Last week I shared a group of mostly light duty trucks parked in a yard near Espanola, New Mexico. Today, I’m sharing a group of mostly heavy duty rigs I saw on the east side of the Taos Mesa on the road to Raton and parts north.
I didn’t include much commentary with last week’s grouping, as I assumed most readers here at CC were familiar with those models, and most of the models were relatively common.
However, this group includes some trucks dating back to a time when heavy truck manufacturers were more regional, and trucks were built to meet differing regulations from state to state. I’m not sure I’ve ever seen those COEs (Cab Over Engine) before, so I decided to take a closer look
This Kenworth is a 500 series “Bullnose,” and appears to have been produced from 1948-1956. According to the interwebs, this early COE did NOT use a tilt cab, so techs accessed the engine through an engine cover in the driver’s compartment. I did not find any production numbers, but it seems this was a fairly common model back in the day.
In contrast, I did find production numbers on this Mack W-71, and it appears to be 1 of 215. Several different sites referred to the W-71 as “Super Rare,” and one site said only ten still exist.
Mack did build a few sleeper cab W-71’s, but this is a standard cab model with a sleeper box added by a third party.
Photo courtesy of Bigmacktrucks.com
Like the Kenworth cabover, this Mack COE did not include a tilt cab, forcing techs to work on the engine through the mail slot opening present under the truncated hood.
For more information of COE trucks, check out Ian A. Williams’ write up from 2014: Classic Automotive History: The Rise and Fall of the American COE Semi-Tractor.
Wow, what a great find. That Mack is really neat. Been in trucking for 15 years and it’s always fun to see unique tractors.
Thanks so much I love seeing trucks, of course, as an old truck salesman. In the 1930’s White, if I remember the mark correctly, offered a COE type of cab with a front opening AND a double frame rail for the engine. This enabled the engine to be slid forward and clear of the cab. I think that they had some dropdown supports as well. This needs verification.
The Kenworth and Mack are rare and great finds. Undoubtedly that’s why someone’s keeping them.
The W71 is indeed very rare, it was Mack’s answer to the early west coast cabovers like the Kenworth ‘Bullnose’. In addition to the Mack and KW cabovers, there is also a 900 series GMC, and early long-nose White WC, and a Mack B80.
I’ve always been a fan of the KW Bullnose. Nice place to stroll around and have a good, close look at all the classic, heavy dudes.
reminds me of a YouTube video of an old trucker named Mr. David taking his last run in his ’55 Kenworth Bullnose. The man shows his skill at operating a twin stick.
Dave,
You said, “…on the east side of the Taos Mesa on the road to Raton…”
Can you be more specific? I’d like to go visit sometime.
Thanks,
Mark