IHC Trucks Australia Horses to Horsepower 1957

Promotional documentary film featuring Dandenong and Geelong manufaturing works.

[@eh5369]

My late Father worked for International Havester in Australia. He worked twice for them in early 60s then through the 70s. Worked in the Lidcombe NEW South Wales site on Parramatta Rd. My brother and I have fond memories especially when Christmas parties were held each year for the kids of the employees. He was a Master Bodybuilder and had many apprentices come through under his supervision. Miss International Havester in Australia.

[@reverseuniverse2559]

I remember when in primary school in Melbournes outer east seeing international tip Trucks coming out of the Montrose quarry and another cement plant off Canterbury road Bayswater nth just remembering the pure grunt sound of the engine ifs nice unique square cabin I’m guessing early 70s they were my favourite looking truck even tho I worked at Kenilworth trucks in the same location decades later tho childhood mems of these Aussie icons live on thanks for sharing 👍

[@michaelhalsall5684]

Absolute gold! As a proud member of the International Harvester Club of Australia I am always looking for information about the IH's Australia factories.

[@eh5369]

Hello I just read your message on here. May I ask if you could share contact details about the club. My late Father worked in IHC in the 70s in the Lidcombe plant in NSW Australia. Thank you

[@colinfield981]

Great to see. My grandfather worked for IH in the 20s and 30s, my dad worked there (City Road South Melbourne) and parents met there, I did some uni holiday work there in 1975 and there were still workers there who had been there since pre-war and recalled my grandfather; I’m named after him

[@vincentlloyd6603]

Worked there as a Line Inspector for both IHC and Atkinson assembly lines in the early 60,s,and quite honestly how they made any profit with the lack of good QA/QC and the employee work ethic astounded me. Sad days when GM IHC and Heinz all ajacent to each other closed, and a major blow to the Danenong working class people.

[@paulspeakman551]

Great film. My dad started working in International's Springfield, Ohio, USA truck works in 1956 a few years before I was born and I reckon many of these processes were used there.

[@aheat3036]

Australia was so much behind the USA, UK & Germany those days and they still haven’t caught up!

[@mickgerkinsquirter1736]

Had no idea these were so Australian in content. I'd love to restore one, but they are rare nowadays. Thanks for a great vid.

[@bigmacboy876]

Great to see a glimpse of LARGE-SCALE manufacturing in the Mid 1950's Keep posting! Subscribed

[@markdanielczyk944]

Nice! Thanks for sharing this video. IH forever!

[@dougkubash8673]

Really enjoyed the film!

[@interman7715]

Makes me sad what happened to I.H.C and manufacturing in Australia.

[@dougstubbs9637]

Four letters which strikes fear and loathing in Aussie truckies....... A.C.C.O.

[@paulgriffiths8359]

I dunno were you keep on finding these films but I reckon they are great thanks for sharing

[@peterglen734]

Where has all our skills etc gone. overseas no doubt

[@mmciau]

By the end of 2017, nowhere in Australia can we make a vehicle from scratch.

[@MrShobar]

Not economical.

[@Buzzbox3rd]

How sad is that.

[@steigerpower]

@@MrShobar Really? Instead we've become the clever country majoring in the export mega tons 'low value' shipments of raw commodities that was to replace the employment lost after much of our manufacturing had been re-located to the likes of Japan,S/Korea,South East Asia and later China.

[@charlesschulz8416]

My dad had the international as148 as a farm truck

[@jjfreight-trains]

Unbelievable, what happened to Australia?

[@noelgibson5956]

..... politicians signed the Lima agreement, lowered tariffs, and unions sent production costs off the charts.

[@bossbwana5946]

This video would be 1000 times better without the loud symphony orchestra playing in the background !!!

[@markdanielczyk944]

Very common in old IH films of the 40's through the 60's.

[@jimmyohara2601]

Yes indeed, bloody friggin pointless background music 🤐😶

[@MrShobar]

A large amount of hand labor. The output of this assembly plat must have been low, but sufficient for the Australian market. Not for export.

[@dougstubbs9637]

MrShobar were exported in large numbers across SE Asia, NZ and Pacifica.

[@casadelshed9128]

Back in the day International Harvester was Australian owned, foreign investors and got serious protections from the federal government in the form of import tariffs. The manufactured equipment was exported to British empire partners who had preferred trading partner status. And of course local buyers. International Harvester operates here still and provides good service.

[@emmaziegler6647]

Look what australia could do but now we only buy from other countrys .and lots of unemployment

[@cvcoco]

AND, there is the outflow of the countrys wealth. The only way to make money is to manufacture and export. USA went the same direction of closing big factories, buying everything from abroad and now its BROKE. Trump is trying to reopen factories and they want to kill him?? :(

[@floody79]

Iveco still builds trucks at the same site featured in the video.

[@MrShobar]

tRumps tariff "policy" is killing off international trade. Even Carrier and Harley-Davidson (his two big success stories) gave up on him.

[@markdanielczyk944]

Same here in the U.S., the old IH/Navistar engine plant was torn down earlier this year. My International truck at work was assembled in Mexico.

[@darioburatovich2240]

....easely and rapidly.... in 1957 terms.... Fire, flames,heat,smoke, paint,fumes,chemicals, toxins.... No real safety standards..... A job for "real men"...... Those were the golden days and everybody was happy.... Or at least drunk after work... which was as close to happiness as chemical poisoning could get. And then, sickness and old age and death. The End.

[@flyingdutchman4794]

That period of history gave the world jet airliners, antibiotics, nuclear power, people on the moon, and nationwide highway systems. Our period of history has given us... facebook. These people in the movie deserve our eternal and unquestioning gratitude. We are honored to be their descendants, and should follow their lead much more closely.

[@markdanielczyk944]

@@flyingdutchman4794 This is why when I run into an old IH employee, I listen!!!

[@MrShobar]

If IH wass so proud of their reputation, then why did they change their name to "Navastar"? Why did they stop building light-duty trucks some 40 years ago? Simply not competitive with Ford, GM and asian imports.

[@TheBoilermakerno1]

because the company in the US went broke in 1982

[@flyingdutchman4794]

When the company split up in 1985, Tenneco bought the "International Harvester" trademark for farm equipment and the truck division renamed itself "Navistar International" as part of the terms of the agreement. They still use the "International" brand. They stopped building light trucks because they didn't have the vast dealer network (as GM and Ford had) to sell and service them, at least in the US. Also, they were phasing out the manufacture of petrol engines in favor of diesel, and light trucks at the time largely used petrol engines.

[@markdanielczyk944]

IH truck division had to change their name after the company broke up. Believe it or not the name Navistar was picked by a computer!