The first Freightliner Cascadia to land in New Zealand has hit the road for McKillop Contracting.
Alex ‘Tex’ McKillop was keen to get into the all-new conventional truck, which landed in the country late last year before going through an extensive build up including liberal amounts of stainless steel and a dramatic green glow lighting package.
Purchased through Trevor McCallum at CablePrice in Christchurch, the 116 Cascadia is hauling refrigerated goods between McKillop Contracting’s home base in Dunedin and Christchurch and between Christchurch and Invercargill for TSI Logistics on a two-driver rotating shift and clocks up a total of 1200km each day.
It joins two Freightliner Argosys and two 114 Coronados at McKillop Contracting, a company that McKillop started 19 years ago.
He says the Cascadia made a very positive impression when he took it for its first run.
“I love it,” he says.
“It is a big step forward, a game changer. The refinement, the driver comfort and the way the engine and gearbox work together is really impressive,” McKillop says.
McKillop Contracting trucks are easy to spot on the roads of the South Island with their green glow lighting, which emanates from beneath the truck and out of the engine bay.
The Cascadia even features glowing Freightliner branding on the rear cab extenders. The stainless steel look adds additional presence along with plenty of yellow LED lights.
“I just come up with all these crazy ideas and Phil at Fitzsimon Motor and Engineering Services in Christchurch just makes it happen,” McKillop says.
“A lot of work goes into it and the end result is brilliant.”
The McKillop Contracting Cascadia sports a 13-litre Detroit DD13 engine that generates 505hp and 1850lb-ft and is linked to a DT12 12-speed automated manual transmission.
It features the Detroit Connect safety package, with adaptive cruise control and autonomous emergency braking, which can even detect and brake for pedestrians. The Cascadia, which is the best-selling truck in the United States, also features a driver airbag and lane departure warning system.
