The new Iveco Stralis X-Way builds on an already robust, honest, and understated product that, as we‘ve said before, is deserving of a higher profile. So, with what will likely be the last evolution of Stralis … will ‘X‘ mark the spot?

Last time a big-cab Iveco Stralis appeared on the cover of New Zealand Trucking magazine, it was in the trademark livery of Aratuna Freighters. It towed a semi with curtain graphics promoting tourism on the South Island‘s rugged West Coast, and adding to the visual splendour of it all, the Arthurs Pass, the Iveco‘s workaday backdrop. This month it might seem we‘ve traded yin for yang as our first encounter with Iveco‘s X-Way Stralis in big cab form is an all-white tractor-trailer combo against a classic ‘North Island green‘ canvas. One thing the two trucks do have in common however, is the sentiment of their owners, that the Iveco product and the people who support them are as good as any, and in terms of bang for buck, better than many. “Don‘t say they‘re too good, it‘ll put the price up!” laughs Jono Cloke, owner of this month‘s feature truck when we broached the subject of doing the story. Of course, his tongue was planted firmly in cheek … sort of.

His company, AML, is the proud owner of the X-Way, his ninth Iveco. “I can‘t fault them. We run a 24/6 operation pretty much, so reliability is everything. We get one day a week for servicing and routine repairs, all done here at the Mount by DSL (Diesel Solutions Ltd). I can‘t speak highly enough of those guys either, James and Andrew, they are just above and beyond, seriously. “I still have my first Iveco, it‘s still on the front line, and I should probably trade it out, but I‘m a bit attached to it. So are the DSL guys actually, as it‘s been on their books the entire time they‘ve been in business together too. She‘s done 1.4 million, had a new engine dropped in at a million, and it just keeps on going.”

The last Mohican?
The X-Way demo truck circulating Australia was emblazoned with the slogan ‘X-Way Perfect Crossing‘ and the ‘X‘ graphic itself was half gravel and half highway. So, taking on that message, X-Way is, you might say, your one-stopshop, whether it be line haul tractor or rigid, or on and off highway Trojan. X-Way, although pitched as an all- Aussie creation, was in all reality a joint Australian/Iveco HQ development that began in 2015 using the existing Stralis as a baseline. The main focus areas for the development were productivity, emissions, durability, and safety, and there‘s been exhaustive infield testing both in the Antipodes and in Europe. It was launched to the world at the 2019 Brisbane Truck Show. With the beautiful S-Way now present and correct at Iveco‘s front line in Europe, it‘d be fair to assume X-Way will be the last Stralis variant through the door here, although don‘t for one moment think it‘ll be a short-term fling. Modern history would tell us new Euros don‘t make the trip south with any great haste, especially when there‘s an assembly presence in these parts.

New Zealand‘s endless corners, peaks, and valleys, and then our big, hot, rough as guts dinky-di neighbour, adept at hammering the crap out of anything not up to its early universe landscape, means over the years more than one OEM arriving here unprepared has had their wares returned to them as pieces in a carton, so to speak. Stralis has acquitted itself well in New Zealand, and it‘s mildly frustrating the product hasn‘t enjoyed the market share it possibly deserves. As we‘ve said before, in Europe Iveco makes up one piece of the ‘big seven‘ cake. In the heavy end here, that seven is more a five, comprising two Swedes, two Germans, and a Dutchman, with Italy‘s Iveco always there to keep them honest. The sole Frenchman in Europe‘s star lineup threw in the towel Down-Under a few years back, unable to shake off a bad experience with the neighbour‘s Bulldog … sacré bleu! Sad really, as odd as they look, we would have loved to have seen a big T Series Renault punching through a Desert Road night.

Photo: On the Kawerau Mill access road and over one of Kiwi trucking‘s most famous bridges.

Photo: Loaded and ready to head away on the next round.

