DAF 2000 with trailer.
I’ve re-posted Truckerash’s picture below so you know which one I’m about to refer to.
Assuming this is the same ‘Jogger’ John Roberts I used to know on East European and North Africa work (who used to do M/E), I wonder if this is the DAF 2600 he did Pakistan in. He told me that he’d done Pakistan in a DAF 2600 in 1974 and that when he got to the border he asked a policeman which side of the road he should use. The policemen apparently replied, ‘Drive down the middle and if anything comes, just move over to the left’!
He was a good bloke. RIP John.
Cliff luxton:
Here’s one I drove on occasions.
Cliff, you must remember ‘Jogger’ John (whom I mentioned further up the page): he drove for Manno on North Africa work when you and I were doing the same. Robert
Yes I remember him well really nice guy would often see his lorry parked in some obscure parking in the middle of nowhere in Spain he would be of walking in the countryside so fit. Sadly missed.
This model is, in my opinion one of the best looking motors of all time, certainly of its era.
We had one at Winteringham Haulage, was Norman’s baby, he always wanted to restore it but unfortunately time got the better of him.
I was talking to one of cristayns’ drivers 2 years ago who said he had seen it in a NHS depot in Maidstone.
This picture was taken some time ago whilst waiting to be auctioned in Doncaster.
Hope it’s still about and someone has saved it with the intention of restoring it, so many memories from been a kid going out in it with my old man.
In 1972,I was tramping as an O/D,renting my rig and working for Vic Wild.I started off with the ubiquitous Atki,Gardner 180 and DB 6 speed,the dogs danglies in those days.At that time,Gardner had just brought out the straight 8 240,and Wild had several on order and I was due to have the next one,when Gardner went on strike.Now I had been to a couple of truck shows and liked the look of the DAF and had been talking to the young sales guy.I told him my situation,that I rented my truck from the firm I worked for but he was a Gardner man through and through.Anyway,he came to see Vic Wild,and all Vic would say was,“When you start putting Gardners in them,come back!”
As some of you may know,DAF always used the Leyland 680 engine,and if you didn’t see a DAF when it went past you,you would swear it was a Leyland Octopus!
Anyway,when Gardners went on strike,Vic Wild got the hump,but what REALLY got up his nose was one Sunday afternoon he was mowing his front lawn when he heard the sweet note of a Gardner straight 8,and looking up saw a Gardner 240 Atki go by in the colours of Herman Tideswell from Kingsley,and he’s never run an Atki in his life!He was a big fan of AEC.The fact that although Gardners were on strike,they could find a motor for a potential new customer was a bad move.
First thing Monday morning,Vic Wild rang Gardners and told them they could shove their 240’s where the sun don’t shine, then he rang the DAF salesman and ordered a pair of 2600’s,and the first one was mine.
Well,after a 180 Gardner,a DAF 2600 was another world,who wants an Atki now?With a Leyland 680 rated at 220 bhp and a ZF 12 speed 'box it was trucking heaven.And a double sleeper cab,WOW.
Aint those windscreen wipers something else???Best I’ve ever come across!
I mentioned it before Ian, but my brother and I nearly went down that renting road with that model DAF for Taylor’s of Ailsworth, Peterborough. Yellow wagons. In the end we did something else but often wondered if we made the right choice. We were a bit suspicious that it sounded too good to be true and not a little worried that it was the promise of such a glamour wagon that was turning our heads. 
How did it work out for you then?
I know where there is a full sleeper version of one of these sat in a garden where it has been for the last 20yrs.
I think you will appreciate these Ian:
all have a Middle East connection.
this photo courtesy of CONRAD LAGAN and copyrighted to him.
Lagan Transport on route to Iraq early 1970’s
This one owned and operated by John Roberts who sadly died a couple of years ago. John did a couple of trips to Iraq in this before working for Harrisons of Birmingham.
The Biker:
I know where there is a full sleeper version of one of these sat in a garden where it has been for the last 20yrs.
That cab is the full twin sleeper,they are bigger on the inside than the outside!
Spardo:
I mentioned it before Ian, but my brother and I nearly went down that renting road with that model DAF for Taylor’s of Ailsworth, Peterborough. Yellow wagons. In the end we did something else but often wondered if we made the right choice. We were a bit suspicious that it sounded too good to be true and not a little worried that it was the promise of such a glamour wagon that was turning our heads.
