The REAL Reason Why America Stopped Making Cab-over Trucks

In the vibrant era of the 1970s, American roads were decorated with an iconic sight of Cab-over trucks, also called Cab-over-Engine trucks (COE) trucks. These unique trucks, with their flat-nose design, were an integral part of the trucking landscape. Every major manufacturer, from Freightliner to Mack to GMC, produced these vehicles, resulting in them being found all over the country's highways.

The story of cab-over trucks began before World War II, on the busy East Coast of the United States. At that time, there were regulations limiting the maximum length of trucks, including both truck and trailer, to about 65 feet - 19.812 meters. To maximize cargo capacity within these limitations, manufacturers devised an ingenious design - the cab-over-engine (COE) trucks. This involved shortening the cab at the expense of driver comfort to save space for more cargo.

COE trucks, also known as Cab-over-Engine trucks, are a specific type of truck design in which the driver's cab is placed directly above the engine, rather than in front of it, as in most conventional trucks. This means the driver sits closer to the windshield and the steering wheel is directly above the engine.

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[bridgecross]

I'm not a trucker, but recently I drove a smaller cargo vehicle with a flat front for the first time. My first response was fright; you seem more exposed without any hood out in front of you. But second response is holy crow you can *see* everything! The visibility was insane, like you're in a fishbowl.

[ridrecon]

this sounds like my English exam where he rephrased everything but said the same thing 5 times

[brianb-p]

A lot of comments compare the American cabovers of the 1960's to modern conventional trucks, which makes no sense. A modern air-ride forward-control European truck is not an old Kenworth K100; I have not driven either, but I know that it is nonsensical to assume that one has the same comfort and safety as the other.

[kathyyoung]

I owned a Freightliner cabover, a double bunk condo, when I was a long haul driver. I liked it. Great turning radius, easier to park.

[shaneroper]

Always liked cabover trucks. Aside from the lack of a crumple zone in the case of accidents, they offer many advantages. And they look awesome too!

[rick]

One of the worst things about CO trucks is if you're in an accident you are the first one there.
When dealing with turning space I really liked a CO.
Where the hell do they get the 30min idea of raising the cab? I could raise mine in about 5-8 minutes.

[motofoxx]

I like how they call all of Europe a niche market haha

[buk]

lol, something people always get wrong, from the point of view of a driver and mechanic, a modern (30+ years) European etc cab-over truck is much easer to do daily fluid checks on the engine etc, as everything is conveniently behind the lightweight grill, which is easer than tilting even a lightweight bonnet, while from the point of view of a mechanic, it takes just a couple of mins to tilt a cab, and you then have significantly better access to the entire driveline from the radiator backwards, without the stupidity of the cab blocking access to the back of the engine, bellhousing, gearbox and even transfer case (if applicable), PTO systems (if applicable) and parts of the prop shafts, the notion of it taking 10mins or more is just a myth perpetuated to try to justify bonneted trucks more.

[masterb]

Each truck has its own niche and at the end of the day it's all about using the right machine for the right job.

[Yggdrasil]

Modern cabover trucks cannot be compared to the old ones shown in this video. They're easy to maintain and comfortable. Some of the downsides mentioned here simply no longer exist.

[LK-bzsk]

Long haul truckers are some of the most under appreciated people in this country. They get all the products we need or want in the neighbourhood w out even having to think of how it got from the warehouse or port.

[johnshields]

I drove a cabover rig for years, great turning radius, especially for the east coast cities with multiple deliveries and pickups, so much asier to handle in small loading docks off street.

[yiannisdanatzis]

In Australia, we have both European cabovers and American longnose, manufacturers who offer trucks in Australia will give cabovers the European badge and longnose trucks the American badge, for example Volvo & Mack (which come from the same parent company) have a manufacturing plant in Brisbane where all their longnose trucks are Mack and all their cabovers are Volvo, Mercedes and Freightliner do the same by importing the cabovers with a Mercedes badge and longnose with a Freightliner badge, only Kenworth makes both with the majority being longnose and continues the K220 as the last remaining cabover just for the Australian market.

[FAS]

In English they are known as 'forward control' and they are not only favoured in Europe because of legislation, but because of the roads. Many roads through European villages, towns, and cities, have remained unchanged for hundreds of years and were designed for horse-drawn vehicles. You're welcome to try driving one of your monstrosities around Europe, but I wouldn't recommend it. Even with the limited overall length of European vehicles, it's still not unusual for them to get stuck on narrow roads.

[nenadcubric]

They didnt want those European Trucks on US Roads

[joe]

It would be interesting to see how well they sold if a company started selling them again here in the states. Some guys would buy one just because they like the looks and they'd definitely come in handy for guys who do a lot of runs in the big cities.

[donmcatee]

Thousands of miles a year? More like thousands of miles a week!

[tommyb]

In Europe you rarely see US style long nose trucks. The only ones I see in the UK are recovery vehicles that have been imported from the US. And a boxer named Chris Eubank had one which i saw parked up a few times. Amazing when you see them.

[BusesBikes]

My dad drove a GMC Astro 95 for years and never had an issue with comfort. I went with him on plenty of trips from NY to FL and back. The seats were comfortable with plenty of room. The bunk in back was wide enough for two people to sleep but we used it mostly for storage. That was a good truck.

[SchwererGustavThemm]

I remember seeing them back in the late 90s and around the early 00s. As a kid, I didnt know what they were called so I named them 'flat face' trucks