Starting with a known quantity…
…is always good place to begin and there wasn‘t much about Stralis that wasn‘t known. The venerable Cursor engine has had significant revision, and is now in Euro 6 trim. Go Iveco! See, it can be done en-masse, even with an Aussie assembly plant! Even more exciting, its emissions status is achieved without EGR, using an in-house system the company calls Hi-eSCR, incorporating a passive DPF that happily goes about its business with no need for operator involvement. Iveco claim the system improves fuel consumption, is less stressful on the engine, and has no impact on the cooling system. The engine comes in 9-, 11-, and 13-litre displacements, with various outputs depending on application requirement. Nitty-gritty-wise it sports new piston rings and reprofiled pistons, as well as revised cylinder block, head, and crank. Fuel system is a Bosch hi-pressure multi-injection common rail (2200 bar), and there‘s a new electronic variable geometry turbo in the 11- and 13-litre motors. The test truck had the 13-litre under the floor, rated at the intermediate 375kW (510hp). There‘s a 338kW (460hp) option, and via approved application, a ‘High Output‘ 419kW (570hp). As you can imagine the tweak is simply a matter of plugging in and playing a computer game with the ECU for few minutes.

Max power occurs between 1600 and 1900rpm, and max torque of 2300Nm (1700lb/ ft) peaks at a paltry 900rpm and holds station through to 1595rpm, so there are no prizes for guessing where the sweet spot is. At that higher output setting torque gets bumped to 2500Nm (1850lb/ft). Behind the engine is Iveco‘s 12-speed direct drive twopedal AMT called Hi-Tronix that‘s available with a hydraulic retarder. It is Iveco‘s incarnation of the ZF-TraXon auto cog-swapper, and this of course helps immeasurably in regards to the X-Way being right at the cutting edge of many productivity enhancements like Ecoroll and rock-free, as well as safety, with functions like hillhold. Down the back a Meritor MT23-150/D single reduction rear axle set with DCDL (Driver Controlled Diff Lock) at 23 tonne rating perches on Iveco ECAS 8-bag air suspension. Up front the Iveco‘s 5890/D 9-tonne I-beam front axle rests on two-leaf parabolic springs, shocks and stabiliser.

Photo: The X-Way is dwarfed by the Kawerau Mill.

Rest assured
Like its European counterparts the X-Way bristles with the latest stopping and safety tech. Focusing on things when they‘re going well for the moment, there‘s ACC (Adaptive Cruise Control), LDW (Lane Departure Warning), and as we said, hill hold and rock-free. All there to make a happy day happier. Iveco says it‘s done a lot of work on braking in the X-Way design, achieving laden stopping distances that were once the domain of passenger cars. Disc brakes all-round are the go, with EBS, ESP, and brake blending, meaning service and auxiliary braking working together simultaneously in order to bring the whole show to a halt in the most efficient way possible. When that moment does arrive where the day ceases to go according to plan, there is AEBS (Auto Emergency Braking System) and BAS (Brake Assistance System). This latter feature intervenes in an emergency braking event in the event brake pedal pressure isn‘t enough to active ABS, ensuring that it is in fact activated – ‘Eh? I donna wanna scratcha my budaful face! I‘m-a taking ova!‘ Bringing safety back to where safety really starts and ends is the Driver Attention Support (DAS) that sounds the alarm and flashes a warning on the dash when the human factor appears to be detaching itself for whatever reason.

Photo: Cresting Tarr Hill.

So, why this white one?
Simple. The owner likes white, and aside from that, every last one of you reading this would expect something like an Aratuna or Sorenson truck, resplendent in either company‘s beautiful livery. But they are both entities with a known history for red wine and lasagne when it comes to truck buying. We chose Jono Cloke because 12 years ago he didn‘t own any trucks, and now he owns nine Ivecos! That, ladies and gents, is saying something. “When I started in business in 2009 I had a Volvo FH460. In 2010 I was offered a contract that required two additional units. I went to Volvo and I don‘t know, maybe they thought I was a tyre-kicker or something, but I couldn‘t get much traction. So I went to Iveco and they just rolled out the red carpet from the moment I arrived, and it‘s been the same ever since. “Gary Norton at the time and KeithTuffery helped source and sort out trailers for the trucks as well, and set the whole thing up. Just amazing blokes. Kevin is still my contact there and he knows every truck inside out. Because I‘m on fleet maintenance he knows what‘s due and what‘s been done almost before me! They‘re like his babies. “The trucks have no issues and the backup and support is superb. Like the Diesel Solutions guys, I can‘t say enough about them.”

Photo: Eastbound from Kinleith.

