1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
41
42
43
44
45
46
47
48
49
50
51
52
53
54
55
56
57
58
59
60
61
62
63
64
65
66
67
68
69
70
71
72
73
74
75
76
77
78
79
80
81
82
83
84
85
86
87
88
89
90
91
92
93
94
95
96
97
98
99
100
101
102
103
104
105
106
107
108
109
110
111
112
113
114
115
116
117
118
119
120
121
122
123
124
125
126
127
128
129
130
131
132
133
134
135
136
137
138
139
140
141
142
143
144
145
146
147
148
149
150
151
152 
All IN THE FAMILY
Page 148
Page 149
If you've noticed an error in this article please click here to report it so we can fix it.
If you think small is beautiful then you'd also better believe that where there is size there is strength.
Most people know that Seddon Atkinson is based in Oldham, in the heart of the Lancashire moors, and that its truck range stretches from 17 tonnes to 38 tonnes.
It's a fair bet that they also know that Seddon Atkinson is owned by Pegaso, the Spanish truck and bus builder. But how many people know exactly what Pegaso does, or what it builds, or how big it is?
If you've ever wondered about the answers to those questions, here are 20 things you always wanted to know about Pegaso, but were afraid to ask...
• Pegaso originally started building vehicles over 90 years ago in 1898 under the famous name of Hispano Suiza. In 1946 it adopted the name of Pegaso.
• The name Pegaso is Spanish for Pegasus, the famed flying horse of Greek mythology, which appears on the front of every Pegaso vehicle.
• Although Pegaso is nowadays known for its heavy trucks, during the fifties it made one of the world's fastest production sports cars, the Z-102, capable of more than 150mph.
• Pegaso's first Technical Director, Wilfredo Ricart, spent much of his early career at Alfa Romeo, where he was responsible for some of Alfa's most outstanding technical achievements. When he returned to Spain in 1946 he brought with him a number of leading Italian engineers who formed the nucleus of Pegaso's engineering organisation.
• The Pegaso Troner's 12-litre engine features the same fourvalves-per-cylinder open deck block concept as pioneered by Ricart in the 12-cylinder Alfa Romeo 512 Racing Monoposto,
• Today Pegaso builds a wide variety of commercial vehicles including buses, coaches, rigid trucks and tractive units includ-ing the mighty Troner tractor, which has the same cab shell as the Seddon Atkinson Strato, • Pegaso also manufactures military vehicles, including an amphibious all-wheel-drive personnel carrier capable of crossing deep trenches.
• Pegaso markets Volkswagen and MAN light commercials in Spain badged as the Ekus. It also markets Perkins engines in Spain, and has a co-operative marketing venture for agricultural equipment with J I Case.
• Pegaso employs more than 5,000 people, has a turnover of some 114,000 million Pesetas (£650 million) and exports commercial vehicles to over 50 countries throughout the world.
• The furthest-flung commercial vehicle market supplied by Pegaso from Spain is Taiwan.
• The Pegaso Group has a total of five factories in Europe, including the Seddon Atkinson site at Oldham, and one in Venezuela serving the Latin American market. It also has a CKD agreement in Cuba. • The land area of the main Pegaso factory in Madrid is equivalent to more than 105 soccer pitches. It also has three other plants in Spain.
• Within the Madrid site Pegaso has its own foundry, producing engine blocks for its trucks, as well as other products for outside customers.
• Pegaso has been manufacturing ZF gearboxes under licence for almost 10 years, and it now supplies ZF with machined gear sets and casings.
• Pegaso is market leader for trucks in Spain, and in a number of countries in Central and South America.
• Since 1974, Pegaso has exported over 40,000 commercial vehicles to markets throughout the world including, since the start of this year, Great Britain, with the Troner.
• The Pegaso Ironer cab, built at the Madrid site, is the result of a joint venture agreement between Pegaso and Daf, via an organisation called Cabtec. The Cabtec cab is used by Pegaso, Daf and Seddon Atkinson.
• The senior management of Pegaso is truly multi-national, including executives from Britain, France, Holland, Portugal, America and Switzerland, as well as Spain.
• Among the company's test routes for prototype vehicles is one that climbs over 9,000 ft above sea-level. Pegaso also has its own test track within the Madrid site which includes a tough cross-country circuit for military trucks.
• The 12-litre engine currently used in the Pegaso -ironer normally develops 360hp — but in the CS Racing Team Troners they are rated at approximately 800hp.