The CMV Truck & Bus team pride themselves on working with customers to ensure the right truck is selected for their business’s applications and specific requirements.
For Jay Killen at Killen Trucking, an important requirement was that their trucks need to have great fuel economy, and that’s where Mack Trucks Australia come in.
After purchasing their first Mack from CMV Truck & Bus Albury/Wodonga Sales Consultant, Andrew Thompson, Killen Trucking have now taken delivery of nine Mack Trucks, with another one on the way.
“I had met Jay Killen in 2017 on a Mack VIP tour that I invited him too. We delivered our first Mack to them in July 2018,” says Andrew.
It didn’t take Jay long to get on board with Mack Trucks after first experiencing them - The first Mack to impress Jay was the hard-working Super-Liner.
“Andrew Thompson, came over a few years ago to demo a Super-Liner for us. It was a super-heavy rig set up for road trains, but I got in it and had a go, and when they looked at the telematics I’d got an all-time high score for fuel economy of 98.99 per cent. When we saw those fuel figures, we bought our first Super-Liner, and then three more in quick succession,” says Jay.
From there, the appreciation for the Mack brand and their trucks capabilities has grown, with Jay and the Killen team exploring other models to fit more applications.
“We have to fit into 26 metres, and with the refrigeration unit, the Super-Liner is just a bit too long. Volvo Group Australia and Andrew proposed a cab-over, but I wanted a bonneted truck, so we gave the Anthems a go and we’re very happy with them,” says Jay.
According to Andrew, the Mack Anthem has become a key member of Killen’s 40 strong fleet, with a fourth Anthem on order for the meat by-products transporter.
“The Mack’s just go to work, do their jobs and haven’t given really any issues at all. The Anthem model has really shown its own in the Killen fleet,” says Andrew.
While on a road trip together, Andrew and Jay passed one of the Killen Mack’s heading to Sydney and they were able to instantly check it’s fuel efficiency thanks to Mack Telematics, which can provide real-time information on fuel consumption levels, average speed, braking force, gear change data and driver behaviour.
“On the highway we passed one of our Anthem B-doubles. I wondered aloud what its fuel economy was like, so Andrew looked it up right there on his phone, and that truck was getting 2.73 kilometres to the litre. That’s phenomenal,” Jay says.
It’s not only the great fuel economy that brings Killen Trucking back to Mack Trucks.
The Mack Trident is another model that has proven itself worthy to Jay and the team, thanks to its great dependability.
“The Trident we’ve got has done half a million clicks going to Adelaide two or three times a week and we’ve never even put a spanner on it. It’s a dream truck, the driver basically lives in it, and the bones on the Anthem are the same,” explains Jay.
Killen’s drivers are also enjoying the ease of driving the Anthem with the mDRIVE automated manual gearbox.
"Our younger drivers haven’t been brought up on a Road Ranger manual transmission, so they find the automatic far easier. Really, it’s like driving a car and pulling that off in a heavy vehicle is quite an achievement.
"At first I wondered whether the Anthem’s 535hp engine would have enough pulling power, but Mack have got it fine-tuned with the mDRIVE and it works beautifully,” says Jay.
Mack Trucks’ range of solid, reliable trucks are what keeps customers like Killen Trucking returning to Andrew and the Albury/Wodonga team.
According to Andrew, “the Mack product offering is really good. They have fuel economy and the comfort is impressive.”
Jay has now purchased a number of trucks through Andrew, including three Mack Super-Liners, one Mack Trident, two FH 540 Volvo’s, and three Mack Anthems. Their fourth Anthem (and tenth truck from CMV Truck & Bus), is currently on order.
“We have a great relationship with Killen’s. All of their staff are friendly, and they get along with everyone at CMV Truck & Bus Albury/Wodonga.
“We’re lucky that Killen’s are able to come to most of our functions. Jay and I have just done our first Tarmac Rally Tour together, with the view to do another in September and then start competition,” says Andrew.
With the fourth Anthem on the way, we look forward to watching Killen Trucking move from strength-to-strength and helping them to grow their Bulldog powered fleet!
Thanks to Jay and Melissa for their ongoing support of CMV Truck & Bus and Mack Trucks Australia. We look forward to working with you now and well into the future.
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