White on green
I‘m standing on the side of SH34 on the northern outskirts of Kawerau, under an avenue of trees waving in the wind on a beautiful spring day. In the distance I can see the X-Way gliding up the road towards me and its pure white not only looks angelic, but in all reality it was angelic, allowing me to escape the man with faraway eyes who had just ridden up on his bike and was petitioning me to buy a four-leaf clover for $10. “Mate, you‘re a lifesaver!” I said to driver Jarrod Bryant as I climbed aboard the sanctuary of a big European high-roof cab. Jarrod laughed when I told him what had just transpired, and as I buckled up and settled in, the man on the bike and the world outside the cab‘s expanse of glass started to move serenely away. The 13-litre Cursor was soon into its stride, sounding relaxed and at ease with its 44-odd-tonne burden.

We‘re joining Jarrod on his regular run, transferring wet timber from Kawerau to Kinleith and returning with pulp most of the time. There are a number of trucks from various suppliers in the circuit, and Jarrod‘s been at it for about five years. “It suits me down to the ground at this time in my life. My wife and I have a young family, we‘re saving for a house, and this gets me home every night. It‘s primo. I mean I do get away sometimes, I‘ve been to Christchurch and that, but this is ideal.” Like all AML trucks the Iveco‘s day is only half the story. Utility is king in the operation, and by night the X-Way heads for Auckland from its Rotorua base on general freight work, but Jarrod is the truck‘s assigned driver.

“I love my Europeans,” he says within the first couple of kilometres. “This is so cruisy. Quiet, comfortable, and power-wise it‘s fine for what we‘re doing. It‘s an hour and three-quarters loaded this way, and about an hour and a half back. That can blow out to over two if school‘s out in Rotorua, or the bloody road works on Te Ngae [Road in Rotorua] are in a shambles, but we all just talk to each other and because we have permits we can shoot across through Rerewhakaaitu and onto the million-dollar road. It‘s about 15 [minutes] longer than normal.” By now we‘re into the Rotoma hills and the Hi-TroniX AMT is picking its way through gears as the truck winds around the twisting, climbing and descending corners. The brief encounter we‘ve had with Eaton‘s new purpose-built Endurant AMT a year or so back was impressive, and believe it when we say it‘s going to have to be an exceptional transmission to close the gap between the US-sourced AMTs and this latest batch of auto-manual stirrers out of Europe.

The ZF-TraXon-based Hi-TroniX is, as you would expect, superb, with lightning shifts and seemingly remarkable intuition. We asked Jarrod how he drove it. “Leave it in A. Just leave it in A. It knows what it‘s doing, I‘m not going to get any more out of it. The whole idea is to get away from changing gears, only intervene if you have to: if you‘re going to change gears all the time you may as well have a Roadranger,” he laughs. Through the twisties the big AS cab sits remarkably steady on its all-airbag, shock, and stabiliser bar setup, only giving a mild lurch if it‘s asked to alter course twice in a quick succession. Again, our thoughts were thrust back to our September truck, the Redington DAF, and the relationship between modern high-roof Euro cabs and a deteriorating road network.

Photo: The X-Way passes by Te Puia on its way through Rotorua.

Yes, the big sheds do exceptionally well, but at times they‘re more ‘disturbed‘ than they were say five or six years ago. I can‘t imagine what some of the Euro wallowers of the 80s would be like today! You‘d hardly be able to stay in the driver‘s seat. Not far from the intersection with SH5, the X-Way has a run at a hill Jarrod calls Tikitere (think the north side of Carters hill SH1 Mangaweka). The X-Way settled in at 7th gear, 1600rpm and 30kph. Little surprise that where she chose to bite in was 1600rpm, the point on the power torque curve, where both engine output deliverables meet. It‘s interesting to note that in the Euro 6 Cursor both power and torque are sitting on their peak at that point, not always the case in a 13-litre. Although the AML trucks can find themselves heading anywhere, it would be easy to over-spec a truck for this kind of work.

With the Rotoma hills, the lakes section of SH30, Rotorua itself, and five other major intersections along the 105km route, it‘s a stop-start affair that certainly lends itself to the truck‘s mechanical spec in terms of engine and transmission. If the High Output option was taken it would likely benefit the night run more than the day, places like the Mamakus, Huntly deviation, and Bombay Hills. The risk for the day shift is simply burning more fuel as a result of quicker lift-offs, with little chance of extracting additional productivity. Thankfully Jarrod has the perfect demeanour. The 35km of SH30 between Waipa and Atiamuri is showing all the signs of a corridor carrying an everincreasing number of trucks in the over-50-tonne bracket, in other words an asset being sweated and not maintained to the standard required to cope.

