On May 15, one of the most significant events in the commercial vehicle industry in Australia and globally—the Brisbane Truck Show—kicked off with great fanfare. With over five decades of development, this exhibition has become the largest truck, trailer, parts, equipment, and technology show in the Southern Hemisphere, truly a grand feast for trucks. As the first move in Truckplus Commercial Vehicle’s global communication strategy, we also dispatched frontline personnel to attend the exhibition. Following our previous European truck special feature, this article will take you through: What American trucks were on display at the Brisbane Truck Show?
The landscape of American trucks in Australia is quite complex. In addition to the commonly seen long-nose trucks, there are also many American cab-over trucks, such as the Freightliner Argosy and Kenworth K200. At this year’s Brisbane Truck Show, several Kenworth American cab-over trucks made their debut. The image above shows Kenworth’s cab-over flagship model: the K220. Its front grille features Kenworth’s iconic left-right divided design, combined with chrome-plated treatments on the headlights, bumpers, and other components, exuding a distinct American character.
As early as the last century, Kenworth introduced the K100 series cab-over trucks to the Australian market. While the K100 series was gradually discontinued globally and in the U.S. due to model iterations, it was retained in Australia. The current K220 series is a continuation of the K100 lineage.
Beneath its classic exterior lies a modern “heart.” The Kenworth K220 is fully equipped with a Cummins X15 engine, offering four horsepower options from 485 to 625 hp, paired with Eaton transmissions, ensuring overall power performance. Coupled with a spacious cab, it competes strongly with American long-nose trucks.
The Kenworth K220 offers four cab specifications: a 1.7-meter flat-top day cab (without a sleeper), a 2.3-meter flat-top cab with a sleeper, a 2.3-meter high-roof cab with a sleeper, and a 2.8-meter high-roof cab with a sleeper. Compared to typical European cab-over trucks, the K220’s cab space is remarkably spacious, which is why Paccar introduced the DAF XG+ to the Australian market: the XG+ has the largest cab among current European trucks and more advanced technology, filling Paccar’s potential future product gap.
This Kenworth K220 features a 2.8-meter high-roof cab with a sleeper, complemented by a robust chrome bull bar, chrome sun visor, and other configurations, creating a visually striking presence. An interesting detail of the K220 is that its boarding steps are positioned behind the front wheels, requiring a walk across a platform to enter the cab—similar to the design of the Renault Magnum.
On Kenworth’s own booth, another K220 model was displayed with more conventional configurations, including stone guard nets, bull bars, and spotlights, primarily for long-haul applications like road trains. These features enhance reliability: spotlights improve visibility, stone guards protect the windshield from debris, and bull bars safeguard the engine and other components during wildlife collisions, preventing breakdowns in remote areas—all designed for practicality.
The image above shows a Kenworth K200 tractor, the predecessor of the K220. While similar in body structure, they differ in details such as a rounder front grille and a different internal design. The K200 features a VistaVision slanted skylight on the roof, which the K220 eliminated for lower aerodynamic drag.
This Kenworth K200 uses an 8×4 drive configuration, common in Oceania and also seen in neighboring New Zealand. The benefit lies in better weight distribution, reduced axle loads, and improved passability. Additionally, the 8×4 chassis offers greater driving stability, ideal for long-haul journeys through remote areas.
After exploring American cab-over trucks, let’s turn to long-nose models, starting with Kenworth. At the exhibition, Kenworth showcased the classic T909 long-nose truck, designed and built specifically for the Australian market, meaning it is not available in the U.S. It combines iconic Kenworth styling, exceptional performance, and comfortable onboard facilities.
To withstand the climate of Australia’s outback, the T909’s engine hood is optimized to accommodate a larger engine radiator, ensuring reliability during prolonged operation. It incorporates classic American truck elements such as a chrome-plated external air filter, high forward air intake, and vertical exhaust, embodying the essence of American truck design.
From the side view, the T909’s distinct features are more apparent. Besides its boxy hood and chrome-plated intake/exhaust components, the cab uses classic riveting technology, with densely packed rivets on the side—all signaling that this is an authentic American long-nose truck.
A trailer company also exhibited a pure black T909 semi-trailer with a mirror-like bumper and decorative lights throughout, enhancing its visual impact.
The image above shows a Kenworth T909 modified by Australian aftermarket firm Armoury Group, equipped with the company’s custom bumpers, mudguards, and other components.
