My first blog post! My top 8 Semi Trucks (lorries) (#KingsOfTheRoad)

Trucks (or lorries) may seem irrelevant to many of you, but I would like to give it a shot. Also this is my first blog post, so it might be of questionable quality.

To kick things off, I am an avid lover of trucks since I was a little boy. As I was growing up I learned quite a bit more about them and today I am writing about my top 10 trucks (lorries) of all time. They will not be listed in any particular order in order to discourage fanboyism (I don’t even know if it is a real word).

1. Scania 3-Series

The Mighty Scania 143 Streamline with an R-Series cab.

The Scania 3-Series is one of the best trucks of its era. It was produced by the Swedish manufacturer Scania from 1987 to 1997 in cooperation with Saab. The 3-Series came with a variety of engine, gearbox, load capacity and cab choices. The buyer could choose from a 230 hp 9 liter inline 6 all the way to a 14 liter V8 with 500 horsepower and almost 1600NM of torque!! pretty impressive for 1991, huh? Oh, and did I mention the V8 rumble is like attending a symphonic orchestra concert? Also there is a “Conventional” version, meaning it has a hood over the engine as it doesn’t sit under the cab. With Saab working on the aerodynamics and Scania in the engine department, the result was outstanding performance, fuel economy and reliability.

The Scania 143 with a T-series cab.

2. Mercedes-Benz Neue Generation (New Generation)

The Mercedes-Benz NG (post facelift)

The Mercedes-Benz Neue Generation series of trucks had a long production span from 1973 to 1988. During its production it received a major facelift in 1980 and a slight revamp in 1985. It had a variety of engines to choose from ranging from a naturally aspirated 192 horsepower V6 to an 18 liter turbocharged 500 horsepower V10 and quite a few of them sound beautiful! It also had numerous gearbox choices mostly from ZF, but other units such as the Eaton-Fuller Routemaster were available. Medium and heavy-duty variants were sold and a Serbian manufacturer, FAP (don’t ask me about where that came from) produced licensed copies until its bankruptcy last year.

An early pre-facelift example of the NG series

Kenworth W900

A modern version of the hugely successful Kenworth W900

Made by Kenworth, subsidiary of the Paccar group since 1961 and it is still being produced today! It is the famous truck from the film “Smokey and the Bandit”. It received numerous facelifts during its 55 year and still counting production run. As with many American trucks the W900 features a huge variety of engines from different manufacturers such as Caterpillar, Cummins and Detroit Diesel. You can buy one with up to 625 horsepower and with an up to 18 speed transmission! Most of the engines sound beautiful and will put a smile to your face. Options include huge sleeper cabs and huge load capacities with up to 24 ton load capacity on each tandem axle!

A very early example of the Kenworth W900 series.

This is a 1977 W900 crane

4. Volvo F-Series

The Volvo F16 470 Globetrotter.

The Volvo F-Series was produced from 1977 to 1993 with about 200.000 units produced in its 16 year production run. It is a truck known for its innovations, such as superior driver ergonomics and very advanced safety features. Built like a tank from the descendants of the Vikings, it was very reliable and robust. It is a Volvo after all. It came with 3 engine displacement options. 10, 12 and 16 liter, all of which were turbocharged inline 6 diesel engines. The F-Series received two facelifts. The first one happened in 1983 and a larger windscreen and a higher roofline were added. The second one happened in 1987 and included some cosmetic changes and the 16 liter 470 horsepower engine. It’s main rivals were the Scania 2 and 3-Series, but it seems to me that it was a tie until the end.

A Volvo F12 timber truck

5. Scania PRT-Range

The Scania R730 Black Amber Edition from 2011

This generation of trucks includes the 4-Series and the newer 5, 6 and 7-Series (The 5, 6 and 7-Series is not the official name but it is used by fans to designate the different generations). Production starts in 1996 with the discontinuation of the 3-Series. The design changed from solid lines and boxy edges to a more rounded and streamlined look. The engine options include 9, 11 and 12 liter inline 6 turbocharged diesels and 14 and 16 liter turbocharged V8s. Clever features include a split grille which can be used as a step for cleaning windows or as a small bench. The series received 3 radical changes throughout the production run. The first happened in 2005 with the introduction of new cabs, interiors and some technical advancements, while retaining about 2/3 of the parts from the previous models. The second was a facelift including sharper details and new interiors. In 2010 a new 16.4 liter with 730 horsepower and 3500NM of torque was introduced, making the Scania R730 the most powerful production truck only to be surpassed in 2011 by the Volvo FH16 750. The third upgrade in the series hapened in August 2016. It includes an new S-Series flat floor cab and a completely new design co-engineered with Porsche.

6. Mercedes-Benz Schwere Klasse (Heavy Class)

Mercedes-Benz SK 1853

The Mercedes-Benz SK Series of trucks was introduced in 1989 as a successor to the previous NG Series and production continued until 1998. The SK Series was based on a revamped version of the NG chassis and the cabs look quite similar. With technological advancements such as ABS brakes, driver ergonomics and air-shift transmissions, the SK Series was quite more comfortable than the NG Series. It had a variety of engine options, but only two blocks to choose from. The most basic one was a naturally aspirated 220 horsepower V6 and the range topping option was a 15.1 liter twin-turbocharged V8 with 530 horsepower when fitted with an intercooler. The transmission was an electronically controlled and pneumatically shifted Mercedes-Benz designed aluminum 16 speed twin disk manual. The exhaust note when unrestricted is outstanding!

7. Volvo FH Series

The Volvo FH16 750 2012

The Volvo FH Series was introduced in 1993 as a replacement of the F series which had been around already for 16 years. It has been through 3 updates as of yet. More aerodynamically shaped cabs were introduced enhancing fuel economy through extensive wind tunnel testing. It is the first heavy truck fitted with an airbag and the cab doors can open even when the support pillars are stricken with a 1 ton pendulum! It features brand new engines designed from scratch and they feature integrated exhaust brakes. In 1998 a facelift happened with a few cosmetic changes, but lots of electrical, engine and gearbox improvements. In 2002 there was a second facelift which features an entirely new cab, the new I-Shift automatic transmission, and a bunch of engine improvements. In 2011 the FH16 750 entered production and it is the most powerful production truck to this day. In 2012 a whole new generation entered production with a new cab and Euro IV compliant engines. The engines are offered in 3 displacements. The 12, 13 and 16 liter turbocharged inline 6s.

8.DAF XF

The DAF XF

Production started in 1997 and the XF is the result of extensive wind tunnel testing in order to lower fuel consumption. It is built in the Netherlands and I would consider it as “The Flying Dutchman” of trucks. It is powered by 12.9 liter turbocharged inline-6 engines with power outputs ranging from 410 to 510 horsepower. It features 12 and 16 speed manual and automatic transmissions made by ZF. There are 3 generations: The XF 95 from 1997 to 2006 with a facelift in 2002, the XF 105 from 2006 to 2012 and the XF 105 with a brand new cab design from 2012 onwards. (Sorry, I couldn’t find more information about this truck)

That’s all folks! I hope you enjoyed my first Blog Post and that I didn’t bore you too much.

Take care,
MariosP02