There were three gangs patching and sealing along this section and Jarrod said one site was a revisit. We both accepted it wasn‘t the poor contractor‘s issue necessarily, they can only build what they‘re told to build. It‘s a classic Kiwi stretch of rural highway, dipping and rising with the relief of the land, and changing direction regularly. The X-Way‘s cab made it all too easy, with no irritable ride characteristics, especially when the underfoot was in acceptable nick, and as we ambled through the countryside we chatted happily at a library-like 66 to 67 decibels in-house. In tow was a Roadmaster 6-axle B-train set. The Iveco can pull a number of trailer sets. We asked Jono about trailer preference. “Yep, def Roadmaster. They just seem to last better for us, no issues. They‘re my preferred choice definitely.” Auxiliary braking comes in the form of a two-stage engine brake Iveco says is best in class, delivering 440kW (590hp) at 2300rpm. Downspeeding has been the real buzz word in terms of diesel propulsion for well over a couple of decades, with engine operating ranges generally accepted to be in the 900 to 1600/1700rpm range.

Retuning a driver‘s ear to low end bands now means hearing the engine in retardation‘s sweet spot up in the big numerals can induce a level of initial discomfort for but a moment. On this run the only really enginebrake nirvana is the south side of Tarr Hill. The Rotoma hill eastern descent is too twisty and slow to really get the engine brake singing for an extended period. The phenomenon that is brake blending is changing behaviours also. Trucks now want a say in stopping as well as going, so the sun is setting somewhat on the old days of ‘Don‘t use the brakes boy, use the engine and gears‘. Nowadays the truck will use everything at its disposal in the most efficient way possible. It‘s setting a sensible speed at the outset that‘s key to it all really. To date in its 35,000km life the X-Way is returning 48.7 litres per 100km, or 2.05kpl (5.79mpg).

Photo: Four of AML‘s nine Ivecos. Reliability and support is all a young firm needs to flourish and AML has had both in spades.

Considering the truck‘s age, and the endless stop-start, climbing, turning, braking, and load factor on the run, that‘s good going. Give it another 70 thou to free up and for Jarrod to learn the nuances of the truck‘s productivity tools, and we‘re sure the X-Way will be in the genuine 2.16kpl (6.00mpg) and above club. Speaking of those productivity tools, there are a few of them. As well as EcoRoll, now as accepted as windscreen wipers in the AMT set, there‘s Ecoswitch that limits speed, ability to kickdown, and manages torque demand and supply a little more studiously than normal; and Ecofleet, activated through the Ecoswitch function and only allowing a manual shift in order to adjust the lift-off gear. The optional tyre pressure management system that‘s available I guess you could rank as safety or productivity – we‘ll bung it here under productivity.

Most zealots nowadays would insist safety to score the moral high ground, so we‘ll definitely put it here. There‘s also Iveco‘s version of the ‘how well are you driving me‘ game called DSE (Driving Style Evaluation). We love that name. It doesn‘t infer incompetence, rather potential evolution, and hey, if you score well from the getgo, then in essence it‘s saying ‘Your style izza primo!‘ We hook a right at Atiamuri and shoot up SH1 for 10-odd kilometres to Kinleith for the transfer of product. That means a trot up Tarr Hill from the south, one of the country‘s yardstick ascents, nothing in terms of gradient since its realignment a couple of decades back, but a hill most truckers will haul over at some point in their careers. The Iveco dipped to 47kph at one point before strolling over the top at 78kph in 8th, again right in that sweet spot of 1600rpm.

How great would it be to set up a meeting with a truck like this, considered modest in terms of power by today‘s standard, alongside say an old Forest Products R190 International loaded with logs heading for Kinleith at the bewildering GCM of 39 tonne. The R190 would come in at 4.0kW (5.4hp) to the tonne, and the X-Way 8.5kW (11.4hp) to the tonne at its larger 44 tonne GCM. And let‘s not even go near torque, economy and emissions. Oh, how times have changed. Another area marked by the passage of time is maintenance and longevity. Today a warranty period alone probably surpasses what was once an engine‘s accepted first life. Having said that, Jono is adamant fleet maintenance is the way to go for a business like his. “Oh absolutely, it‘s a no-brainer. I don‘t have to think about anything outside of the operational aspects of the business. The trucks are just taken away and stuff gets done. We run them to 900,000 over five years, except for the old girl of course … because it‘s the old girl. She‘s off fleet maintenance now, but again, we‘re all too emotionally attached,” he laughs.

