No.228 AEC Covered Truck is one of the hardest of the Sunderland models to find because of the rarity of the canopy. The cab, base and body made use of the same dropside castings as earlier models like 225 Sunderland Wagon and A106 Army Covered Truck and was a good example of how several models can be devised from the same castings. 

 

The Sunderland models had the cab and chassis as one casting with a small unmarked base rivetted under the cab to help provide strength and to hold the front axle. There was no number or name given except "Benbros Qualitoys Made in England' under the chassis.

 

The body of the Covered Truck followed the casting used on the other dropside models and it fitted onto the chassis with a tab behind the cab and a rivet at the back. At the rear there was a hinged tailgate which opened downwards by lifting and lowering.

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The canopy or tilt was held in place by three metal hoops which fitted at their base into holes in the dropside panels and were supported by upright grooves at the front and rear. The white or off-white cloth tilt was closed at the front and open at the back. It was stitched onto the front and rear hoops and carried the words 'Express Deliveries Benbros London' printed on each side in blue or red.

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Benbros issued No.228 in at least one known colour which was a red cab and chassis, a mid-blue body and blue '6-bolt' painted metal wheels. Silver trim was added to the front grille, headlights and number-plate. The cab/chassis colours were normally red but wheels could be red or blue, and a variation with a yellow body has been found with blue wheels, and there were likely other colours issued but this is a scarce model and details are uncertain.

 

Along with the other Sunderland models, the Covered Truck shared a multi-model yellow box with illustrations on all four sides. The Benbros emblem was on both end-flaps and the model inside was identified by having number and/or name stamped or written on a panel at one end. The boxes provide the only evidence of numbers for the AEC models.

 

Examples of No.228 AEC Covered Truck with the canopy intact are very rare.