Our History
1928
DAF's founder, Hub van Doorne, started an engineering business, 'Hub van Doorne, Machinefabriek en Reparatie-inrichting'. Together with his brother Wim he laid the foundations of DAF as a leading truck manufacturer in Europe.
The Great Depression saw a shift towards trailer manufacturing and the change in name to 'Van Doornes Aahangwagen Fabriek' (Van Doornes Trailer Factory) which was abbreviated to 'DAF'.
1936
DAF became one of the first suppliers of container trailers in the world with a work force of 100 people in Europe.
1949
DAF manufactured their first truck in Holland, which was one of three prototypes. The production of commercial vehicles followed with the introduction of three models; the 3 tonne (A30), 5 tonne (A50) and 6 tonne (A60). This growth resulted in the establishment of a larger production facility (9,000m2) on the current Eindhoven site.
1955
In 1950, DAF incorporated a one tonne A10 van to their range and later the A107, a pick up truck developed for export purposes. With the evolution of production from trailers to commercial vehicles, DAF was renamed DAF Automobielfabriek N.V. (DAF Automobile Factory), employing 184 staff and producing two vehicles a day.
The Dutch Army went on to purchase 3,600 military vehicles, and in 1955 the 10,000th DAF truck came off the production line.
1962
DAF introduced the new 2600, a modern truck that could also be supplied with a sleeper whilst its compact design allowed for optimum load length. The 2600 was nicknamed 'the mother of international road transport' and DAF became the European market leader in driver comfort.
1964
In July 1964 the 50,000th DAF truck chassis rolled off the assembly line in Eindhoven Holland.
1985
DAF undertook a project with British Leyland, which initially resulted in the supply of Leyland-developed distribution vehicles carrying the DAF logo: the 400 van, but also the 600, 800 and 1000 distribution trucks, later called the 45 series. Two years later Leyland was taken over by DAF.
1996
PACCAR finalised the acquisition of DAF Trucks N.V. DAF Trucks is a Netherlands based truck company with production facilities in Eindhoven, the Netherlands and Westerlo, Belgium.
1999
DAF delivered its 500,000th Eindhoven-built truck.
DAF trucks were introduced to Australia, following time spent researching and developing vehicle specifications that met Australia’s demanding conditions, as well as training and appointing sales and after-sales support staff.
2001
Production began of the new CF series for medium and heavy duty haulage and of the new LF series for local distribution transport. These models are successfully introduced to the Australian market.
The LF was selected 'International Truck of the Year 2002'.
2008
Woolworths takes delivery of 18 DAF CF85 prime movers as part of its commitment to operating environmentally-friendly and safe vehicles. These trucks are the first DAFs in Australia to feature PACCAR’s new high-performance, Euro 5 series low-emission engine. The DAFs also incorporate a variety of safety features, including a driver-side airbag and front under-run protection system as well as a side under-run protection system and EBS for trailers.
