How Matt and Mel Biddle built a fleet of 11 trucks around AJ’s bars — and why every single new build gets an AJ’s bar fitted before it turns a wheel bullbar turned a serious animal strike into a same-day fix — and kept the freight moving.
Matt & Mel Biddle — Matt Biddle Transport (MBT)
3x Mack Superliner, 1x Kenworth K220, 3x Kenworth K200, 2x Western Star 4800, 1x Kenworth T909
11 trucks — 9 of 11 fitted with AJ’s bars (including previous trucks dating back to their very first)
Kingpin Texan (Macks), Bruiser S1 & S3 (K200s), Fat Daddy (K220), Rodeo (T909), FUPS 4 Post Hi-Way Bar (Western Stars) — all polished alloy bullbar)
Long-haul interstate, outback dirt runs to remote communities, intrastate — Australia-wide
Hundreds of animal strikes across the fleet — every truck made delivery, avoided a tow, kept going after strike
Matt and Mel Biddle run Matt Biddle Transport, an 11-truck operation hauling everything from mining and dangerous goods to agricultural freight, building supplies and general freight, Australia-wide. Their routes take them from interstate highways to outback dirt tracks serving remote communities, often at night, often in conditions where the nearest help is a long way away. With that kind of exposure, protection on the front of every truck isn’t a nice-to-have. It’s a non-negotiable. MBT has run AJ’s bars since their very first truck — and they’ve never looked elsewhere.
Building a fleet that runs Australia-wide, from metro freight to remote outback communities, which means the trucks have to be tough enough for everything. Matt and Mel needed bars that could handle harsh outback conditions, wildlife strikes at night on unlit highways, and the demands of dangerous goods and mining hauls, while still looking the part and meeting FUPS compliance. They also needed a supplier who could actually deliver. When other manufacturers had blown-out lead times, AJ’s came through and that first experience set the tone for everything that followed.
MBT runs five different AJ’s products across their fleet:
Every bar is finished in polished alloy. When a new truck arrives, the factory bar comes off and an AJ’s bar goes on — no exceptions. New builds are being spec’d with AJ’s from the ground up. Australian-made and hand-finished, every bar is built to suit the specific truck it goes on.finished, and call out the truck brand/model it was built for.
Every bar in the fleet has taken multiple hits — roos, wombats, emus, sheep — and held up with minimal to no damage while other trucks with standard gear ended up on a tow truck
Australian-made and hand-finished — from Mack Superliners to Western Stars, every bar is built for the truck it goes on
Proven across outback dirt roads, remote community runs, interstate highways and metro freight — whatever Australian roads can throw at them
Polished alloy across the entire fleet — a consistent, professional look on every truck regardless of brand
MBT has run AJ’s since their very first truck — and every new build gets one before it turns a wheel
FUPS compliant across all applicable trucks — meeting the standard for a fleet running interstate, remote and dangerous goods routes
Hundreds of strikes — roos, wombats, emus, 12 sheep in one hit — in the dark, in remote areas, with no help nearby. Every MBT driver got home and made delivery.
In every strike instance, trucks avoided structural damage — MBT has watched other operators with standard bars get towed. Their trucks kept going.
Most impacts happen late at night in remote areas with minimal to zero light — AJ’s bars are the difference between making delivery and calling a tow truck
Five different AJ’s products across five truck brands — each bar engineered to suit the specific model, polished alloy finish consistent across the fleet
Most of MBT’s strikes happen late at night, in remote areas, with nothing but the truck’s own lights to see by. Roos are a constant. So are wombats and emus. On one run, a driver hit 12 sheep that had wandered onto the highway in the dark in one go. Every single time, the AJ’s bar absorbed the impact and the truck kept moving.
MBT also had a massive pothole hit after flood damage took out the T909 bumper — cosmetic damage only, no structural damage to bar or truck. They pulled the bar, had it professionally repaired for a couple of thousand dollars, fitted a spare standard bar in the meantime, and had the AJ’s bar back on within two weeks. Zero truck downtime. Matt and Mel have watched other operators with standard gear walk away from comparable hits with their trucks on a tow truck. Not one MBT truck has ever been towed after a strike.
Truck made delivery, avoided a tow, continued the trip
Almost none or minimal damage to bars; zero structural damage to trucks
Bar repaired, spare fitted, back on the road — zero truck downtime
Every new MBT build is spec’d with an AJ’s bar before it turns a wheel
9 of MBT’s 11 trucks run AJ’s bars — five different products across five truck brands, all in polished alloy. When a new truck arrives, the factory bar comes off and an AJ’s bar goes on. New builds are spec’d with AJ’s from the ground up. Across hundreds of animal strikes, not one MBT truck has been towed. The fleet keeps moving, deliveries keep being made, and Matt and Mel have never had to second-guess their choice of bar.
9 of 11 trucks fitted with AJ’s bars (plus previous trucks going back to MBT’s first ever truck)
Zero truck downtime from any animal strike across the fleet
5 different AJ’s products across Mack, Kenworth and Western Star — all polished alloy, all consistent
Pothole incident: bar repaired professionally, spare fitted, back on road — zero truck downtime
Kingpin Texan / Bruiser S1 & S3 / Fat Daddy / Rodeo / FUPS 4 Post Hi-Way Bar
Mack Superliner, Kenworth K220, Kenworth K200, Western Star 4800, Kenworth T909
Polished alloy — all trucks
FUPS compliant (Western Stars — FUPS 4 Post Hi-Way Bar)
No — not suited to some road conditions MBT runs
Australian-made, hand-finished
Originally chosen for reasonable lead times when competitors were blown out
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