Just Crackin: how Terry Thurwood specced a T409SAR for customisation

Words by Chris Smith. Photography by Robbie Rose.

Terry Thurwood’s trucks were always easy to pick, even in a crowded yard or on the highway. The colours were strong, the lines were consistent and the presentation was unmistakably his. What looked effortless from the outside, however, began well before the custom work started.

That was the lesson Australian Custom Trucks discovered while looking closely at Thurwood Refrigerated Transport’s 2015 Kenworth T409SAR, Just Crackin. The finished truck was the result of a chain of decisions that started at specification stage and continued through paint, striping, fabrication and final fit-out.

Thurwood himself was never especially interested in becoming the centre of attention. Justin Klos, of Klos Custom Trucks, described him as a man whose personality matched the cool restraint of his trucks.

“I hate to think how many trucks we have done for Terry,” Klos told ACT at the time. “Probably 10 or 12, maybe 15. Every single one of them is a truck that makes you go wow.”

The common thread was not simply a catalogue of bolt-on accessories. Klos said Thurwood had a strong eye for colour, proportion and consistency. Even vehicles from very different manufacturers could still be recognised as part of the same fleet.

Customising starts at specification

Just Crackin also demonstrated why the best custom builds often start in the dealership rather than the workshop. Thurwood relied heavily on Kenworth salesman Ron Ludbrook, who worked closely with Klos to make sure the base specification would suit the final appearance.

That meant thinking about tank placement, sleeper configuration, doors, battery boxes and the spaces where later custom components would sit. The idea was to avoid having to “fix” the proportions after delivery.

Klos credited Ludbrook with understanding the chemistry of a good-looking truck before it ever reached the customiser. Ludbrook, in turn, said Thurwood gave him considerable latitude once the overall direction was clear.

“When Terry comes in and orders a truck he leaves it to me,” Ludbrook told ACT. “He says, well, you’re the salesman, this is what I want to do spec-wise, and then he leaves it to me and Justin to make it work.”

The hard part was making every line look right

Every model presents different challenges. On the T409SAR, Klos felt the quarter guards behind the steer axle were one of the most important additions because they visually completed the lower line of the truck.

The stripes proved harder. Thurwood’s fleet had developed a recognisable graphic language, but simply copying a template from one model to another did not work. The K200, T900 and T409SAR all carried different bonnet and cab proportions, so the line had to be adjusted by eye.

Ludbrook recalled the first attempt sitting incorrectly because the team had tried to preserve the stripe at the same height beneath the door window as on other Thurwood trucks. Eventually the answer was simple: move it. The episode became a reminder that even a familiar fleet theme has to be interpreted for each individual model.

The truck arrived from the factory in blue. Total Fleet Imaging in Laverton North handled the stripe work, while Bob Conway completed the signage.

Built as one complete design

Underneath the presentation was a serious working specification. The T409SAR used a 50-inch sleeper and a Cummins engine rated at 600 hp.

Klos Custom Trucks added the quarter guards, bumper, grille mesh and bars, sun visor, exhaust, dovetail deckplates, fibreglass rear mudguards, drop guards, round roof lights, air horns, stainless tank wraps, steps and trims, along with a Vortex air cleaner and the smaller accent pieces that tied the truck together.

The lesson was not that every truck needs more stainless, more lights or more accessories. It was that the whole vehicle has to be considered as one composition. Specification, colour, line, fabrication and finish all have to support each other.

That approach is what made Thurwood’s fleet so recognisable. The individuality was strong, but the trucks still looked as though every decision had been made for the same reason.

ACT archive note: This feature records the truck, people and business as they were during the original ACT reporting period. Some details may have changed since publication.

Editor’s note: Terry Thurwood retired from Thurwood Refrigerated Transport in 2022 after 37 years in business and the fleet was later offered at unreserved auction. This archive feature is retained as a record of Thurwood’s distinctive approach to truck specification and presentation.