driver to cruise down the highway at 1,050 rpm. The D13 with turbo-compounding will enter production in mid-2017.

Call the good folks at Watts Mack (sponsor of this website) with your 1QHA4125BP5 front axle arrangement. They can view that arrangement and see the parts break-down of those tie rod end assemblies (10QH220P1/221P1) including the stud, springs, ect., and check availability. There used to be a repair "kit" that conveniently provided you with all the parts under one part number, probably 204SQ17 (or 204SQ21B). Watts can confirm the correct kit. Make sure you also order two 95RU32 tie-rod end rubber boots to complete the job. I wouldn't be surprised if they can assist you.. This is what most FA505s have.

http://www.bigmacktrucks.com/topic/36017-the-legendary-acco-–-designed-and-built-by-australians/

Trade Trucks.com.au / July 4, 2016 Built on an enduring platform of simplicity and strength, Iveco’s ACCO has for decades dominated the dual-control domestic waste collection business. And for good reason. But there are real threats on the horizon in the form of new contenders from Mercedes-Benz and Volvo. Steve Brooks takes a look at what they’re offering and more to the point, what they’re up against. No matter how deep you dig, it’d be hard to find a truck model that has copped more competitive assaults than the seemingly ageless ACCO. At one time or another almost every brand that has ever contested the Australian market has had a purposeful swipe at this home-grown hero, which is arguably the greatest survivor in the history of Australian road transport. In fact, the iconic ACCO has endured like no other, first under the International banner and now Iveco. Still, despite its decades of resilience and likewise, its vital and ongoing role in the viability of Iveco’s local manufacturing operation, ACCO’s place in the market is today a shadow of what it once was. Back in the days of International, for instance, it was a mainstay of the medium-duty single-drive rigid market. The Japanese, however, ultimately killed ACCO’s vast volumes with trucks that were simply better specified and in most cases more durable. A new era had arrived and International simply had no answer to the Japanese onslaught. Consequently, for many years it seemed the only place where the battle-hardened workhorse would retain its historic ‘truck of choice’ status was in the six- and eight-wheeler strongholds of concrete agitator and waste collection work. And for many years, that’s exactly what happened until a couple of competitors conceived highly-effective models targeting ACCO’s dominance in the concrete agitator business. The Arrival Of The ACCO’s New Competitors Strangely perhaps, a Mack conventional was arguably first to throw down a serious and carefully targeted gauntlet to ACCO’s prowess in agitator applications. The baby of the bulldog bunch, the Metro-Liner offered exceptional tare weight, much the same proven driveline as ACCO, a turning circle that was at least competitive with its cab-over rival, and critically, an eight-wheeler version. Keen to emulate Mack’s undeniable success, Freightliner and its former Sterling stablemate jumped into the fray; and not to be left out of the contest, Kenworth crafted dedicated derivatives of its T3 range. In what now seems a heartbeat, the agitator business has become swamped with aggressive competitors. The latest whack has come from Isuzu with a cleverly configured range of three-, four- and five-axle rigids, which quickly won significant business from several major concrete companies. And as cab-overs, the Japanese trucks are probably a greater threat to what remains of ACCO’s agitator business than any other brand. Sure, ACCO is still an effective part of the competitive mix and it certainly has its loyal advocates, but there’s no question its present place in the agitator market is a dull shadow of past glories. Waste Collection Despite the declining agitator market, the waste collection business is an entirely different ballgame and while several makers have already tried knocking ACCO from its pre-eminent position at the top of the pile, the old stager’s standing in the market has largely withstood everything the competition has thrown at it. Indeed, when it comes to domestic waste collection, particularly the side-loader variety, ACCO has for decades had no peer in the minds of most waste collection companies. There have, of course, been suggestions that the emergence of specialist garbage gatherers such as Dennis Eagle would eventual knock ACCO off its perch but except for a couple of instances, the local hero remains firmly entrenched at the head of the heap. Simplicity of design, a largely bullet-proof specification backed by decades of proven performance, and most importantly, a locally developed dual-control steering system said by those in the know to be far and away the best in the business, are the factors that keep ACCO in the ascendancy. As a senior operations manager with a major waste collection company told me almost a decade ago, soon after he’d endorsed an order for more than 60 new ACCO side-loader trucks, "… when it’s all boiled down, things like the quality of the dual-steer system, parts prices, tare weight and the truck’s track record in waste collection made it an easy decision