Chris Bonnitcha’s super-cool Scania.

In-depth

15 Apr

Anyone involved in this industry will know that when it comes to tricking up a truck, the European’s do to Scanias what Aussies do to that American brand. Chris Bonnitcha traded out of American style, went to Scania and followed in the footsteps of the Euro Scania ‘truck trickin-uppers’ …..

Customised, accessorised, idolised, Chris Bonnitcha’s new Scania R 620 V8 turns heads each time he turns a wheel, thanks to a stunning Mountain Grey paint job, scroll work and lashings of stainless steel.

Drawing on inspiration from European Scania owners, where personalisation of the brand seems to be a Right of Passage, equalling and often outdoing anything seen in Australia, Chris wanted to build a stand-out V8 that would match the best seen overseas.

Based at Sunbury, Victoria, Chris is the owner-driver of CRB Roadtrans and pulls a refrigerated B-double filled with fresh or frozen produce for Southern Refrigerated from Melbourne to Brisbane on a regular basis.

He has been running interstate off and on since 1998, along with a couple of stints as a diesel mechanic. Deciding to go out on the road under his own name in 2021, he hasn’t looked back, enjoying the freedom of the freeway as he clocks up the K’s.

“Compared with working as a mechanic, I get to sit in comfort all day, I’m not scraping grease out from under my fingernails and no one’s looking over my shoulder,” he said.

The owner of an American truck, Chris recently “traded up” to a 16.4-litre V8 Scania, having admired the Swedish brand for a long time.

“My old truck had done 1.7 million km, and was good to me, but I was sick of changing gears manually, and the rough ride. I always had my heart set on a Scania, and I gotta say the difference is really noticeable. I reckon I got about five years left behind the wheel so thought now was the time to make the change,” the 61-year-old said.

“The fuel consumption is much better, and with the price of fuel today, that’s critical. Running between 55-65-tonnes, I am seeing an average of around 2.3-2.4 km per litre which is about half a km more than I had from the old truck. That’s a significant saving for the distances I cover, year-on-year,” he said. “The lowest fuel consumption I’ve seen was 1.9 km/l coming from Brisbane to Melbourne at 65-tonnes gross, and the best I have had is 2.8 km/l at 31-tonnes. I guarantee anyone who buys a Scania, you'll get two kilometres to a litre without even trying.

“The motor has so much torque, it’s a huge difference, it just digs in and pulls. And as I’ve clocked up more km it has improved. Now, after around 140,000 km, it just powers up the hills as if there’s no weight on the back. It’s almost as if the engine reaches milestones and something opens up. It's like you just twist the fuel pump and it's got a bit more power. I’m going up hills now in one gear higher as the k’s increase.”

“I’ve also experimented driving at 95 km/h instead of at 100 and I can see there’s a considerable fuel saving possible, and despite the slower speed there’s a negligible difference in journey time, so I’m still well within the hours,” Chris said, obviously keen to keep his fuel burn as low as possible. “I bought the Scania for fuel economy, it's money in my pocket, you know.”

Chris is a fan of the Scania Eco Roll function that on a downhill allows the truck to roll out of gear, but then seamlessly reengages when the throttle is reapplied. This also helps to save fuel.

“I’ve seen Erskine Park to Tarcutta driving at 95 km/h reduce my fuel use to 143-litres for just over 400 km,” he said, while explaining that he was running empty at the time at a GCM of 31-tonnes.”

“The gearbox is beautiful, it’s very, very smooth, you don't even know you're changing gears. The extra torque and the gearbox give you marginally better journey times because you're quicker up the hills, but critically when you get to the end of the day you’re not stuffed. It's a much more relaxed drive. And entry and exit from the cab is much easier too. And I don’t bump my head on the doorway like I did in the other truck,” he said with a grin.

“Behind the wheel you really notice the stability even at speed and the steering is fantastic; it's like a train on rails. I can go into bends without backing off like I would have done in the old truck. There’s no body roll, nothing. It's very controlled. The steering is light and direct, and it is also much easier to reverse a double onto a dock. Plus, the mirrors are really good for reversing and they are moved away from the body, so you get good vision at intersections.”