What does a modern American long-nose truck look like? The Kenworth T620 tractor on display set a benchmark. Compared to the T909, the T620 incorporates aerodynamic designs on the wheel arches and hood, with smoother curves to reduce air resistance and wind noise, enhancing driving comfort. Under the hood, it also uses a Cummins X15 engine paired with an Eaton Procision XD Pro transmission, emphasizing high efficiency and reliability.
However, its “brother” model, the T620 SAR, features a more classic appearance, offering more choices for American truck enthusiasts.
The T420 SAR is the classic version of the T420, with “SAR” standing for “Short-bonnet Australian Right-hand drive.” Compared to standard models, the SAR has a shorter hood, higher seating position, and modified chassis components like batteries and toolboxes, adapting to local driving habits.
Kenworth also displayed the T320 chassis model, designed for medium-to-short haul and intercity transport. It maintains Kenworth’s durability while optimizing the body structure: lower cab height for easier entry/exit, a more compact body, a shorter distance from the hood to the cab rear, and a larger front axle steering angle for a smaller turning radius—all beneficial for urban use. Based on the T320, Kenworth also introduced the T320A, further optimized for earthmoving and concrete transport.
After Kenworth, let’s move to the Volvo Group booth, where MACK Trucks, a Volvo subsidiary, proudly displayed its flagship model, the Super-Liner. Once one of Australia’s most powerful long-nose trucks, it has been further upgraded under Volvo’s unified strategy.
Yes! To meet Australia’s ultra-heavy transport needs, Volvo equipped the MACK Super-Liner with its largest-displacement truck engine, the D17 series (renamed MP11). This engine delivers 780 hp and 3,800 N·m of torque, with a massive 17.3-liter displacement, incorporating advanced technologies like wave-shaped pistons, and paired with the MACK mDrive transmission (Volvo I-Shift ATO3812). With this powertrain, the Super-Liner has become one of the most powerful American long-nose trucks in Australia and globally.
The Super-Liner also features a 70-inch straight-through sleeper cab with single or double bunks, combined with a parking air conditioning system to enhance the driver’s living experience.
MACK also showcased the Anthem series, equipped with the new MP8 engine—Volvo’s D13TC turbocompound engine. The turbocompound system recovers energy from high-temperature exhaust gases and transfers it directly to the engine crankshaft, increasing torque output to 2,800 N·m. The advantages include stronger power and higher fuel efficiency.
MACK, Volvo, and UD sharing the Volvo Group booth—with American, European, and Japanese truck brands under one roof—is a unique sight globally, reflecting the distinctiveness of Australia’s truck market.
Next, let’s visit the Daimler Truck Group booth, where Daimler presented two American brands, Freightliner and Western Star, alongside Mercedes-Benz and Mitsubishi Fuso. The Western Star booth focused on the 48X model, part of Western Star’s new X-Series, equipped with a Detroit DD16 diesel engine and DT12 transmission, delivering 600 hp for heavy-duty applications like road trains.
While retaining the classic exterior of previous models, the Western Star X-Series incorporates modern upgrades, such as smoother transitions between the hood and wheel arches, a reshaped hood, and LED headlights, balancing classic and modern design. The image above shows a Western Star 48X tractor without a bull bar, with a full-bodied appearance.
In addition to the 48X, the Western Star 47X also debuted at the show. With a slightly rearward front axle and a shorter hood, it offers higher maneuverability and broader driving visibility, meeting stricter length and axle load limits for applications like concrete mixers, dump trucks, and log trucks.
Besides Western Star, Freightliner, another key American brand under Daimler, showcased the fifth-generation Cascadia flagship long-nose truck. Featuring a unique black-white-gray camouflage paint scheme, while already on the U.S. market, it will take time to enter Australia due to regulatory differences.
Freightliner also presented the Cascadia 1942 Special Edition, commemorating the brand’s founding in 1942. This model features exclusive black wheels, a black bumper, black chassis components, and a black decorative pattern spanning from the hood to the doors, symbolizing Freightliner’s heritage.
At the booth, Daimler Truck also displayed the Detroit Diesel DD16 engine, similar to the Mercedes OM 473 with a 15.6-liter displacement, but offering power ranging from 500 to 600 hp and torque from 2,508 to 2,779 N·m.
This concludes our introduction to the American truck lineup at the Brisbane Truck Show. In addition to exhibits from major manufacturers, numerous aftermarket and parts companies attended, showcasing a vibrant array of modified trucks. We will cover this content in future articles—stay tuned! Thank you for reading!
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原创文章，作者：ctinsa，如若转载，请注明出处：https://www.ctinsa.com/truck-photos/5917
