Andrew James spends five nights a week on the road, carting supplement for cattle feed – so when he decided to buy his first brand-new truck, he needed to get it right.
Thankfully, he reckons he’s nailed it with his choice – a flash Mack Super-Liner that puts out 685hp running through a 13-speed auto.
The truck was the right pick for Andrew – or Jamesy as he’s usually called, unless he’s in trouble – for several reasons.
“Somewhere in life, you need a new truck, and I’ve always liked Macks,” he said.
“In the end, I could get a Mack quicker than I could get a Kenworth, and the price was a bit cheaper.
“I also thought it had better added features, and I liked the service agreement – I pay a certain amount a month and that covers my service for the next five years, there are no hidden costs.”
The truck is nicknamed ‘Backroads Motel’ because Jamesy practically lives in it, travelling through the backroads from Benalla, Victoria to various feedlots throughout southern Australia.
“I’m away from Sunday late afternoon until some time Friday,” he said.
“Because of this, I really needed the truck to be comfortable.”
Jamesy stands at 188cm (6ft 2), so having enough space in the cab to move around easily was a priority.
He also wanted some creature comforts to make life easier on the road.
“It’s got everything in it that you would want – a stand-up fridge-freezer, a microwave and a 60” sleeper because I’m tall,” he said.
“Because I have the room, I can take a week’s worth of food with me, which is handy.”
He also chose to customise the dash panel, which he wasn’t a fan of.
“I thought it was a bit plastic-y and bland, so Mack organised to replace the main fascia panel with a carbon fibre look,” he said. “It’s much better now.”
Other than that, Jamesy is pleased with the interior set-up.
“The way it’s set up, it moulds around to your left,” he said.
“Everything’s at your fingertips and it’s very easy and ergonomic.
“It’s got a smart steering wheel so all your phone controls, your radio controls and cruise control are right there on the wheel, you’re not searching for buttons.”
He has no regrets over going for an automatic, saying it “drives like a car” and practically idles at 100km/h.
“I’ll never go back to manual,” he added.
But where the Super-Liner really stands out is when it comes to road train work.
“We needed this one to be able to tow some big loads,” he said.
“It’s powerful, it’s got great handling, it’s got so many safety features, and the braking system is amazing.
“It’s got 30,000km on it already and every day I appreciate how good it is. I definitely made the right choice.”
The experienced truckie purchased the rig from CMV Truck and Bus in Wodonga and spent six months getting it ready to go.
With Bel Air Truck Spraypainting in Brisbane looking after the striking paintwork and The Bling Man taking charge of the chroming and other extras, Jamesy is delighted with the finished product.
“Everyone was amazing to deal with, offering different ideas in the build-up, which was really helpful,” he said. “I’m very happy with how the truck turned out.”
Right after the Mack was finally finished in June, it made its maiden voyage to the Alexandra Truck Show, where it impressed the judges enough vto land its owner trophies for Best Under 12 Months and Runner-up Truck of the Show.
“I didn’t go there to win any awards – I just wanted to get it to the show while it was clean and new!” Jamesy said.
“I knew it was going to be used for farm work so it wasn’t going to be clean for long – last night, for example, I was driving it through two inches of mud in Dubbo.
“I was totally amazed to win one award, let alone two.”
The successful operator has been involved in the transport industry his whole life, growing up with two uncles who owned trucking companies and going on to set up his own business, Jamesy’s Transport.
The Mack will join the rest of his fleet, which consists of two Kenworths and a Freightliner Argosy.
The 60-year-old hopes the new addition will see him out until he retires, which he reckons will be about seven years.
He laughed: “If I’m still driving trucks after I’m 67, I reckon I’ll have to have a good hard look at myself.”