The new MAN TGX takes the twins test
Twins are known to do many things the same way: This also applies to sisters Vivien and Vanessa Franz – both are professional drivers and work for the same company. They also tested the new MAN TGX for us.
Vanessa was the first of the two sisters to go through vocational training to become a professional driver. Like so many of her colleagues, it was her father who sparked her interest in the profession. And her sister’s decision was also influenced by her family ties. Having spent a lot of her free time on the co-driver’s seat next to Vanessa, Vivien finally started to show a real interest in driving. This saw her start her vocational training in 2017. Both sisters are now drivers for the company Ketterer, mainly transporting food and beverages.
A twin pack often simplifies things
Even nowadays, the sisters find themselves out on the road together from time to time, but usually when one of them has time off; “when one of us is on holiday and the other one isn’t,” says Vivien. As yet, customers have not properly mistaken one twin for the other. “But people often ask which twin they are talking to.” And initially, customers were at times surprised when they realised there were two drivers who looked identical. “They were then amazed that they hadn’t picked up on it before,” says Vanessa, laughing.
The twins really appreciate having a sister in the same profession: “I work in beverage collection and Vivien is currently in refrigerated transport,” says Vanessa. “If one of us is ever working in the other’s line of work, we can lend each other a hand.” The twins also have a penchant for MAN trucks in common. Vanessa likes the interior of her Lion above all else and is pleased with the step unit into the driver’s cab, which is not as high on her MAN TGX 18.500 Baujahr 2019, which was built in 2019: “I often have my two dogs with me, so that makes it easier for me to lift them in and out.”
Vivien is impressed with both the interior and the exterior of MAN trucks. “I’ve been fortunate enough for a good while now to be driving a new MAN TGX on a permanent basis.” That being said, she was also very happy to get the opportunity to test out the very latest MAN truck. And once she’d had the chance to get used to the latest model, her verdict was extremely positive:
“I felt very much at home. I really like that the mirrors are positioned a little further back to reduce the blind spot.”
“It took some getting used to at first, because a lot of things have been modified,” says Vanessa. But once she had gotten used to it, she was also very impressed with the truck. “Something I thought was great was the fact that the parking brake engages automatically when the engine is switched off and is released automatically when you head off.”
But since she is completely satisfied with her own MAN, she didn’t find it difficult to part with the test truck. And in general – and both sisters agree on this again – there is no need to change anything right now. Sometimes it is difficult to plan free time activities due to the fact that their working hours vary significantly, but as far as the actual work is concerned, they both enjoy their lives as drivers very much. We wish them both all the very best, twice over.
