Kenworth Legend Series Spotlight

Kenworth is the ‘king of cool’ when it comes to blinged-up American-style trucks, building a reputation for its rare combination of looks, durability and grunt since arriving Down Under in the 1960s.

Today, Kenworth honours its most celebrated models with modern reinterpretations in its exclusive Legend Series. But before we delve into the icons that made the brand, let’s take a walk down memory lane…

The KW story began 50 years before the badge landed on Australian shores, when Washington-based brothers George T. and Lois Gerlinger Jr. designed and built a truck in 1914 that promised to be tougher than its competition—using a steel frame rather than wood, and a larger six-cylinder engine than the four-pot norm of the day.

Technically, the truck didn’t yet bear the Kenworth name, but it set the wheels in motion for the brand’s creation.

A couple of years later, in 1916, businessmen Edgar Worthington and Captain Frederick Kent purchased the operation with a vision to build the toughest trucks on the market. They combined their surnames to form the name ‘Kenworth’, and the rest is history.

Fast forward to the late 1950s, when adventurous Australian truckies, George Blomfield and Ed Cameron, visited the Kenworth factory in the US. Deciding the trucks would be a perfect fit for the local market, they began importing them through the ’60s.

Eventually, the pair established a 56,000-square-foot Kenworth manufacturing plant in Bayswater, Victoria, and in March 1971 the first Australian-made model—a cabover K125CR—rolled off the production line.

More than half a century later, Kenworth continues to honour its heritage with the Legend Series. These limited-run legacy models debuted in 2015 with the Legend 950, expanded in 2017 with the Legend 900, and were rounded out in 2021 with the 50th anniversary Legend SAR.

Let’s put the exclusive Kenworth Legend Series under the Trucksales spotlight, for a taste of arguably the coolest rigs on the road.

The Legend 950 arrived with a bang in 2015 as an instantly recognisable spiritual successor to the T950, and remains one of the brand’s most collectable models.

When Kenworth unveiled the limited-run model, all 75 examples sold out in just 72 hours, as fans of the original T950 rushed to secure a commemorative model.

The model celebrates the success of the T950 which was launched in 1992 and modelled on the popular SAR. The T950 quickly earned a reputation as one of the toughest outback trucks for severe-duty applications like logging, livestock and road train work.

Although its production ended in 2007, many still roam the highways, a testament to their toughness. The fact operators are unable to buy them new only cemented its status as an outback icon.

That changed in 2015 when Kenworth revealed its modern interpretation, complete with the raised cab, long bonnet and distinctive KW styling of the original. Its launch sent the trucking world into a frenzy because, while Kenworth had produced limited editions before, no model had been such a faithful, ground-up reimagining of a past icon.

The Legend 950 featured a highly customised interior, complete with distinctive Legend Series badging. It’s built for work, featuring a stout, vintage beige Cummins ISXe5 under the bonnet, harking back to earlier Cummins powerplants and mated to an Eaton Fuller 18-speed Roadranger.

It also uses the same high, setback modular cabin as its predecessor, eliminating engine intrusion into the firewall making it easier to work on.

While it features vintage aesthetics and looks as if it belongs in a museum, it comes with plenty of modern technology like LED headlights, ISRI seats and up-to-date safety features. In fact, most were put straight to work after getting snapped up.

After the runaway success and cult following of the Legend 950, Kenworth followed up two years later with an ode to the T900— which kicked off the brand’s ‘9Oh’ model.

The Legend 900 was rolled out at the 2017 Brisbane Truck Show to an enormous crowd. In fact, Trucksales recalls the show floor closing on day one as hordes of fans refused to leave the Kenworth stand, filming and photographing the truck.

For this model, Kenworth opened the order books for one day only, building as many trucks as were sold on June 26, 2017. By the end of the day, more than 250 had been ordered making it less rare than the Legend 950, but equally special to Kenworth enthusiasts.

The original T900 was modelled after the W-model and was introduced in 1991 as a versatile workhorse built for Australia’s harshest conditions. It was also the first Australian Kenworth designed using computer technology, which was cutting-edge for the time. The result was a long-wheelbase, set-forward front axle truck with W-model styling, designed specifically for local conditions.

The Legend 900 paid homage to both the T900 and W-model, retaining the classic long-nose profile still seen today on the ‘king of the highway’ — the Kenworth T909.

It also pays tribute to the people who helped make Kenworth a success in Australia, with the first Legend 900 named in honour of long-standing employee Allan ‘Steady’ Stead.

The Legend 900 features classic Kenworth design cues such as a split windscreen, side-mounted exhausts with wrap-around shields, a flat dash and heritage-style badging.

Power came from a black-and-red Cummins X15, a nod to the N14 engine that powered the T900, paired with a Roadranger gearbox.

Inside, the Legend 900 is as slick as they come, featuring lavish burgundy diamond-pleat trim, a woodgrain shift knob and handmade heritage gauges, with either a 36- or 50-inch cab.

Related: Kenworth Legend 900 – more than just a truck: Review

Kenworth marked its 50th anniversary in Australia in 2021 with the release of yet another addition to its Legend series.

The brand once again used the Brisbane Truck Show to unveil its newest creation, this time paying homage to the W900SAR of 1975, the first fully Australian-designed and engineered Kenworth, and the origin of the SAR name—Short-bonnet Australian Right-hand drive.

The original SAR combined the W900AR and S2 models, delivering a lighter package with a sloping bonnet and raised cab. With high-horsepower options and improved payload capacity, it set the template for the SAR design that endures to this day.

Like the Legend 900, the Legend SAR was available for one day only. This time, more than 750 buyers signed up for a slice of Kenworth history.

With the new Legend SAR series, Kenworth took the original SAR and reimagined it for modern demands, equipping the new model with a flat windscreen B-series cabin that offers more headroom and seat travel than the original.

Kenworth also offered a choice of 36- or 50-inch cabins with a split windscreen, plenty of chrome trim, heritage badging throughout and a quintessential four-spoke steering wheel.

Traditional extruded aluminium tanks run along the bottom of the cabin while seven-inched curved exhaust stacks remind road users this truck means business. Stainless rear guards and tail lights complete the classic SAR look.

Power was supplied by a Cummins X15 in a classic beige colour, matched to an Eaton 18-speed Roadranger gearbox, allowing earlier SAR operators to feel right at home in the new Legend series.