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That was the year...

22nd December 2005
Page 14
Page 14, 22nd December 2005 — That was the year...
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CM was launched in 1905; for our centenary year we're bringing you stories from years gone by. This week we're back in 1954 and 2004.

1954

The nuclear-powered submarine USS Nautilus was launched, and would make history by sailing underneath the North Pole. In Vietnam, the French colonial army was defeated at Dien Bien Phu and agreed to peace talks.

Beware of the fumes

CM conducted tests on the exhaust gases of two delivery vans, one with a petrol engine and the other with a Perkins P4(V). It concluded that "the exhaust gases from a petrol-driven vehicle are potentially more dangerous to health than those of a diesel-powered vehicle".

Some things never get tyred

'lyre manufacturer Wyresoles ("Not just a retread!") claimed a major Improvement in stopping ability on slippery surfaces thanks to the coils of steel spring wire embedded and vulcanised into the tread.

Nothing ever changes

CM reported it was "practically as expensive for a haulier to carry 5,000 tons as to carry 50, because he has no means whereby the handling of a big contract can be organised to cheapen the process".

Living with a fried-out combi

We tested a German-built 15cwt van with four-wheel independent suspension and a 30hp rear-mounted, air-cooled engine. It romped up our test climb without stopping on the 25% gradient section and gave 19.1mpg fully loaded. What was it? The original Volkswagen van.

2004

Time magazine selected George W Bush as its person of the year -for sticking to his guns (literally and figuratively)". SpaceShipOne became the first privatelyfunded craft to achieve space flight. In December, the strongest earthquake for 40 years struck South Asia, resulting in a tsunami that claimed at least 290,000 lives.

The rules of the game

After weeks of delays, CM finally published the government's details of the Working Time Directive. The debate over POAs was still not resolved until the WTD went live in April. More worrying was a fresh spate of attacks on truck drivers as hooligans in Leicester threw bricks off a bridge at HGVs passing underneath.

The king is dead, long live the king

After losing ground to the likes of Daf with its 4-series, Scania bounced back with its R-series. Unfortunately, the new line-up did not include a version of the innovative Longline cab which, being 1.3m deeper than a full-size Topline cab, offered much more living space.

You can't keep a good truck (or woman) down

ERF's ECM6 18-tonner with the old MAN M-class cab tore up the record book around our Welsh middleweight route, with then-deputy editor Emma Penny at the wheel. Her final overall route figure of 15.6mpg was enough to see off a handful of top-class rivals, including Dal's new LF55 and the Renault Midlum. "This is a solidly-built truck that should last and last," Penny opined.

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Locations: Leicester

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