Choosing the right truck.

I did say that both BC and Ontario changed>that's where the majority of trucks go in Canada

http://www.todaystrucking.com/ontario-harmonizes-wheelbase-rules-with-rest-of-canada

 

I don't know what your budget is but I would spend as much as I could afford while keeping $10000 to $20000 in the bank for Murphy's Law stuff.

Get an aerodynamic truck with a large double sleeper, since you said you will team this truck. I love the Kenworth's. On wheelbase, get the shortest wheelbase that will accomodate an APU and 300 gallons of fuel. Manueverability cuts out so many headaches. I would run a 13speed geared to cruise all day and night at 65mph. I'd run supersingles too. Make sure the APU and reefer meet the new CARB rules if you go to CA. The engine would be an ISX or DD15 with SCR. I don't like 2004 to 2009 engines. They are costly after the warranty is gone. Another option is to try to find a very clean truck that is 2003 or earlier. Look for a clean T600, just remember the CA rules, you don't want to retrofit these with a DPF system. The backpressure will kill the fuel mileage.

 

We run a PB387 with the ISX 455, and a 10 speed. We are averaging 6.75 - 7.50 mpg. Should have bought the Prostar when we were out looking for a truck.

 

When the automatics first came out in full force, the big problem was backing. That problem has since been addressed & corrected. Are you going to buy new or used? Some fleet sales like TransAm have tractors specd for reefer work and equipped with APU's.

 

Stay away from any company trucks that pulled smooth bore tankers! The surge beats the crap out of the truck!

 

Volvo's are spacious for their room, but I would stay away from the automatics. My husband drove a T680 and it averaged right at 6.5-7 mpg when he worked as a company driver. Now he is in a 2007 Freightliner Century, and he averages 5-6mpg which isn't very good. I would say if you got a Volvo then get one with the 10-13 speed, but I know Kenworths are really good trucks too.

 

If you can, buy brand spanking new with every warranty possible for the duration of your payments!
I got a 2013 Volvo with D13 500hp engine and I shift gearbox, I have to say its the best thing Iv done for myself in a long time!
16,500 miles of city work so far over the last 5 months with the occasional out of state thrown in and not so much as a dime needed spent so far.
Iv had my share of other manufacturers trucks in the past including Volvo, DO NOT EVER BUY THE D16 ENGINE!!! Other than that volvo had always been light years ahead of the rest!
Automated clutch gearbox, if you listen to most of the younger or less traveled guys on here they will tell you all kinds of bs about "oh I couldn't drive an automatic, I can shift better than that" and so on. Ask anyone who has actually wore out a truck or two, the will all tell you the same thing once they have tried it, you wouldn't get them to part from the ishift with a crowbar!
The ishift is NOT like an eaton fuller ultrashift or the slightly better ultrashift plus, these are horrible to use in congested areas, the mountains, on tanker work or simply trying to back up inching closer to connect a set of doubles or to a loading dock. If you must must must have a manual I'd go with the 13 spd, next best thing to the ishift but still light years behind it!
I spent a year building my new truck with Volvo, we are so far behind here in the US with truck technology it's not funny, so it actually took 9 months to build the speck on paper and get it approved and 3 months for it to be built.
If you only run over the road it is very simple, 13k front axle 40k rear end and depending on what speed you like to run match the rear end to engine cruising speed. I on the other hand had a much bigger challenge, I needed 18k to 20k front axle capacity, 46k rear end, no more than a 218" WB while fitting 36" of sliding for the fifth wheel, 200 gal of diesel, 75 gal hydraulic and I wanted twin stacks up the back. This was to name but a few of the main things that your average OTR truck wouldn't have other than the stacks and fuel, sounds simple but when you build a truck to a heavy haul type speck the notion of it being capable of pulling a reefer soon goes out the window in practical terms. Never the less we made it happen, I could pull a reefer with this truck and still get 9 mpg as I do with the step deck or flatbed on long haul. I average 7.2 mpg pulling an end dump or lowboy around San Francisco and the Bay Area. Most of my Pete and KW buddies would give ther right arm just to get over the 7mpg mark on long haul!
I like the KW also and IMHO it's like the 13 spd and ishift, if I couldn't have a Volvo I'd have the KW but there's light years between them! Hence I bought the Volvo.

Trucks are like sports cars and women, nothing drives quite like a brand new one! Lol.
I was cringing on the idea of a large payment on a new truck but here's how it played out:
My fuel bill almost completely halved, there's the payment right there!
I have no maintainance costs or downtime hitting me unexpectedly!
I can run in CA, enter any jobsite, port or environmently controlled area till 2027!
It's so comfortable.

I honestly don't know how I made it before.
Anyway I hope you get some usefull info from this, drive every truck and gearbox combination you can before you finally make up your mind but its kind of hard to not see the obvious. :smt075

Good luck.
Rob.

 

Lol, the trucking world is your oyster with a new truck! There are so many warranties though! One for the turbo and such components, one for the exhaust after treatment system and so on! I think I have like 5 or 6 altogether! Volvo pretty much have all their bugs worked out on all this stuff being as they were developing and mass producing strict emissions compliant trucks 10 years ago in Europe! Never the less my truck payment schedule is over 5 years so my warranties are all for 5 years 500,000 miles on everything! The ishift gearbox is the only thing I didn't have to worry about as it comes with 5 year 500,000 mile parts and labour as standard! That's a pretty bold statement as to how durable they are!
I didn't bother with the apu, I put a 2500 watt inverter with all the plumbing including shore power charging. I also got a night heater, all Volvo factory installation. It's awesome although if I was a dedicated OTR trucker I'd have also had the battery power ac installed also! It's pretty expensive for the couple of times a year I would overnight it in a hot climate.
The things I dont like about the apu is:
Noisy.
Can't run them in some areas just like you can't idle!
Takes up very valuable space as I was trying to keep my WB to 218 or less. Ended up 216.

Just more stuff to tell you about so you can wage the war of what gets added and what doesn't! Lol.
Buying new is a very smart choice in today's world IMHO what ever you end up buying!