Went sour after 18 months.Vic Wild insisted that ALL work went through his office,including work you found yourself and he was really creaming off too much.I got a full time job pulling clay out of English China Clay in St.Austell,working direct at fantastic rates.They refused to put the money through the Wild Group office as they knew what he was up to and insisted I invoice them direct.After a couple of months with nothing being paid into his office,even though I offered to pay my truck rental weekly,but his words were,“Pay up or park up”
I had to dump my georgeous motor in the middle of his yard and tell him to stick it.
Although I had my own house and a growing bank balance,my bank manager agreed I knew my job by my accounts,but refused to lend me £500-00 for the deposit on a new Volvo F88.(They were only £7,000-00 new then!.)
Of course,in the early '70’s it was not as easy to borrow money as it is now.Anyway,I finished up getting a driving job on Brit Eurpean,and the rest is history!
What is it about that John Roberts DAF ?
I’m no expert or aficionado, but it just looks like a “proper” wagon to me !! 
Age is a terrible thing eh? 
I always thought the 2600 looked “Businesslike”,and it could do the business!
After being used to an Atki governed to 50 mph,I could cruise at 70 fully freighted,very productive!
bestbooties:
Although I had my own house and a growing bank balance,my bank manager agreed I knew my job by my accounts,but refused to lend me £500-00 for the deposit on a new Volvo F88.(They were only £7,000-00 new then!.)
Of course,in the early '70’s it was not as easy to borrow money as it is now.!
You’re telling me, we didn’t own any property so you can see how impossible it was for us. We paid cash for what we wanted and thus were always chasing our tails what with repairs and everything. We started off with a ■■■■■■ van, had a trailer built for it and were earning a very good living with plenty of direct work after trawling on foot round all the industrial estates we could find. Only backloads had 10% creamed off the top and pretty soon it was me who was sitting in an office taking the 10%, we had so much work. But just to demonstrate how tight money was (and of course prices were different) a haulier I knew, Bill Andrews of W.E. Andrews and Son (nowadays Clearway Transport of Nottingham) a good friend, offered to sell us a Leyland Redline unit with it’s 33’ stepframe van trailer for £500! £100 down and £100 a month for 4 months, no interest - and we turned him down even though it suited perfectly the type of work we were doing, new furniture. Couldn’t afford it. Of course we were put off a bit by the Scammell coupling which might have made hiring a unit in the event of a breakdown difficult. Still. 
From what I remember the gearbox was totally arse about face on a RHD with top gear away from you and back.
My old boss bought one and it ended up on local greenhouse work
That’s correct, even the early 2800’s had the backwards gearbox.
Wheel Nut:
From what I remember the gearbox was totally arse about face on a RHD with top gear away from you and back.My old boss bought one and it ended up on local greenhouse work
Strong spring also,made my left arm and chest muscles ache for ages 'till I got used to it,but hey,it was a small price to pay after coming off an Atki!
dieseldog6:
That’s correct, even the early 2800’s had the backwards gearbox.
Bill Kelly had a couple of those, good motors even though they were well past their best by the time Bill got 'em!
That box was a good 'un, easier than the FM12 I drive today.
dieseldog6:
That’s correct, even the early 2800’s had the backwards gearbox.
So did the 2200.
First impression of the 2200 (after an A Series ERF and Guy Big J) was how far the nearside mirror was from the driving seat. Then, that the lack of vibration didn’t mean the engine wasn’t running closely followed by how quick it was at 32 tons, especially as the roads had mysteriously become much smoother. Then there was the comfortable seat, the windows that didn’t rattle and shake themselves down in the rain, the steering wheel that didn’t shake constantly from side to side, brakes that worked and usually kept the motor in a straight line, the radio that could be heard, the rev counter that had replaced noise when judging gear changes, that most of the switches could be seen and even reached, that wipers covered most of the screen and went at different speeds and the demister actually did demist, and that’s without mentioning the bed and curtains, but I was cab-happy then so took a while to find those!
OK, the 12 speed ZF took a while to master, but it didn’t smash your knuckles and the clutch didn’t need 2 feet to hold it down.