Scania extended cabs, popularly called “Longline”, are in demand by many European carriers.
They are sleeping compartments extended by approximately one meter, containing a sofa, a kitchen, a mobile toilet and a large bed. But did you know that similar cabs were made for Scania Vabis trucks back in the 1950s?
This story began in the mid-1950s, when the Swedish flower transport company Hansons Blommor was not satisfied with the very narrow sleeping compartment that was equipped with the Scania Vabis 71.
Then the company management decided to send their truck to the German company Kässbohrer, a specialist in body modifications.
This is how a unique truck with a huge sleeping compartment appeared. Kässbohrer removed the original cockpit and created a completely new front end design, as well as widening it by a few centimetres.
The basis of the cabin was part of the bus body frame: the company produced buses in large quantities. As a result, the driver’s seat was located above the front axle, and a huge berth was formed in the rear.
There one could find elements of comfort and luxury that we are used to seeing today in huge American tractors: a table with four folding chairs that transform into a double bed, a small kitchen, a washbasin and a toilet.
The truck tractor worked in tandem with a semi-trailer-van, and by the standards of that time, the road train had colossal dimensions. Even though he was within Swedish laws, he could not legally drive on the roads of other countries because he exceeded the established limits.
That is why it was not used for so long. The truck was later rebuilt from a tractor-trailer to a van.
Soon after, Hansons Blommor went bankrupt and the truck was sold.
It remained in the hands of the Swedish state-owned transport company ASG for some time, operating alongside a trailer until it was scrapped.
Unfortunately, it has not survived to this day.
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