Lurgen Street could be considered a landmark for Waikaka. It’s the first street as you enter the township from Gore, and at just 150m long, it’s dominated by the yards of Waikaka Transport.

The moment you spot the company’s distinctive black, silver and orange livery through the trees in the distance as you approach on Waikaka Road, you know exactly where you are.

Lurgen dissects the yard, with the office, fuel bowser and stock trucks parked up on the left, and a few sheds on the right with the sowers – or bulkies, as they’re referred to in the Deep South – lift out siders and others to the right.

And all around, trucks bearing the MAN Braunschweiger Lion. The oldest still in operation is a 1998 32.422 8×4 lift-out sider, affectionately called Lucky Lady. Line it up with the newest to enter the fleet, a 2024 35.640 8×4 stock truck, and the difference in 27 years is stark. Not that Lucky Lady doesn’t still hold her own – she’ll still rack up the kilometres in silage season and is due to get a new cab.

“Its speedo stopped working at 770,000km … 20 years ago. It was still a front-line truck when Peter Stevenson bought the company in 2006, and for my first few winters here, it was doing two loads a day to Dunedin,” says sower dispatcher Richard Robinson. “It’s going to be one of the last trucks to leave! It’s a history truck; the only one left from the days of Sutherland Transport.”

The company has always run MAN trucks, and Richard adds that when he joined in 2003, there were “15 or 16” in the fleet. “Bill Sutherland really liked MANs; the motors worked well in his planes and everything else … there was a fair bit of experimenting in Bill’s day!” he says with a laugh.

The brand loyalty continued into the Peter Stevenson era, with Owen Humphries, truck sales at Penske New Zealand’s Christchurch branch, selling Peter his first MAN (and all subsequent), and now selling Brownie his first – which went on the road just before Christmas.

Today, the company operates 14 trucks in all aspects of rural work, six of which are MAN. “Stock would’ve been the main line of business the last couple of years,” says Brownie. “The spreaders would’ve done more tonnage-wise by February this last season than they did the whole season the year before – the farmers had no money to spend. But they had a good season this year, and it looks like next season will be pretty good, too.

“And the weather’s been in their favour this year. If they can get through to December before it starts drying out, they’ll get the whole season.”

The company’s trucks can be spotted South Island-wide – Invercargill, Blenheim, Ashburton, West Coast … if they have to – and occasionally across the Strait.

Meeting driver Shaun Wilson and the new TGX in mid-winter, however, we’re not going to have much opportunity to go very far out. At least, though, the day’s jobs include a two-trip bovine herd shift and a multi-collection load of sheep. Thankfully, that’ll all add up to a fair enough run to get acquainted with the pair.

8x4s and hoofs and paws

Shaun’s TGX is permitted for 54 tonne, and as an 8×4, its GVM is 35 tonne. However, it didn’t start out that way … Owen Humphries explains that as New Zealand is the only country that does not operate a ride-share twin-steer suspension, TG3 MAN 8x4s for our market come off the assembly line in Germany as 26-tonne 6x4s, configured to be 8x4s. The second steering axle is then added at Penske Tauranga. Dean Hoverd, Penske New Zealand national product manager on-road, says this is possible because the local operation is one of a few overseas MAN-approved modification centres. Shaun’s truck is the first 8×4 New Generation TGX in New Zealand.

Shaun comments that the steering lock isn’t as good as the old TGX. While we also picked up on this watching him manoeuvre the truck, it’s not as bad as, say, a K200.

“I had it over the pit the other week to adjust the steering dampers, we might be able to do a bit more to get better lock,” he reckons. “The offset rims probably don’t help either … They’re just on for the look; the tyre size hasn’t changed. We actually had to have a bit of the deck cut out because they were catching.”

Speaking of which, the truck is fitted with a Modern Transport Trailers (Invercargill) deck, while the crates are a set of Total Stockcrates units off Shaun’s old TGX.

Shaun and Brownie agree that Total builds good gear. “Total is our preferred supplier for crates. They’re finished a wee bit better, I reckon, and the guys are bloody good to deal with,” Brownie says.

Waikaka also runs Delta crates and – here’s a blast from Dunedin’s past – one remaining set of old Valley crates, which still find purpose on an older MAN lift-out sider during bobby calf season. “All the stock drivers sleep in their trucks. So, it’s not very fair if you have to go do bobby calves and you can’t sleep in the truck,” Brownie says.

Likewise, the 2018 Fruehauf 10.7m trailer is also from Shaun’s old truck, as are its Total crates. Not that you could tell the gear is coming up for its seventh season – it still looks factory fresh.

“Yeah, we keep the maintenance up,” says Shaun. “And the farmers get a wee bit upset when I ask them to trim their trees before I come in. I won’t drag the truck through.” And fair enough, too!

Jackson Enterprises’ handy pneumatic effluent valves finish the build, while TRT’s Traction Air CTI system adds that extra bit of capability in those wet Southland months.

“When you get stuck, you’re stuck. But it is pretty good; it has saved me once or twice,” Shaun comments. “The truck itself is pretty good on traction. I haven’t found myself in any major situations yet. There’s probably just enough overhang to load up the drive tyres, too.”

Not, as we’ve said, getting stuck has been a big concern in 2025. It’s an unseasonably warm and dry July, and we’re surprised by the amount of dust being kicked up by the MAN’s tyres as Shaun makes his way up the long dirt road for our first collection from Andrew Curry’s farm, a few minutes out of Gore. He has two full loads of cattle to be transferred to a related farm in the Chatton area, about half an hour away.

