Aeolus Truck & Driver News

There will be the usual prime mover and alternative energy star attractions when the 2025 Brisbane Truck Show opens on May 15, but the important volume-selling show debutant is expected to be the new generation Isuzu F-Series line-up.

Following a string of recent soft launch and preview events in Australia for VIP fleets, suppliers and key partners, the all-new MY25 F Series medium-duty range will be in the public spotlight at the Brisbane show. The first examples are expected in the New Zealand market during the second half of 2025.

Models spanning a versatile GVM range of 11 to 26 tonnes encompass an array of engine, transmission, suspension and wheelbase...

Two new Volvo FM Electric 6x4 trucks going to work on Auckland roads will deliver some vital understanding for the future role of electricity as an energy source for heavy trucks.

Purchased by Fulton Hogan with support from the EECA (Energy Efficiency and Conservation Authority) Low Emissions Heavy Vehicle Fund, the Volvo duo will each transport up to 16,000kg of asphalt from plants in Penrose and Drury to sites around the city.

Fulton Hogan is already working with Volvo and EECA to pioneer other large electrically powered equipment and this is their first collaboration with road-going vehicles.

Fulton Hogan NZ Chief Executive, Ben Hayward, says the...

Traffic began moving through the Desert Road section of State Highway 1 on Friday February 14, after a two-month closure for major repairs.

The reopening is an important milestone for the Tīrau to Waiouru Accelerated Maintenance programme, New Zealand’s largest and most ambitious road maintenance project. The highway between Tūrangi and Waiouru (including the Desert Road) closed to traffic on January 13, with the works meeting the anticipated two-month timeframe.

Roger Brady, Regional Manager of Maintenance and Operations for NZ Transport Agency Waka Kotahi (NZTA), says a large amount of work has been achieved in a short time.

“In just over eight we...

A new driver licensing exemption should offer greater scope to introduce light-duty battery electric (BEV) truck models to New Zealand business.

NZTA published the Exemption Notice on February 28, allowing drivers with a full Class 1 licence to drive some electric trucks up to a gross laden weight (GLW) of 7,500kg (instead of 6,000kg previously). 

Keeping battery electric trucks below the 6,000kg weight threshold for driver licence Class 1 reduces payload, due to the weight of the batteries.

The exemption is to compensate for the weight of batteries and has potential to open up new roles for BEV trucks in sectors such as chilled food distributi...

New Zealand’s first Windrose E1400 electric long haul truck has been getting to see a lot of the country. 

The China-built truck has been on show duty in the early weeks of the year, appearing at the Bombay Truck Show and Kamo Touch a Truck events before heading south to go on display at the TMC Trucking Industry Show in Christchurch on March 7-8.

The truck landed in New Zealand at the end of last year and Auckland-based distributor Etrucks says the first series production models are due in February 2026.

“The interest is very high,” says Etrucks director Ross Linton.

“More than any other electric truck, it hits the trifecta of duration, ...