New O/O Here - Seeking Accurate Maint. Figures

Discussion in 'Ask An Owner Operator' started by BlissfulNobody, Feb 24, 2019.

  1. BlissfulNobody

    BlissfulNobody Bobtail Member

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    I'm starting a trucking company. I have 1.5 years of driving experience for a company. But most of that experience is in a daycab so going over the road there will be a learning curve. My only OTR experience is 2 months of training.

    I'm not getting my own authority or any of that. Just getting an LLC and a truck and going to drive for my friend's new company, they're going to charge 10% and give me 90% of the load revenue and send me wherever I want to go, whenever I want to go. In the beginning I plan to work very hard 6-7 days a week and stay out on the road and then start buying more trucks and hiring drivers. I've been quoted at $1100/ month for insurance

    I would love to get some feedback on how much y'all think maintenance and repairs is going to cost me on average. I heard that I should factor 7 cpm for maintenance. So I'm figuring on roughly $800-$1,000 per month on maintenance and repairs. Does that sound like an accurate average figure? I won't be doing much of the maintenance/repair work myself, I'm sure that makes a big difference

    Also wondering what kind of truck I should get for my first one. I think I'll be going used in the $60-90K range because I heard that as a first time truck buyer I'll be looking at a 20% down payment so that would be at least $30k for a new truck. I've been looking at some cascadias with 350k-500k miles in the $60,000-$70,000 range at a freight liner dealership. Does that sound like a good idea/fair? I also test drove a 2015 coronado glider kit with 700,000 miles. It was a blast to drive but I feel like $70k is asking too much for that many miles. What is a good first truck to buy that will get good fuel economy and be reasonably reliable but not break the bank? Cascadia? Peterbilt? T680?

    Thx and keep on trucking, glad to be a part of this forum
     
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  3. Ridgeline

    Ridgeline Road Train Member

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    Do not drive for a friend.

    I won't get into the numbers thing because you won't like what I tell you.

    AND it doesn't matter what truck you buy, they are all the same. It matters what the drive train spec is and what your due diligence finds out about the truck.
     
  4. Dave_in_AZ

    Dave_in_AZ Road Train Member

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  5. Socal Xpress

    Socal Xpress Road Train Member

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    Welcome! Things are gonna go great for you!!!
     
    Last edited: Feb 24, 2019
    Reason for edit: Happy happy rewrite!!
  6. Scooter Jones

    Scooter Jones Road Train Member

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    There's what? Like 5,000 threads on TTR that cover this topic inside and out, up and down and every other which way imaginable.
     
  7. Socal Xpress

    Socal Xpress Road Train Member

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    That never stops them from asking Scooter. They just want puppies and flowers. So join in and give them the reassurance!!
     
  8. Scooter Jones

    Scooter Jones Road Train Member

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    Okay...

    Flowers.jpg
     
  9. Gumper

    Gumper Road Train Member

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    $20,000 a year for repairs, and maintenance. Everything from grease to injectors cost time, and money. You’ll get real tired of spending days not hauling working on the truck. If someone else works on it you have to count the time in the shop as time not making money which is a double hit. Essentially owning your own truck is like being married to a crack-head hooker with the same bank account, and she still charges you for a good time.
     
  10. Scooter Jones

    Scooter Jones Road Train Member

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    Or like this episode of Forensic Files I saw the other day where the dude's wife came up behind him and capped him with a 25m for the money. That was her collection fee ;-)
     
    Gumper Thanks this.
  11. Midwest Trucker

    Midwest Trucker Road Train Member

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    I’d bump the maintenance up to .20/mi to be safe.
     
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