Shaun lines up the unit and backs the trailer up to the ramps. With a press of a button on the dash, the locking mechanism of the trailer’s sliding drawbar is released, and he butts up, ready for transfer. He gets his overalls and gloves from the lockers, and we meet Andrew and his trusty four-legged sidekick, Prince. The trio doesn’t encounter much resistance from the awaiting passengers, and before long, all 48 of them are onboard.

Shaun’s TGX rides on three-leaf parabolic suspension up front and MAN’s eight-bag electronically controlled air suspension at the rear, and whether on rural dirt roads or Southland’s highways, there’s not much to complain about for ride comfort or nasty shocks or vibrations being transmitted to the cab. Even from the rigidly mounted passenger seat, ride comfort is right on par with other European 8x4s.

Arriving back at Gore along Ontario Street, one has to pull up just over the railway line before turning onto SH1 Railway Esplanade. There’s only just enough room for a modern nine-axle unit to pull up out of the way of crossing traffic ahead and a potentially approaching train behind. Shaun demonstrates utmost caution and awareness, and with a break in the traffic, we continue on. While the MAN’s safety systems can’t do much about a symptom of HPMVs operating on town roads that weren’t designed for them, it does offer a wide range of electronic braking and driving assists, such as lane change support with turn assist. Shaun’s truck has left and right-hand radars, and the system features flashing lights in the A-pillars and issues an audible warning.

“It works quite well when in the city. You sometimes don’t know someone’s snuck up the side of you, especially in Dunedin,” he comments.

Interestingly, heading to Invercargill the following day, it did warn us of ‘an object’ alongside as we crossed the Mataura Bridge … Another example of a modern truck coping with infrastructure that wasn’t designed for it.

Baas behind and a growl below

Having completed both shifts, Shaun heads to the wash pad to wash out the crates. He has multiple collections of ewes and lambs to make next, destined for Blue Sky Pastures, Invercargill. First on are 110 ewes and 20 lambs waiting in a holding pen at the yard, then he’s off to drop the trailer at Pukerau for a truck-only collection of 40 ewes just outside of Waipahi. We then nip along Kaiwera Road to the Clinton Mataura highway for another 40 from Jeff Farms, before 110 ewes and 50 lambs jump on at Kaiwera Downs Station.

Well, anyone who knows stock transport will get that ‘jump on’ is used very loosely … With some help at each pick up – of both the two-and four-legged varieties – Shaun gets all 380 of his flighty fares onboard.

“During the season, it’s easy, with just one pick-up per load. But at the tail end, you get around everywhere,” Shaun quips as we make for Invercargill.

We always look forward to a drive in a big MAN – we’ve said it before and we’ll say it again, the 15.25L D38 is right up there with the most characterful engines you’d find on the market today. Its 471kW (640hp) and 3000Nm (2213lb/ft) is delivered with a tuneful ‘growl’ and a chorus of turbo noises. With torque peaking early between 930 and 1350rpm and a 3.08:1 drive ratio, the drivetrain moves you down the road as if the truck is being pushed along by an external force, even with efficiency mode selected.

At 90km/h, it’s turning over 1300rpm in 12th, meaning the engine is right where it needs to be if a flex of the right foot is required for a bit of extra oomph or to drop down a gear into the power band.

“The most challenging hills I’d generally tackle would be through Dunedin or coming out of the West Coast, and maybe Tekapo or Balclutha,” Shaun says. “Overall, it’s five to 10km/h faster than the 540 and a gear up. The 540 was pretty hot when it was new … not anymore,” he laughs.

The MAN TipMatic 12-speed overdrive transmission has taken a bit of getting used to for Shaun, who finds it can be too eager to shift up and too aggressive shifting down. He’s had it recalibrated at Penske and hopes it’ll adapt to his driving style in time. However, driving it in manual in the hills as he does, he has no issues.

In auto, it’ll engage the EfficientRoll function when not under power, dropping into neutral to coast for as long as possible. After 61,500km, the truck is averaging a respectable 1.8km/l. The driveline instantaneously reengages with the driver’s requirement for more power or less speed.

The TGX is equipped with only the electronically controlled MAN Turbo EVBec engine brake, and Shaun misses the braking power of the retarder on his old truck. However, with five stages and 630kW of braking power, the Turbo EVBec “holds its own when loaded,” he says.

With its comfort and willing driveline, the TG3 MAN is proving to be a good workmate for Shaun. “I quite liked the older TGS 540 I was on before this. We went through some things together and she never really let me down. It’s been a jump to this, but I’ve gotten used to it,” he says, pointing to how far the interior design and technology has come.

The mid-roof GM sleeper cab offers enough space for a couple of nights away, and with a mattress topper, Shaun is comfy as. He likes the electronic windscreen blind and the fact that he’s not stabbing at buttons and screens when driving, thanks to the SmartSelect infotainment control.

“I’ve driven Kenworths … Internationals … I quite like these. They are underrated trucks,” he agrees.

Landmark assemblies

As we’ve encountered, those who drive a TG3 MAN seem to have a real appreciation for them. The machines are a step on from their predecessors and feel perfectly fit for the job of trucking in the 2020s and beyond. But where OEMs risk coming unstuck is with the likes of support, training, aftersales and parts distribution. As we reported last month, Penske has poured a large investment into all of that, propping up the back end in a bid to boost sales and customer retention.

Yes, many operators of their products may have a fleet spanning generations – exhibit A: Waikaka Transport – but there’s no denying the competition has tightened the screws in recent years, with a combination of appealing product, strong aftersales and compelling brand perception. And in 2025, that can test even the most longstanding brand relationships.

If the history of their tenure in the fleet is anything to go by, though, the MANs of Waikaka Transport should continue to populate Lurgen Street for some time yet.