Summary
So, does X mark the spot? Without sounding like a politician, time will tell. The reason for that ollar-each-way conclusion is, building blocks aside, X-Way has enough new bits to warrant a period of time to prove it‘s worthy of a truck that really has held the ‘best kept secret‘ trophy in terms of big, high-class Euros – unless you hail from Te Kuiti or Greymouth that is, and then there‘s no secret in that at all. It‘s bang up to date, clean and clever, with sensible output options that will serve all but the most torrid high weight arduous topography applications more than well. If X-Way does hold to tradition and do its forebears proud, it will undoubtedly ‘mark the spot‘, and it‘d be fair to say whether it‘s the driver, owner, or accountant, they‘ll be happier than a Nona at Sunday lunch.

Again, we hear stories from independent parties about exceptional support and account management, and that‘s got to carry weight when agonising over New Zealand‘s kaleidoscope of truck purchase options. The Stralis cab is well into the second half of its design life. There‘s nothing you can point at specifically and say ‘that‘s why‘, but you just know it is. Maybe it‘s knowing the stunningly beautiful S-Way has made its debut. Please don‘t be too long getting it here. Done well that truck has all the potential to be a game changer for Iveco in these here parts and we know it has a future well beyond the now. But that‘s where we have to leave it. Jono Cloke only gave us the okay to do this story if we didn‘t say it was too good, remember?

LOOKS AND PERSONALITY
If you have them both you are a winner, whether animal or mineral in all reality. Probably man‘s greatest example of inanimate personality was the earlier 911 Porsches. Fascinating looks with a persona that would have you facing the way you‘d just come in a heartbeat, yet the world went bonkers for them. Thankfully, in terms of driving, modern trucks are all about preserving the occupants in a cradle of tech, and it‘s the X-Way‘s interior character that wins you over, with a spacious intimacy and quirky touches of Italian character. Looks-wise the X-Way‘s a big Euro, plain and simple. If you‘re a Euro buff then you‘ll likely love it; if you‘re not, you won‘t. We think it‘s a lovely-looking continental in AS (Active Space) trim, certainly the best-looking Iveco to date, with softer, more elegant, and slipperier lines than its AT (Active Time) and AD (Active Day) siblings. There‘s no argument the AS is intended to slip along the expressways for hour after hour. But looks are skin-deep. So, starting from the outside, there are double deck external lockers on both sides and access is via a well-spaced four-step set with a nice cascade.

Photo: Mod and user friendly with switches in many places. A flavour of things to come maybe.

Photos: Plenty of storage in the overhead – lockers and stows

The dash is the classic binnacle and wrap, and introduces us to what we‘re going to get in the S-Way. The two dash regions are distinct, although it‘s all in keeping and visually connected via design language – as opposed to say a 700 series Hino. The binnacle is a modern standard with four gauges, warning light clusters, and central telematics – trip, truck, settings etc. – and the wrap houses infotainment, climate, switchgear, hand-control for the trolley, coffee cup holder, outlets, storage caddies, and bits and pieces. The DSE (Driver Style Evaluation) readout on the infotainment screen presents some data in the form of a couple of extra digital gauges, which is cool – many truckers still like a gauge or 20. A clever way to entice the older set into playing the game. Speaking of switchgear, you‘d have to say it‘s everywhere. There are switches on the wrap, another cluster beside the shifter controls located between the binnacle and the wrap, around the actual binnacle itself, and on the steering wheel. A bit of consolidation wouldn‘t go amiss, which I think you might find has been done in the S-Way. Under the shift controls is the park brake valve in lever form, and down low on the left of the steering column is the headlight control, and on the right diff lock. The left wand is home to dip, indicator and wipers, and the right engine brake, cruise ‘Off/Res‘, and manual shifting. The smart wheel is all about phone, menu selection, and parameter adjustments. Summing up, it‘s a modern standard with individual quirks, and that‘s what makes every truck you ever pore over fun. The driving position itself is fine; there are flash-as heated leather seats and plenty of room around you.

