50 Years of IToY – 1981 Leyland T45
The fifth Truck of the Year saw a second win for Britain in the form of Leyland’s “make-or-break” T45, but unlike 1977’s Seddon Atkinson, which had been hand-picked by Pat Kennett, the panel now consisted of judges from 10 Western European Countries. 1980 had been a strong year for truck launches, and the Leyland win was scored with a two-point margin over some impressive competition from the Fiat 170, Volvo F12F and Mercedes-Benz 1628.
The Leyland’s ability “to make a major contribution to the efficiency of the transport of goods by road” was achieved with a combination of the new cab design, efficient running in early fleets, serviceability, reliability and a “well-balanced mechanical specification”. Officially launched in February 1980, the Roadtrain – as the T45 tractor unit became – was a replacement for the stop-gap Leyland Marathon, and retained that model’s engine and rear axle in its first incarnation, the 16.28.
The modern new cab was designed by Leyland’s Bill Lowe, styled by Tom Karen and his team at Ogle Design and built by Motor Panels (Coventry). The C40 cab, as it was designated, had a strong theme running through it, with the door handles, grille apertures, dash recesses and floor mat patterns all conforming to a similar style, with a non-aggressive overall appearance. Extensive thought was also applied to the interior fittings, colours and materials.
The cab featured a high degree of practical advantage, with the aerodynamics claiming a 30% reduction in drag compared to other full-width European designs. As part of a comprehensive modular system, the design permitted a combination of three heights, two widths and three lengths to be produced.
In contrast to the Marathon, the T45 project received adequate funding despite the voracious appetite for cash from British Leyland’s ailing car division, and the new truck marked the culmination of a heavy-truck rationalisation programme over a decade in the making. A brand-new facility – the Leyland Assembly Plant – was built in 1979 for the commencement of full-scale production in 1980. The initial Roadtrain 16.28 was in some ways an odd choice for the launch vehicle, being offered with the lower-cab in short form with a solitary engine specified – the Leyland 12.47 litre, 281hp TL12. The adoption of the Spicer SST10 10-speed gearbox in place of the ubiquitous Fuller Roadranger on the grounds of the former’s cost and weight also led to raised eyebrows.
By mid-1980 the Cummins NT250 and Rolls Royce 265L were on the options list, followed shortly by the full-sleeper high-datum cab, initially with the TL12 engine. By early 1981 high-datum models were on the market in mainland Europe, although these took the Fuller transmission, and by the end of the year domestic buyers could acquire the high-cab models with the popular Cummins E290 motor.
The Roadtrain was possibly the right truck, but it came at the time of a catastrophic collapse in the heavy truck market in 1981, leading to a mountain to climb in the recovery of development costs. The truck never lived up to its potential in Europe, but was a stalwart of the British haulage in the 1980’s.
Texte : Will Shiers Photos : Richard Stanier
