Bordertown Haulage and Trading Mack trucks stand as a testament to tradition and innovation in heavy haulage, where power, reliability, and productivity are non-negotiable.
Founded by Peter Karger with a humble Mack R600 in the early eighties, the company has grown into a formidable force in the transport industry. Today, under the stewardship of his son, Angus Karger, the legacy continues with a fleet that proudly showcases the muscle and efficiency of Mack Superliners.
For Bordertown Haulage and Trading, the choice of Mack Superliners for their high-productivity PBS A-Doubles and PBS rigid and five-axle dogs isn’t just about horsepower—it’s about heritage, trust, and performance. But what makes these beasts of the road the ideal choice for one of the most respected names in the business? From unparalleled durability to cutting-edge design tailored for Australia’s demanding conditions, the reasons run deep. This is more than a story of machines—it’s about a father’s vision, a son’s leadership, and a legacy built on wheels.
“I joined the business in 1982, the day I was born,” says Angus, “there’s a picture of me when I was a baby, standing in Dad’s old R600 with my hands on the steering wheel,” he says, “so I was probably always going to get a Mack myself.”
Not that it was a snap decision. The company had tried trucks from a range of other manufacturers, but consistently found them to be unreliable, expensive to maintain, or simply out of date when it came to technology.
When Mack introduced models that had disc brakes and the mDRIVE automated manual gearbox as standard, the decision made itself.
“We’re only a small family business,” says Angus, “but we’ve always been all-in on safety. We started out early on putting disc brakes on our trailers, and we were always looking for automatics, so when Mack brought out the Super-Liner it fitted our requirements perfectly.”
He hasn’t looked back, acquiring two more Super-Liners, including one of the Centenary models, all of them maintained through Mack service agreements.
“I’m a diesel mechanic, but I know my limitations,” says Angus, “so I look after a couple of the old trucks, but Mack do all our servicing, and that’s one reason they’re so reliable. I like that Mack take responsibility for the whole truck, there’s none of this ‘that’s someone else’s problem’ stuff.”
After growing up in the house that still sits in the front of the depot, Angus went to boarding school, then joined the army in the year 2000 where he trained as a diesel mechanic. After six years of service that included a stint in Afghanistan, he came back and joined the family business in 2006.
This might explain why, besides the Super-Liners, there’s one more Mack in the fleet: a 6×6 ex-army tipper he bought at auction, still in its camouflage paint.
“Yeah, I had my eye on it for a while, and one day it was up for auction so I took the opportunity, fixed it up and got it registered.”
While the tipper is used mostly locally, the other Macks roam far and wide.“We’ve got them set up as PBS A-Doubles and a PBS rigid five-axle dog,” says Angus, “ so we can handle a pretty wide range of loads.”
A typical journey could be from the depot in Bordertown, just inside South Australia on the Victorian border, to somewhere reasonably local like Geelong, or as far away as north Queensland.
“We’ve always had a lot of work coming in and out of Brisbane,” says Angus, “a truck could be away for a day or two weeks, it all depends on the job.”
Speaking of Brisbane, that’s another aspect that Angus likes about the Macks: they’re Australian-made.
“I like that these trucks come out of Brisbane,” he says, “it’s Australian-made and that’s pretty rare these days. Mack have made it easy for us too, they know what we need and they make sure when we order a new one that it’s got the same specs as the last. There’s no surprises, and we know we can rely on them.”
Tony O’Connell, Vice President of Sales Mack Australia, said “BHT are a perfect example of the kind of Australian family business that have made Mack trucks the icon they are in this country. A BHT Super-Liner B-Double going down the highway is a fantastic sight, and all part of the rich heritage of road transport in this huge country. We’re honoured to be a part of it.”
