American Truck Simulator developer SCS Software has just released a new episode of its “SCS on the Road” vlog series, this time crossing the Atlantic Ocean to visit Louisville and the Mid-America Trucking Show.
In the first episode, the Czech studio took us behind the scenes of Scania’s high-tech Demo Centre but for episode two we are given an insight into Kenworth, a historically important American truck brand that’s celebrating its 100th anniversary this year.
Kenworth originally began life as a car and truck dealership called Gerlinger Motors, formed by brothers George and Lewis Gerlinger. It moved into truck manufacturing soon after, building the popular Gersix truck, which prompted the business’s name change to Gersix Motor Company.
The business was sold in 1917 and bought by E.K. Worthington and Captain Frederick Kent, who renamed the operation Kenworth in 1923 based on an amalgamation of their surnames. Expansion followed, and the brand has a strong presence in the commercial truck business to this day.
Guided by Kenworth Truck Company’s On-Highway Marketing Manager Brianna Potthast, we’re given a run-through of Kenworth’s journey from inception right up to the present day, and the company’s presence in American Truck Simulator (ATS).
Trucking through the decades
Of particular interest is the W9 of 1963, from which the recently remastered W900 (with an additional 100th Anniversary Edition livery) can trace its lineage, with the vlog covering its growth from 1961 to the present.
SCS Software – which also develops Euro Truck Simulator 2 (ETS 2) – receives an insight into the creation of the W900 100th Anniversary Edition, showing the actual W900 (number 1 of 900!) used in-game.
Potthast reveals that the livery was designed thanks to an intra-Kenworth design contest, adding a little more colour to the story of the truck in ATS, displaying the fascinating attention to detail shown by the developer in recreating the Kenworth virtually.
Initially specialising in providing trucks and trailers suitable for the burgeoning timber industry in the Pacific Northwest, the company has diversified over the years, moving towards electrification in recent times, but the W9 series remains a consistent hit with customers.
Motorsport lovers will be also intrigued to learn that Kenworth participated in the Pikes Peak International Hill Climb in the nineties. Scary stuff, but an ATS crossover would be an intriguing prospect…
The “SCS on the Road” series has proved a popular one with ATS and ETS 2 fans alike, with episodes expected to continue on an irregular basis in the future.
Did you enjoy episode two of “SCS on the Road”? What else would you like to see featured by the Czech studio? Let us know in the comments below.
Source: SCS Software
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