Cab-over-engine designs still look great to me years later, no matter what era they were made. This is a somewhat rare Brockway, which hails from Cortland, New York, where it was likely originally manufactured. Now residing somewhere near Zanesville, Ohio, the N4571 definitely has seen better days but is worth rescuing given its brand has long been extinct following its acquisition by Mack many years ago. Find this 1971 Brockway here on craigslist for $1,400.
It’s hard to be sure if this model falls into the time period when Brockways were still independently owned, but legend has it their cabs featured hand-made sheetmetal designs, giving these workhorses an air of exclusivity not often seen in the commercial trucking world. Now, I picked that up from an eyewitness account of a worker who supposedly worked on the original factory floor in Cortland, but I’d welcome expert opinions as to the build process of these classic COEs.
There’s a great article linked above about the annual homecoming held for Brockway trucks in Cortland. That tells you something about the level of pride these trucks inspired in both the residents of the community and the workers from the assembly line. Following its acquisition by Mack, I suppose some of the magic was gone; as the seller notes, even this later Brockway is essentially a Mack under its unique cab design.
Whether there’s still anyone left who remembers the Brockway story and wants to restore this example is the big question – surface rust is certainly a problem, and it’s hard to tell if it goes deeper than that. It features a sleeper cab and is said to have ran when parked many years ago; if the rust isn’t terminal, the price seems fair for rescuing an icon of an industry that we don’t hear much about anymore in the U.S.A. Have any of you ever driven or ridden in a Brockway?
In that craigslist ad, it mentions “cash only for you scammers”. I’ve seen this on quite a number of ads. Can someone be so kind as to explain to what this is referring? I’m no doubt naïve to such things. Thanks.
Craigslist scammers like to send you a fake cashier’s check and have their “agent” pick up the car. By the time you realize the check is fake you’re out of whatever you are selling and are left holding the bag.
AND they usually want to send you more than the price of the vehicle so that you can pay their “transporter” when he comes to pickup the vehicle. So, not only are you out your vehicle you’re out the cash you paid the transporter. The checks are usually cashier’s checks drawn on a bogus foreign bank which can take 7 to 10 days (or more) to get rejected.
Ah. Okay, thanks, y’all. Man! You can’t trust people.
I just bought a car for my daughter off of craigslist and had cash on me. Prior to seeing the car “in person”, I only exchanged texts with the seller, but upon meeting him, test-driving and negotiating, it was all a good experience.
The lineup of Brockway trucks were better known for their 6 or 10 wheel winter snowplow trucks. One of the reasons Mack bought them.
Grew up riding in COE’s. Got a soft spot for these old rigs. HOA would have a heart attack if I had this in my driveway.
Well, what are you waiting for, Rich? Park a relic like this on your driveway and wait for the fun to begin….
Who you calling a relic? I cut my teeth on trucks like this. :)
Well, gee, I guess we’re both almost in the same category. I cut my teeth working on trucks like this….
Amen, brother, it was a fun time to be around trucks, for sure. Us drivers couldn’t have done it without you, another unsung hero, folks, the men and women that kept these trucks, and America moving.
What about the Dodge next to it?
The dodge is for sale too, $1000. So is the autocar dumptruck in the background
That Dodge 700? sitting next to it has potential….
This is from well after the Mack acquisition (1956). They ended production & use of the name after ’77. Note the Mack-like headlight surrounds. Under the body, this puppy’s all F-body Mack. Worked at the Mack dealer in Rochester briefly in the mid-80’s, and they still had a Brockway parts section, mostly body parts. Learned quite a bit about them.
As for the Dodge, that’s a 900, what I learned to drive 10-speed on, set up as a car hauler. The standard-opening hood & swing-out fenders were pretty neat for getting engine access.
Found one on a parcel in the Georgetown district of Seattle. Abandoned along with a Dodge custom van and an IH tractor. Property was a farm, then a B17 wing & tail plant, and lastly had Duroboat in there…but had been shuttered awhile. Got permission & stripped stuff off the rigs before they got crushed. Property is now a FedEx center
See? Twins!
