Okay, so this is something unique in the 23-year history of New Zealand Truck & Driver – truly, honestly….no BS whatsoever: This is a straightup, legit case of sweet serendipity!

Say what! Sweet what the……? Well, it sure as hell is not something you’d normally (like, ever!) associate with trucks…or a Giti Big Test. It means a chance encounter that’s life-changing…in a good way.

And yes, it happened in our test truck – a new(ish) FUSO Shogun FS3146 8x4 put on the road at the end of 2020 by Warkworth-based operator Transcon.

To complete the happy coincidences involved, our test is happening exactly one year to the day since rookie fulltime truckie Catherine Wilson first hopped into the 460-horsepower 8x4….

In a kind of love-at-first-sight beginning, she not only met her “perfect” truck….she also met her future husband for the first time! See – now that’s what you’d call serendipitous!

How much horsepower do you need?

For me the answer depends on the job. Yes, some trucks need 600-plus horsepower, but with a lot of New Zealand freight tasks something less than 500hp seems to be a regular purchase decision for many companies.

And one thing I like when doing tests is discovering a truck that has been specced to its job almost perfectly.

This month’s GITI Tyres Big Test fits this train of thought. The truck runs general freight from Warkworth to Auckland and as far north as the Bay of Islands. It doesn’t need huge horsepower due to the freight it carts and an 11-litre engine producing 460hp/338kW between 1500-1800rpm and 1663 lb ft/2213Nm of torque at 1100-1500rpm revs comes with the advantage of Daimler Truck DNA.

Yes, this is a Japanese truck, but it has a Daimler driveline and high torque performance that  makes the truck feel like more than a 460.

We catch up with Transcon’s Fuso Shogun FS3146 8x4 curtainsider towing a 4-axle trailer in Penrose for its regular run back to Warkworth with regular driver Catherine Wilson at the wheel.