Togo's freight moves through Lomé port and the corridor north toward Burkina Faso and Mali, so a Togolese container tractor earns its keep on long, often heavily loaded intercountry runs rather than short quay shuttles. That changes the priorities: you want a high GCW rating, a big fuel tank for stretches without reliable diesel, and a gearbox a driver can tolerate over a full day. This article compares two Foton Auman 6×4 tractors listed for Togo, ids 79 and 84 — both rated 90 tonnes GCW, both Euro III, both on a 3,300 + 1,350 mm wheelbase, and both with the same 4.2 final drive.

They are not the same truck. One is a GTL with a ZF automated gearbox and 430 PS; the other is a GTL-E with a Sinotruk manual and 400 PS. Both are complete vehicles, and both carry a 700-litre aluminium tank. The differences — and a few blank or inconsistent fields — are what you need to settle before ordering.

1. Two 90-tonne tractors, two gearbox philosophies

Listing 79 (Auman GTL) runs a ZF 12TX2420TD aluminium 12-speed automated manual, rated at 430 PS (316 kW) from the Foton Cummins ISGe3-430, with 2,000 Nm of torque at 1,000 rpm. Listing 84 (Auman GTL-E) runs a Sinotruk HW23712 Iron 12-speed manual, rated at 400 PS (294 kW) from the ISG12, also with 2,000 Nm. On a long, repetitive corridor the ZF automated box reduces driver fatigue and is the more modern choice; the Sinotruk manual is simpler and cheaper to service but demands a skilled left foot.

Both share the 4.2 final drive, the 700-litre aluminium tank, 13R22.5 18PR mixed/drive tyres on 11 wheels, a 7.5-tonne front axle and a 16-tonne rear axle group. Both are 6×4 on the 3,300 + 1,350 mm wheelbase, with drum brakes front and rear, ABS and a dual-circuit air system. The headline GCW is 90 tonnes on each.

2. The fields you must confirm before paying

Three points need written confirmation. First, listing 79's headline reads "430/460 hp" but the homologation data declares 430 PS (engine option 430, power 316/430/1900). The 460 figure is not supported anywhere in the spec sheet — treat this as a 430 PS tractor and ask the supplier to drop the 460 claim. Second, listing 79 carries a "resource status: Reserved" note, which can mean limited or allocation-only availability; confirm lead time in writing. Third, listing 84 lists its engine manufacturer as "Fukang Engine" rather than Foton Cummins — verify which plant built the ISG12 before you rely on a Foton Cummins service network.

Steering side is the biggest gap. Listing 79 is explicitly left-hand drive, which matches Togo's traffic law. Listing 84 does not state left- or right-hand drive anywhere on its sheet. Do not assume; for a Togolese registration the tractor must be LHD, so get that line in writing before depositing on 84.

3. Cab and driver comfort on the long run

Listing 79 is the better-specified cab for a long-haul driver: air-suspension seats as standard, electric heated mirrors, electric windows and central locking, on a flat roof. Listing 84 has automatic air conditioning as standard but a simpler body assembly — electric windows and central locking with an airbag seat and manual mirrors. Both are flat-roof cabs. For a driver living in the truck between Lomé and the northern corridor, the 79's seat and mirror specification is the more humane of the two.

4. Head-to-head specification

Semi-trailer Tractor · Togo

Auman GTL 6×4 — 430 PS, ZF AMT, LHD

Foton Cummins ISGe3-430, 11,800 cc · 430 PS · 2,000 Nm @ 1,000 rpm · ZF 12TX2420TD AMT · final drive 4.2 · 700 L tank · Euro III · 90 t GCW · LHD

Listed at $50,000 · Air-suspension seats, long corridor work

View full specification →

Semi-trailer Tractor · Togo

Auman GTL-E 6×4 — 400 PS, manual, LHD unconfirmed

Foton Cummins ISG12 (mfr listed "Fukang Engine") · 400 PS (294 kW) · 2,000 Nm · Sinotruk HW23712 Iron · final drive 4.2 · 700 L tank · Euro III · 90 t GCW

