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Buying a used 2012 Freightliner. Need advice.

Discussion in 'Ask An Owner Operator' started by Night_driver, Jul 5, 2015.

  1. Jul 5, 2015 #1
    Night_driver

    Night_driver Light Load Member

    295
    82
    Sep 20, 2014
    Grand Rapids, MI
    0
    I found this truck that I like but a little concerned about its service history. It has 390 k miles and many components are still under Freightliner 4 year/600,000 mile warranty. It's being sold by one of the major fleets so I have access to complete service history. However it seems like it had a few issues. Most recently there are notes about oil leaks at oil mod, oil pressure sensor, cam sensor, fuel pump, oil pan, etc. I was told its a leaking gasket and it will be sent to Detroit (not sure the motor or whole truck) to have it fixed. Was also told its very common and was caused by thinner synthetic oil.
    Then at 365 kmi there was a leaking drive seal.
    At 353 kmi coolant leak, right above turbo.
    At 297 kmi front drive differential leaking
    285 kmi faulty clutch switch
    215 kmi leaf spring sagging - truck leaning to one side
    I also read somewhere the radiator was replaced.
    There were also a lot of other minor issues.

    My question is this something to be worried about or is this normal?
    Everything was fixed and there is warranty on most components until March 2016.
    I like knowing what was done to the truck but also don't want a problem truck.
    Any advise is appreciated.
     
    Night_driver, Jul 5, 2015
    Night_driver, Jul 5, 2015
    #1
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  3. Jul 5, 2015 #2
    montanajellyman

    montanajellyman Light Load Member

    155
    87
    Feb 4, 2012
    Billings, MT
    0
    wow that's a ton of issues. I had about 220k on two FL's 2012 and a 2013 and had 2 coolant reservoirs and one coolant level sensor replaced. Have never had a seal of any kind leak during the 18 mnths I drove those 2 units.
    Personally, I would walk away from that unit. To much history for so few miles, unless you can get it for like 10k and drop another 10k in repairs before hitting the road. Doesn't sound like a trust worthy unit to me.
     
    montanajellyman, Jul 5, 2015
    montanajellyman, Jul 5, 2015
    #2
  4. Jul 6, 2015 #3
    Night_driver

    Night_driver Light Load Member

    295
    82
    Sep 20, 2014
    Grand Rapids, MI
    0
    Yes it seems like a lot, but on a positive note everything was or will be fixed. Most of these components are under warranty. Possibly if they were repaired/replaced then theyre less likely to fail in the future.
     
    Night_driver, Jul 6, 2015
    Night_driver, Jul 6, 2015
    #3
  5. Jul 7, 2015 #4
    KeithT1967

    KeithT1967 Road Train Member

    1,458
    1,542
    Nov 12, 2008
    Springfield, Ohio
    0
    I'd almost bet what started the oil leaks has nothing to do with synthetics. The DD15 has a 300k mile overhead service. Wanna bet whoever did it screwed up. My 2012 ended up at ATC Freightliner in Tulsa getting a new cam box because it got cracked during its overhead. While ATC had it they promptly damaged the radiator and cost me an extra day while waiting for a new one.

    On the other hand the truck was dead reliable. Only other times it had to come off the road was 6 hours in SC to get the def pressure regulator replaced and a whopping 15 minutes in MO to reset a def code that derated me. Every other issue I ever had out of it was minor and got repaired when I got around to taking a 34 reset.
     
    KeithT1967, Jul 7, 2015
    KeithT1967, Jul 7, 2015
    #4
  7. Jul 7, 2015 #5
    KeithT1967

    KeithT1967 Road Train Member

    1,458
    1,542
    Nov 12, 2008
    Springfield, Ohio
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    Clutch switch... If its a Cascadia its gonna have that issue at some point. Crap design, Easy to replace though.

    Sagging leafs.. Take a walk around a dealership,new and used, start measuring bumpstops to frame. Then look at how many trucks you find with shims. A normal occurance even on new trucks.
     
    KeithT1967, Jul 7, 2015
    KeithT1967, Jul 7, 2015
    #5
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