Are the words of Mike Chittock, who is genuinely appreciative of the service his dear old Viking lady has given him. Bought new by Mike in 2002, he double-shifted the truck with driver Richie Wallis for the first 1,000,000km of its life on a five-day- a-week Invercargill-to-Christchurch freight run.

That magic milestone only took three and a half years to arrive on the odometer, after which the Volvo became the spare unit. In this instance, ‘spare’ meant carting bulk milk and dry goods all over the South Island and lower North Island.

The dear old soul now carries the status of semi-retired, with 1,960,000km on the clock.

“She’s only had two turbos, three clutches, two sets of injector sleeve seals, and one set of injectors,” says Mike. “Nothing’s been done to the gearbox or diffs.

“I have recently had the bottom end done, fitting new bearings, big end bolts, and an oil pump, only as preventive maintenance.

“It is still very tidy inside and out and can still do a decent day’s work.”

A well-deserved cap and badge are on the way!