to stick with ACCO." That comment probably remains as relevant today as it was back then, aided in no small part by pricing that has been amortised over decades of local manufacturing. But even so, times change and the one sure constant about the commercial world is that competition does not go away. It might endure setbacks and even retreat with its tail between its legs, but eventually it’ll come back smarter and stronger than before. To put it bluntly, the competition has improved and ACCO, for all its long-term leadership, hasn’t changed much at all. Now, for instance, two of the big boys in the truck world have almost simultaneously presented dedicated side-loaders aimed squarely at offering modern, viable alternatives to what some see as an archaic remnant of trucking history. Call it what they like though, knocking ACCO over won’t be easy but one thing appears certain; Mercedes-Benz and Volvo are about to give it a big shot with their own purpose-built dual-control models. Mercedes-Benz Econic We’ll start with Mercedes-Benz and its low-entry Econic model, described by Daimler’s denizens as a modern solution specifically developed for the Australian waste industry and ‘the first dual control Econic model in the world.’ Background First released on the Australian market in 2012 and boasting excellent forward vision, exceptionally low entry into the low-roof aluminium cab, and huge frontal overhang, it was apparent from the outset that Econic’s local potential as a waste collection truck would only be realised with development of a dual control system to compete with the market-leading ACCO. According to Benz’s local boffins, Germany responded with a factory-engineered dual control system which was directly ‘… in response to customer demand in Australia.’ Sticking with the Benz script, ‘The truck is produced at the company’s Worth factory in Germany (and) all of the major driver controls are replicated including the automatic transmission controls, and the audio system can be controlled via buttons on either steering wheel.’ Features The powertrain starts with a 7.7-litre turbocharged six-cylinder engine pushing peak outputs of 299 hp and 1200 Nm (885 lb ft) of torque through an Allison six-speed auto transmission into a hub-reduction drive tandem mounted on airbag suspension. The front axle also sits on airbags. The engine operates at the Euro 6 emissions level and combines a high level of environmental efficiency with noise levels said to be notably lower than its Euro 5 equivalent; a vital consideration in sensitive suburbs. In typical Mercedes-Benz fashion, safety figures highly with standard inclusions of disc brakes, electronic stability program, anti-lock braking system, two-stage engine brake and LED day-time running lights. Optionally available is a ‘Safety Pack’ containing an emergency auto brake, lane departure warning system and radar-based adaptive cruise control. Volvo Dual Control FE Then there’s the Volvo offering with another world first, the ‘world’s first dual control FE’ officially launched a few months back at the Waste Management in Action event in Melbourne. Background This certainly isn’t Volvo’s first snap at the domestic waste collection business but from all appearances, it will definitely be the most determined. "This truck has been designed and adapted locally and in consultation with leading Australian waste management companies to meet and exceed the tough requirements for this market," said Mitch Peden, vice-president of Volvo Trucks Australia in a prepared statement at the truck’s launch. Features Like its Mercedes-Benz rival, the Volvo comes with high levels of standard safety features, not least anti-lock brakes and an electronic stability system to reduce the risk of skidding and roll-over. There are also a wider windshield and extra side mirrors. "The new truck has unparalleled driver visibility and improved driver ergonomics," Peden continued, "and most importantly, features world-class safety and technological innovations including forward collision warning and emergency braking as standard on the 6x4 model." Meantime, the FE also includes Volvo’s latest electronically-controlled rear air suspension system, improving driver comfort and truck stability by controlling chassis height and compensating for uneven load distribution as each bin is emptied into the truck. As you might’ve deduced by now, there are many similarities in the offerings of the Swede and its German rival, extending to the powertrain specifications of both brands. Under the FE cab is Volvo’s 8-litre Euro 6 engine with lively performance figures of 320hp and 1200Nm (885lb/ft) of torque delivered into a six-speed Allison automatic and putting power to the pavement through a hub-reduction drive tandem. At the waste management event in Melbourne, Volvo was quick to point out that the FE ‘has long been a stalwart of the waste management segment globally’ and makes no secret of its desire to achieve the same stalwart status here. Final Thoughts Again, it won’t be easy for Mercedes-Benz or Volvo to crack a market where existing loyalties run deep and strong. Even so, Iveco’s tough and tireless ACCO could now be in for the fight of its life. Literally! Photo gallery - http://www.tradetrucks.com.au/truck-reviews/1607/a-grab-for-garbage/