Chris’ love of his new Scania goes beyond the power and torque and fuel savings.

“The cab is really comfortable to live in, day-in, day-out, important because I’m away in the truck for extended periods.

“I have a TV in the back, plus a fridge and freezer under the bunk and another 15-litre Brass Monkey freezer mounted under the cab, along with a 24-volt oven. I didn’t want a microwave, but with the extra freezer and the oven I can cook for myself. Sometimes I can be away for a month at a time, but when I pull into Melbourne my wife will come by to restock the freezer if I don’t have time to come home.

“True, it's not the biggest bunk out in the market. But unless you’re King Kong, mate, there's plenty of room in there and like I was always told, the bunk is there for sleeping. You spend most of your time driving, and that is where you want the comfort. Driving is where you want the ability to enjoy yourself, sit back and enjoy the ride,” he says.

“The bunk is comfortable, and warm enough at night in the winter and, I don’t need the diesel heater like I did in the old truck. That was an ice block. In the Scania you don't feel the cold because they're so well insulated. I've had the linings out of the roof, doing my wiring, and there's insulation everywhere.

“Quite often a truck's pulled up next to me at a truck stop with an ice pack running right outside my bunk, and I didn't even know it was there until I opened the door the next morning. You couldn't hear his bunk cooler running. That's how good they are. So, full credit to Scania for their sound and heat insulation.

“You don’t buy a Scania for the size of the bunk, you buy one because it’s comfortable, it's reliable and it's fuel economical. And it pulls like a train. The torque will get you up over that hill quicker than anyone,” Chris said.

He’s also impressed by the free servicing package that came with his truck for the first 500,000 km (or five years, whichever comes first).

“Scania sends me a message when it's due for service. I contact them, book it in, and drop it off at Scania Campbellfield. So that's one less thing for me to worry about as an owner-driver. I used to service the old truck myself, buy the oils and that. But this Scania oil, is a long-life oil. I used to be against that, but I dipped the oil after 40,000 km, and it's not discoloured. I held it up to the sunlight, it's still golden, not the putrid black you'd expect after that distance, so I'm pretty happy about that. Now I have saved a half a day of downtime and there’s no mess or fuss like when I am servicing the truck myself.”

From the outside, Chris’ grey dream machine looks fully customised, but as ever with these passion projects, there’s always a little more to do to get the truck looking spot on.

“I have a little bit more to go,” he said. “I've done the stainless wings on the back with the lights, the tank skirts and the (very expensive) rear hubcaps, and wheel covers for the fronts. I’ve got stainless mirror covers, load lights, and bullets and shiny horns on top of the roof and the big sun visor. The visor came from a Dutch company that has opened up in New Zealand.

“I fitted most of this stuff myself, but if you come back in six months you'll see a lot more done to it. I've got a vision for the truck, but it has to be tasteful. TFI did the paint for me, and they did a great job. The stripe is my design, I looked at some European trucks, and I liked that, it’s different,” he said. “Everywhere you go, 99% of the Scanias that you see are white. I have seen one, though that is very similar to mine, and sometimes we park next to each other in Canberra.”

Scania Account Manager for Western Victoria, Dave Whyte said that Chris was his first customer when he joined Scania, and he was excited to be able to help create such an eye-catching truck straight off the bat.

“I’ve been a fan of Scanias for quite a long time,” said Dave (who won Scania’s Young Driver Competition many years ago). “So for my first truck to be this standout unit was a thrill. We worked with Chris to make sure the specification matched his requirements to bring his dream truck to life, and even after delivery we were able to tweak some of the electronics to get the truck set up to drive just how Chris wanted. He’s been getting excellent fuel results and is constantly texting me images of his results off the dashboard.

“In these days of volatile and high fuel prices, to be able to achieve 2.8 km/l from a V8 B-double set even on a back run with no load is impressive, and his adoption of Eco Roll to save fuel on downhill runs, has also made a difference.

“Most of all though, Chris’ enthusiasm for the driving and ownership experience is very rewarding for me, as is how the truck looks after its customisation. With great results and great looks, Chris is definitely having his cake and eating it.”