The mirrors are plentiful and as well positioned as any truck with mirrors in the 21st century can be, given how safe we like our trucks in terms of impact and crush resistance nowadays. All controls fall pretty easily to hand, although those buttons on the outside of the binnacle require an element of dexterity at times. In fairness they aren‘t your every-second-of-the-day go-tos either. With materials and fit the Iveco is well sorted. We had no issues with assembly quality and trim lines. The light fawn in and around the sleeper and top lines of the interior lends itself to grub-marking, but the black plastics, heavy speckled dark grey floor covering, rubbers and vinyls in and around the cockpit and passenger areas are bang-on in terms of utility and durability. If I might indulge in a ‘Davisim‘ for a moment however, and hark back to a place I‘ve been before – colour! This relaxing two-tone world we live in is so bat-shit boring. Where‘s the flash of colour in the door trim or dash surround, or a cool red Iveco logo embossed into the engine tunnel? The Germans and Scandinavians you understand ooze austerity, but this is an Italian truck for goodness sake! Iveco, this is your moment to be Italian. Where‘s the Ferrari, Lambo, Zonda in it all? Where are the Vespa chrome flashes? As mod and cool as it is, it‘s screaming for a pinch of outrage! Grizzle done, let‘s get to the actual Italian that is alive and well in this machine‘s living quarters. If you‘re a Mr or Mrs Gadget, you‘ll love this cab. The innocent looking caddy beside Jarrod‘s chair may appear basic and utilitarian, but it‘s the gift that keeps on giving.

The driver‘s caddy is the gift that keeps on giving.	Access to the X-Way is great and there‘s ample external storage.	Snazzy table folds out of the back of the bottom bunk centre section. Top bunk folds up and whammo! Date night dinner sorted.

A cooled bottle holder, with a top caddy yes, but wait, there‘s more. It pulls out, and then the top section folds over to reveal a fridge. But wait, there‘s more. Lift up the flap on the rear section and there‘s a freezer! Go figure! And then there‘s date night, easily handled in the AS X-Way. The top bunk lifted up and away, the centre of the bottom bunk folds against the back wall, revealing a table on its underside that can be unclipped and opened out. All you need now is the candle (a battery one of course) and you‘re away. Now that‘s Italian! Just a pity there‘s not an imitation white tile floor that folds out of the wall also. Like all big Euro cabs there‘s plenty of room. It‘s a full stand-up job, with a skylight in the gods. It is 30mm narrower, 35mm shallower, and 25mm lower at the highpoint than the Euro 6 XF Super Space cab DAF we sampled in September. The raking roofline on the X-Way gives it a cosier feel, but is no less appealing. There‘s plenty of storage – pelmet pockets, under the bunk, lockers and stows in the overhead front, cubbies in the central console, under the driver‘s seat, as well as the ubiquitous door pockets. Access to daily fundamentals is under the front flap, and yes, there‘s a dipstick. I still find that immensely reassuring. The X-Way also comes with one of those clever key fobs too, that allows you to start checking lights and things as you approach. Is it a cab you‘d enjoy walking towards on a cold, rainy Monday? Yes! It is, but for a tad more Italian flair at very little cost, you might walk towards it, waking the neighbours with nessun dorma at full voice! Here‘s hoping they find the red cotton and chrome highlights before S-Way!

OLD HEAD, YOUNG SHOULDERS
Okay, so, he loves his Euros, cruises along, talks to his workmates about conditions, plans ahead, leaves it in ‘A‘ for auto because “the people who made it knew what they were doing”, and says it has plenty of power for the work it‘s doing. It all seems the sort of thing you‘d hear from someone with a lifetime of driving under his belt, someone who long ago lost the desire to try and prove himself, someone who‘s comfortable in the skillsets he has. So you might be surprised to know Jarrod Bryant is 30. What about this gem then… “Not letting kids ride in trucks is wrong! Just wrong. It‘s where the passion starts. No one drives a truck because their Dad said they should. People drive trucks because it‘s their passion, it‘s all they want to do. That‘s why you can eat off the floor in here, that‘s why we clean them, polish them, take them to shows. That passion starts as a kid when you first ride in them.” Music to the ears isn‘t it? Here‘s another one, completely unprovoked. “Without farmers and truck drivers this country would be buggered, and they‘re both getting a hard time at the moment. It pisses me off.”

