Old School trucks: Philip Wareing Ltd—Part 1

By: Dean Middleton, Photography by: Dean Middleton

Date: 24.07.2019

One of my first trips to the Wareing’s yard with camera in hand was in the late ’80s when Isuzus were the dominant brand Philip Wareing Limited PWL

A CHX Isuzu on bulk duties. Painted yellow bins have long been part of the livery. Philip Wareing Limited PWL 2

Numerous Ford Louisvilles entered the fleet in the early ’90s Philip Wareing Limited PWL 3

The Louisvilles were used in a variety of applications; this one was engaged in bulk duties Philip Wareing Limited PWL 4

This Louisville was based in Ranfurly on logging duties at the time of the photo in the late ’90s Philip Wareing Limited PWL 5

A MAN 30.422 pictured unloading a load of export logs at the Port of Timaru Philip Wareing Limited PWL 6

An International Acco 2350 on bulk spreader duties Philip Wareing Limited PWL 7

Fodens became a popular brand of choice in the mid-’90s Philip Wareing Limited PWL 8

A pair of identical 4500 Foden self-loading loggers joined the fleet in 1996 Philip Wareing Limited PWL 9

The sister Foden Philip Wareing Limited PWL 10

A 4475 Foden on a respite from livestock duties, pictured with the crate off Philip Wareing Limited PWL 11

Foden Alphas were a natural progression from the 4000 series models Philip Wareing Limited PWL 12

Another Foden�—this one was general curtainsider work Philip Wareing Limited PWL 13

This Alpha was still going strong on full-time logging duties when pictured near Timaru back in 2015 Philip Wareing Limited PWL 14

Old Foden Alphas don’t go away to die, they get converted to eight-wheeler tractor units Philip Wareing Limited PWL 15

Isuzus still retained their place in the fleet Philip Wareing Limited PWL 16

This Isuzu Giga 390 was contracted to Wareing by Methven-based A&B McGinty Philip Wareing Limited PWL 17

The mid-2000s saw an influx of the Kenworth brand; one of the first to arrive in the fleet was this pre-loved K100G model Philip Wareing Limited PWL 18

A brand spanking new K104 Kenworth pre-delivery back in 2005 Philip Wareing Limited PWL 19

One of my first trips to the Wareing’s yard with camera in hand was in the late ’80s when Isuzus were the dominant brand

A CHX Isuzu on bulk duties. Painted yellow bins have long been part of the livery.

Numerous Ford Louisvilles entered the fleet in the early ’90s

The Louisvilles were used in a variety of applications; this one was engaged in bulk duties

This Louisville was based in Ranfurly on logging duties at the time of the photo in the late ’90s

A MAN 30.422 pictured unloading a load of export logs at the Port of Timaru

An International Acco 2350 on bulk spreader duties

Fodens became a popular brand of choice in the mid-’90s

A pair of identical 4500 Foden self-loading loggers joined the fleet in 1996

The sister Foden

A 4475 Foden on a respite from livestock duties, pictured with the crate off

Foden Alphas were a natural progression from the 4000 series models

Another Foden�—this one was general curtainsider work

This Alpha was still going strong on full-time logging duties when pictured near Timaru back in 2015

Old Foden Alphas don’t go away to die, they get converted to eight-wheeler tractor units

Isuzus still retained their place in the fleet

This Isuzu Giga 390 was contracted to Wareing by Methven-based A&B McGinty

The mid-2000s saw an influx of the Kenworth brand; one of the first to arrive in the fleet was this pre-loved K100G model

A brand spanking new K104 Kenworth pre-delivery back in 2005

Methven is not only the gateway to one of NZ’s premium ski fields, Mount Hutt but it’s also the home to one on Canterbury’s biggest transport companies—Philip Wareing Limited (PWL)

The small town of Methven is situated in the heart of mid-Canterbury some 35km north west of Ashburton. Methven is not only the gateway to one of New Zealand’s premium ski fields, Mount Hutt, but it’s also the home to one on Canterbury’s biggest transport companies—Philip Wareing Limited (PWL).

Founder and company namesake Philip Wareing began in business as a spraying contracting business back in 1980, which is a far cry from the combined fleet of more than 200 trucks between the Wareing group of companies almost 40 years later.

My first visit to the PWL yard in Methven was as a teenager in the late ’80s. The rural roots of the company was apparent with livestock, bulk tippers, spreaders, and flat-deck trucks loaded with wooden produce bins lined up in the yard.

At this time, Japanese brand Isuzu dominated the fleet line-up and the bulk tippers were renowned for having the bins painted bright yellow, which, while part of the company livery, was not commonplace for transport companies back in the retro ’80s.

Numerous Ford Louisvilles entered the fleet in the early ’90s and they proved capable in a variety of applications. The next major brand to find favour was the British Foden and plenty of 4000 series models hit the road, predominantly in logging and livestock applications.

The natural replacements of the 4000 series Fodens were the incumbent 3000 series Foden Alphas and there was no shortage of these wearing the PWL colours in the late ’90s and into the 2000s.

Isuzus maintained a presence but perhaps the biggest shift, which found favour with truck enthusiasts, was the introduction of the Kenworth brand back in the mid-2000s when both pre-loved and new Kenworths made their way into the fleet. Next month, we look at how the fleet has evolved from the mid-2000s until today.

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