I believe this is just a model 457, and Rabbit pretty much nailed it, this is nothing more than a F model Mack, however, I read, Mack did not allow any Mack motors in Brockways, so they all had Detroits or Cummins or Cats. It’s missing the Husky hood ornament. Mack had the bulldog, Brockway had the Siberian Husky, and touted their drivetrain as “HuskiDrive”. Brockways were a regional truck, and we rarely saw them in Wisconsin. Mostly east coast.
The Dodge that Rabbit refers to, is the C series Dodge, little brother to the famous “Big Horn” road tractor, ( CNT950) https://www.flickr.com/photos/jefferysview/37677492021
and the cabover behind that looks like a Diamond Reo. A fancy truck in it’s day, as nice as any Pete or KW. Btw, of the literally dozens of trucks I drove ( never a Brockway), I drove maybe half a dozen cabovers, and hated everyone of them. They had a nasty blind spot on your right side that few mirrors would work, but were great for city deliveries because of the tight turning radius. This would be great for hauling some of your many other toys around, but 14 hours a day,,,no thanks. Been that, done there.( 35 years and over 3 million miles worth)
Thanks Jeff for the big rigs!!
I’d forgotten about the drivelines. If it comes back to me correctly, I think you could even get a Scania engine. I know we got a lot of plow trucks through the shop with them. Also: gotta check the storage unit: I just may have a Husky kicking around…..
I ran over the road for 34 years, I remember these trucks very vividly! They were supposed to be great trucks according to the drivers that drove them!
I ran over the road for 34 years, I remember these trucks very vividly! They were supposed to be great trucks according to the drivers that drove them! They compared them to a petercar! I don’t think so tho!
I am a truck collector and I look at truck like this and just see a hard worked tractor that’s time is done. It’s NOT a Brockway it’s a Mack, even though Mack is owned by a crappy little car company their trucks are still darned respected in this country. THIS tractor just needs to sleep now!!
Well said! Just so they know tell them who owns Mack, I already know but it’s your post! Just sayin!
I’m guessin that it’s to old to work so what do you do with it after spending 10 grand to fix it up? Anybody know what engine is in it? I guess you could put a camper on the back maybe that would lower the yearly registration fees…
The company I drove for in the mid 70’s had one of these as a spare truck. Try going from a conventional Peterbuilt with 440 hp. 13 sp. and A/C to one of these with 250 hp. 5 sp. and no air! It was a great incentive to keep your assigned truck in top notch condition.
That’s true. The 1st tractor trailer trucking co. I worked for, I drove a ’75 R600 Mack, 300, 6 speed( 2 sticks, not a splitter) and the “spare” truck was a very tired R600 with a 237, straight 5speed and manual steering. We would try and put off telling the boss of service, because then we’d have to drive the spare. Wrestle THAT truck for a week, and you could arm wrestle just about anyone. I’ll try a photo, the 1st semi I drove, c.1978. Man, this was a tough truck, couldn’t kill it, and the places I took this truck, with a 28 ft. dump trailer, not many other trucks could do that.
That 2 stick tranny is called a brownie Howard A. L.O.L just thought I would let you know! :-)
Actually, the 2 stick I’m talking about on the Mack, was left stick, straight 5, and the right stick was reverse, low, high. Low was intended as a 1st gear, and the boss made it clear, is was not for splitting.( although we did it anyway) The “Brownie” you speak of, is 2 separate transmissions, like a 5 main and a 2 aux., 5 and a 3 or 4 aux., giving like 15-20 speeds, not needed in a Mack. Mack revolutionized the straight 5 speed( or 6) as you could lug a Mack down to 1300 rpms and wind ‘er out to almost 2300. Busiest I ever was in a truck, was a tri-axle dump Ford, with a 238 Detroit and an air 4×4.
The trans. with two sticks is called a duplex, There was also triplex and quadraplex trans. in Macks. A 5 spd. with a high/low range on two sticks, and a 5 speed trans with a low, medium , and high on the triplex, ( also called a three-way) and on the quadraplex you had a 5 spd. with 4 speeds on the other stick. I’ve drove them all.