Buying used trucks

Hmmm... depends what your hauling and where you want to take this truck.

 

Most who do heavy haul seem to drive Peterbilt, Kenworth or International. I would stay away from any brand that has a brand specific engine, such as Mack or Volvo due to the potential difficulty of parts and repairs on the road. I assume from your post that you are referring to older trucks. Age is not as much of a factor as how the truck has been maintained. I have seen some older trucks that are in better shape than many newer trucks. Buying class 8 equipment is not an exact science. It is a crap shoot. As long as you check the truck out before buying there is no reason to expect less reliabilitiy from an older or used truck than one that is newer.

 

It usually takes several years to get into heavy haul. Most start with flats and work their way up to heavy haul. It usually takes several years. You will need to learn the basics before you can move up. If you are not a patient individual you will find it difficult to deal with heavy haul.

 

If you are in the four corners area keep in mind that you will probably be in California at times. You will need a 2011 or newer truck in 3 years. Are you thinking about hauling mining equipment from CO/UT/AZ? If yes then Ca is not going to be a problem because you will spend most of your time in those 3 states. Some heavy trucks are low miles because they dont usually run 24/7 but they are usually hard miles.
GET AN OIL ANALYSIS BEFORE BUYING ANY TRUCK EVER !!! Dont let them change the oil just before you get there to "do you a favor".

 

If heavy haul is where you eventually want to land then you may want to see if you can find a good flatbed company to get started. I believe Maverick and TMC still train inexperienced drivers. Both are flatbed carriers. I think that Swift still has some flatbeds.