A native of ‘the Tron’, Jarrod Bryant’s Dad Ricky drove mid-range trucks on homekill and other distribution work as he was growing up. “I was in the trucks every moment I could,” says Jarrod. “Loved it.” In time his Dad went to work for a friend in his engineering business, and again it was a treasure trove for Jarrod. “We hung out, learned work ethic, swept floors, it was great.” In 2007 the family moved to Western Australia. Jarrod was back home in a year, and then returned to Australia in 2010, this time with wife Kayla. “I got all my licences in Australia. First time around the car and then second time my HR, HC, and MC.” Jarrod drove for Sara Logistics in Perth on metro distribution, frist in rigids then progressing to semis. “I learned heaps in that job about clearances and distances, and backing into tiny spaces. I’d see places the semi had to go and I’d think ‘You’re shitting me!’ [Jarrod’s favourite expletive], but I’d get it in. That all stood me a good stead.

Photo: He may look and take his career seriously, but Jarrod Bryant’s one the of friendliest young blokes you’ll ever approach.

And it was an Iveco I drove mostly, as well as a Freightliner, which I didn’t like.” Four years later Jarrod and Kayla came home and Jarrod took on some casual driving in a labour hire environment. “It wasn’t really me and I was bit unsettled. I kept getting offers from a friend in Brisbane to come over and drive interstate on the East Coast. Eventually I decided to go over and earn some real money to get us ahead.” The job he took on was Brisbane-Sydney-Melbourne, driving a … you guessed it, Cummins-powered Iveco Powerstar. “I’d only been there three months, and I pulled into a truck stop one night. An old guy was there and asked what the hell I was doing. ‘Getting fuel and a feed’ I said. ‘No’, he said. ‘What the hell are you doing?’. He meant driving interstate. He told me how the interstate life had cost him multiple marriages, ruined his relationship with his kids, the whole bit, and told me to get out now while I was young. I shrugged it off and left, but I felt a bit uneasy and it nagged at me. I was home in a month. “I applied for the job with Jono, and here we are five years later, she’s all good. The truck’s great, the job is easy and the boss is great to work for, and I see my family pretty much every day!” Jarrod, Kayla – who works in childcare – and their three littlies, Naveha, Cohen, and Bonney, live in Rotorua. When asked about diesel in the veins of the kids, Jarrod said, “Hell yes! Cohen’s only three but he’s clawing to get into the truck whenever he can!” You might say it’s been a great winter for us here at New Zealand Trucking magazine. First Kane Wood at Northchill, and now Jarrod Bryant at AML. If these guys are representative of trucking’s heart and soul going forward, then we’re happy-as. And it’s worth noting, I’d happily jump into the sleeper and grab a wink with either Kane or Jarrod at the wheel responsible for my life.

AML
Jono Cloke (42) hails from a transport background, more so people than freight originally. Born and raised in Hamilton, he headed for Europe in 98 and spent five years driving tour coaches for Busabout before taking on an operations role in the London despatch office of bus tour company P J Ellis. He and a small team of workmates oversaw a fleet of 100 drivers everywhere and anywhere all over the continent. “That was a challenge at times I can tell you. I’ve haven’t called the guys to see how they are going currently, but I can’t imagine it’s fun.” He did five years in that pressure cooker, after which he headed for home. On his return he did a stint in operations with Pavlovich Coachlines before taking the reins at AML in 2009. What began as a one-truck operation then has grown to 11 today: nine Ivecos and a couple of Isuzu metro trucks. Outside of work he and the family enjoy touring around in the family camper, seeing our beautiful country, with guess who as tour director! “It’s a standing joke in the family. The first stop on any tour is always the yard,” laughs Jono.

Photo: Four of AML’s nine Ivecos. Reliability and support is all a young firm needs to flourish and AML has had both in spades. Photo: Jarrod Byrant.

Acknowledgements
Thanks so much to Jono Cloke for making the X-Way so easily and freely available. Thanks to Jarrod Bryant for letting us annoy him for a couple of days so willingly, and for allowing us to crawl all over his truck. Thanks also to Keith Tuffery at Iveco New Zealand for his help and assistance.