Saviem's fan club (Part 1)

pv83:
Hiya,

Another blast of information there Saviem, cheers, always makes a good read.
This might be one of the old Dessiries H Zucconni wagons then?
Looks like a tight fit :wink:

Cheers, Patrick

Evening all,

Thanks for the picture Patrick, that lorry is one of the “genuine” Chinese new ones…that on nuclear power station construction in which the Anglo-French company GEC-Alsthom were involved…that big old Heat exchanger was manufactured in Northern Ireland.

The Chinese order for PRP-Willeme, (Perez et Raimond, Boulevard Gallieni, Villeneuve la Garenne, (who were the French Detroit Diesel/ Allison importer, as well as having the licence to build the Willeme design of lorries), was for 12 units, all to be V16 Detroit powered, with Clark/Allison transmission, as TG300s, 8x8, 300/1000 tonnes capacity. The longer version of the Pelpel built Horizon cab was fitted, (as it was to the Algerian TG300 for SonelGaz.

Certainly 6 were built and delivered, and it would seem that as of 2015, at least two remain in workable condition, 78/15, not a bad innings! Two with a similar specification were delivered to Poland ZTE -Radon, (and Fergie put up a picture of one of them, seemingly retro fitted with a ■■■■■■■ 335, along with their Faun 8x8).

But if I may be permitted perhaps I could “close the circle” on these wonderful beasts, and just write a few words about where that design went…

Sometime ago I wrote a little about the handsome Cottard built Horizon, Willeme cab. But mainly giving credit to its designer René Harvey, who designed for Willeme. Following the demise of Willeme he joined PRP…as he should, for was not the conceptual design of the TG range his own!

But PRP ran into financial problems, and the Willeme licence was up for sale…(and I will not go into the shambles that precluded that licence becoming the property of Renault-Saviem)…First rule of dealing…get in, get it bought!..but a shambles it was…just as on the demise of Foden…the two acquisition teams from Renault Vehicules Industriels, and “our”, new partner Mack…bumped into each other, and sloped off to a Manchester Hotel to discuss who should go first!!!..The answer was supplied by Chuck Pigot whose Paccar team went in and bought the lot!..ah well…

So MOL acquired the licence, along with the services of René Harvey…and if you look at the MOL products from the early 80s you will see just how similar both the engineering, and physical cab design is to the Willeme original…But then a Spanish version of the TG appeared in the orange livery of Sainert SA…how so?

Well we have to go back to Paris, and a family of quite extraordinary engineering talent, the Ponticelli Brothers, from Le Kremlin, in the 13 th Arrondisment , Lazare, (the eldest, who passed away in 2008, at the age of 110 years), Celeste, and Bonfil, and their links with the Spanish operation of Joaquin Bartomeu Ochoe, (Trading as BTO-Trabosa), whose heavy haulage trailers were much supported by Madrid based Sainert SA in its heavy load operations. And of course Sainert worked in close collaboration with the French operator SCTT, (Societie Commercial de Transports TransAtlantiques, from 34 Rue de Listonne, Paris). Where no “Hors Code” outfit could ever visit!..But that BTO-MOL was a one off, (and when shown it still had the MOL Mammouth over the radiator)…but the market potential was proven, and the Ponticelli Brothers knew that, and René Harvey was to join their Franco Spanish Team…

Franco Spanish Team?..enter the very professional team of engineers at Bilbao based Tomas Mintegui Uriguen, (TMU SA), who had been converting, and re-engineering Leyland lorries since the 1950s, followed by spectacular re-engineering of the products of the US Mack concern, as well as "improving those of Pegaso. They would give form to René Harveys creative talent, and deliver perhaps the ultimate expression of the Willeme TG design…the TMU 8x4, and 8x8 heavy haulage tractor.

Long gone was the old Horizon cab, in its place the DAF 2800/3600 cab…but simply on Steroids!..Quoted by one South American lorry journalist as, “a room in the clouds”! Much favoured for heavy haulage work in Venezuela, where several plied their trade way up in the clouds, and perhaps even today two examples may still be working in the deep Iturrigolli quarry in the Lebanon. Gentlemen, if you can find a picture, you will see just what a handsome beast that TMU really was!

Ponticelli also converted the most unlikely Renault lorries into all wheel drive, as well as utilising Harvey`s talents to create the all terrain Ibex, and Irtex vehicles…

Then of course René Harveys ultimate creation from the creative engineers at Champ sur Yonne based Nicolas was the Tractomas, perhaps the ultimate Heavy Hauler ever made…but you can still spot bits of the Willeme TG in its design!

Just a quick thought on" where are they now"…Those big Bertha 8 wheel TGs…

Dessirier H Zucconi, at least one of theirs is in Angola
STAG,at least one in Algeria.
SCALES, a couple in the Ivory Coast.
Mayer, two still for sale…(should be in Shropshire…but the conflagration that would ensue…perhaps not)!

I’m away for a small Bollinger, and the rain is thundering down on my Hay crop…Id rather be in a TG…or perhaps a TMU!

Cheerio for now.