Listed at $47,520 · Cheaper, manual, steering side to confirm

View full specification →

5. Why the 90-tonne rating matters on the corridor

Lomé is a transit hub for landlocked neighbours, so Togolese tractors frequently run heavy, sometimes near their GCW limit, on long hauls north. The 90-tonne GCW rating on both listings is the headline that matters most: it tells you the chassis, axles and frame are homologated to pull a fully laden container set, not just a light box. The 7.5-tonne front and 16-tonne rear axle group, shared by both, is what distributes that weight legally across the bogie. If your typical load is a 40-foot high-cube at full tare, the 90 t rating is the line that keeps you inside the law at the border weighbridge.

6. Range maths on the 700-litre tank

Both tractors carry a 700-litre aluminium tank, which is generous for this class and directly relevant to Togo, where diesel supply along the northern corridor can be unreliable. A 700-litre fill at a 6×4 tractor's consumption gives a long buffer between refuels — the exact kilometres depend on load and terrain, neither of which the listings state, so treat range as "a full shift plus reserve" rather than a quoted number. The practical point is that neither tractor will strand a driver mid-corridor on a normal day, which is more than can be said for a 300-400 L tank on the same route.

The 13R22.5 18PR tyres on both are a heavy-section highway pattern with the load capacity the 90 t GCW implies. Note the difference in cab comfort again: 79's air-suspension seat is the better choice for a driver spending nights on the road, while 84's manual mirrors and simpler trim suit a depot-based operation.

Axle-load law and the road reality in Togo

Togo applies the ECOWAS harmonised axle-load standard through the Ministry of Transport, with the statutory maxima of 10 t on a single steering axle, 18 t on a tandem and 24 t on a tridem, and gross combination weight capped around 50–55 t for a six-axle articulated rig. Lomé is one of West Africa’s busiest trans-shipment ports, feeding the Sahel. The practical catch is that the port turn-around is fast and the transit run inland is where the axle load is re-checked. The core business is transit freight to Burkina Faso, Niger and Mali, and a truck that leaves the gate legal still has to survive the run to the interior before it earns anything.

For a container tractor the real exposure is the Lomé access road: an overweight box scaled at the gate is offloaded on the spot, and there is no cheap way to recover it from the port road.

What Togolese fleets already run

In Togo the reference vehicle is a used Japanese truck — Isuzu, Hino and Mitsubishi Fuso dominate the second-hand market — with Sinotruk Howo and Shacman as the main Chinese competition and Tata or Ashok Leyland on lighter rigid work. The used Japanese truck wins on parts density and driver familiarity but loses on age, odometer honesty and the rebuild cost that lands within a couple of years. The new Chinese truck wins on warranty and a clean bill of health but has to build a parts channel that is still thinner than the Japanese network. Foton’s pitch is the middle ground, which is exactly what a TCO-minded fleet buyer wants to hear.

7. Pre-order checklist for Togo

Drop the "460" on listing 79. The spec sheet only supports 430 PS. Get the corrected figure on the contract.

Confirm LHD on listing 84. Togo drives on the right; only 79 states left-hand drive. Do not order 84 without that line in writing.

Check the 79 availability. "Resource status: Reserved" can mean allocation only. Confirm lead time and stock before depositing.

Verify the 84 engine brand. Listed as "Fukang Engine". Confirm it is the same ISG12 serviceable through Foton Cummins channels.

Lock the Euro III badge. Both are Euro III. Confirm that tier clears Togolese (and any transit-country) import before ordering.

Both tractors are 90-tonne, Euro-III, 700-litre complete vehicles on the same 6×4 wheelbase, so either will pull a heavy container set out of Lomé. The choice is gearbox and cab: pay $50,000 for the ZF-automated, air-seat GTL, or $47,520 for the manual GTL-E — but only after the steering side, engine brand and availability questions above are answered in writing.