Kenworth Produces Last Severe-Service K500

Ending an era that lasted 14 years, the final Kenworth K500 cabover was completed in mid-August at its assembly plant in Renton, Washington. The K500 was primarily popular with the OEM’s oil and gas exploration customers.

A combination of the Kenworth C500 drivetrain with a modern COE cab, the K500 was a shorter, more maneuverable truck with off-highway characteristics and featured a variety of configurations: 6x4, 6x6, 8x8, and 10x10.

Sintagma Holding purchased the last K500, which will be used by the Mining Society of Chitotolo in Luanda, Angola, in a gold mining operation. The first K500 order was in 2006 and went to Karamay, China, as part of a total order of eight K500s.

“The Kenworth K500 cabover has been a stellar truck model and provided excellent performance and reliability for our customers worldwide,” said Laura Bloch, Kenworth’s assistant general manager for sales and marketing.