Sterling Trucks was a manufacturer of medium-duty vocational trucks. The company, and its brand, existed in two incarnations. The first Sterling Truck existed from the early 20th century until the 1950s, when it was bought by White Trucks and its brand name was retired. The second Sterling was launched in 1998 when Daimler-Benz purchased Ford's Heavy Duty Truck Division. That incarnation was shut down in 2009 after disappointing performance.
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The Sterling Truck Company was started by William Sternberg at the turn of the 20th century. Originally, he named the company after himself, but changed the name to Sterling in 1916 due to anti-German sentiment in the United States surrounding World War I. The company produced a variety of medium and heavy duty mixed-use trucks and served as a major auto producer during World War II.
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In 1951, Sterling was bought by the White Motor Company. The company's name was changed to Sterling White. After White purchased Autocar, Sterling was shut down and its products transferred to the company. The brand was retired and remained dormant. Sterling, during its lifetime, had produced over 12,000 trucks for commercial sale.
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In 1997, after Daimler-Benz purchased the assets of Ford Motor Company's Heavy Truck Division, the Sterling brand name was resurrected. Although technically not the property of Daimler-Benz, the company's trademark holder, Volvo, raised no objections. The company was officially lauched in 1998.
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The new Sterling Trucks primarily produced vocational trucks for specific use by various municipalities and organizations. Some of its more notable models included garbage trucks, concrete mixers, tankers and school buses.
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At its peak, the company produced nearly 15% of Daimler's trucks. However, the company viewed Sterling trucks as a disappointment. In October, 2008, Daimler announced it would be shutting down the Sterling Truck Company by March 2009. Daimler said the company never met expectations and its order pipeline was on a downward trend, with only a very small rebound predicted in the near future. Nearly 3,500 people were laid off.
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