Old school trucks: TNL Freighting (pt 2)
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This month we continue to look at the TNL brand and a selection of trucks from the 1980s through to the 1990s.
There was some disbelief during the ’80s when the juggernaut known as Transpac purchased TNL, and the blue and white trucks were replaced by the infamous red and white colours. This was seemingly the end of TNL but after only a few years, the Transpac juggernaut failed, was placed in receivership and was gone almost overnight. This left a huge transport hole in the Nelson/Marborough region.
Enter some like-minded people and TNL Freighting was re-established, purchasing much of the previous TNL company back off the Transpac receiver. It is a cliché, but this was a true ‘Phoenix rising from the ashes story’ and it wasn’t long before the blue and white trucks were again commonplace in the top half of the South Island and beyond.
A mix of company-owned and owner-driven trucks remained in the fleet throughout the ’90s and while there were trends seen in the makes and models of the company-purchased trucks, almost all of the available makes and models at the time found their way into the TNL livery in the hands of owner/operators.
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