Owner/Driver / July 1, 2016 Trucks are in Geoff Martin’s blood, especially the old Leylands he drove for Clutha. In memory of those years, Geoff brought an old Albion back to life. Geoff Martin’s rare Leyland Albion is a reminder of the blue Clutha trucks which rolled along the Burragorang Valley in NSW during the late 1960s and early ’70s. Geoff drove one himself, although he says "mine was a Comet. It didn’t have a tilt cab, it had a narrow axle." Geoff started working for coal haulage company S&M Fox, owned by Stan and Millie Fox, in 1970. Stan Fox, also a prominent racehorse owner, passed away in 1974. The company was bought out by Clutha and Geoff drove for them until 1984, running to the mines at Nattai, Oakdale and the Top Wash. Although he was a qualified mechanic, he began driving trucks because it was a better paid job. "A Mack was the last truck I drove there. I had a Mercedes and two Leylands, the half door one and then one of these," he says, pointing to the Albion, which was on display at this year’s Sydney Classic and Antique Truck Show. Geoff found the 1965 model Albion on a property at Temora in October 2014, having sat in a paddock for 15 to 20 years. "I bought it because it was part of my past," he says. "It wasn’t bad … it didn’t have much rust in it for its age. And they’re the original mats on the floor. I put a piston sleeve in it, I painted it inside and out, painted the wheels, put some tyres on it and tidied it up. I had it on the road in about three months." Each S&M Fox truck had a unique number; Geoff’s being 203. The original number had faded on the Albion, so he resurrected his old number and the S&M Fox signage as part of the paint job. "I spent 18 months driving a square cab; 120hp pulling 14 ton," he recalls. "It used to be hard work. You’d be working your guts out climbing up Bulli Pass, coming out of the valley." Geoff remembers the arrival of the new 1418 Benz trucks, which still carried the name of S&M Fox. "They must have had to carry the name for a certain period," he says. "Then they rubbed it off the bonnet and put Clutha on." Photo gallery - http://www.tradetrucks.com.au/industry-news/1607/remembering-cluthas-leyland-years/

Carga Pesada / July 1, 2016 If approved by Brazil’s National Traffic Council (Contran), a request from the Union of Paraná Cargo Transport Companies (Setcepar) will cause significant changes in the Brazilian truck market. In conjunction with the Curitiba-based TRS Engineering, Setcepar is proposing changes in Resolution 210 to allow Vanderleias (trailers with 3 spaced axes) and Cangurus (trailers with two axles together and a third axle spaced apart) can be pulled by 8x2 or 8x4 tractors. In the proposal, the tractor-trailers would have a Gross Combination Weight (GCW) of 59 tonnes (130,073 lb), two more than the seven axle B-trains, and an overall maximum length 19.8 meters (65 ft). Current regulations only allow Vanderleias and Cangurus to be pulled by 6x2 or 6x4 at a maximum GCW of 53 tonnes (116,845 lb). "If the application is approved, it will be very beneficial to the forestry industry," says Setcepar head Gilberto Cantú. "With a single trailer, you will have a much lower cost," he adds. TRS Engineering mechanical engineer Rubem Melo was responsible for the technical study of the proposal. "Today, 8x2 and 8x4 tractors can only legally pull standard spacing 3-axle trailers. We propose that truck operators also be allowed to operate them with spaced axle trailers, "he said. “The proposed specifications are not harmful to the roads and bridges,” said Melo. "The weight per meter is not increased, and therefore does not increase load concentration. In addition, because axle weights are not increased, there is no greater wear on roads.” Setcepar and TRS Engineering also proposed to Contran that the minimum length of tractor trailers with GCWs over 57 tonnes (B-Trains and Road Trains) be decreased from 25 meters (82 ft) to 22 meters (72.2 ft). .

Volkswagen Truck & Bus Press Release / June 1, 2016 L'Oréal Paris brings professionals from its development labs to several cities in Brazil A Volkswagen Constellation 6x2 underwent a radical transformation to promote retail sales of L'Oréal women’s Elseve hair care products in Brazil. The truck’s custom-built body is equipped with equipment that allows its road-going professionals to analyze a woman’s hair condition within minutes, including damage caused by the action of chemical processes, drying and other issues. .