Buying used truck Freightliner Columbia or Volvo

My experience with Volvo's has been a mixed bag. Very comfortable ride and great fuel mileage on the plus side, huge repair bills for electrical problems on the minus side. It's not always easy to find a Volvo shop when you need one and parts for them can get a little tough to come by out on the road. Freightliners are made from very common parts available most anywhere and I haven't had all that many expensive problems with my Freightliners.

 

Freddy is right.
Volvo is extraordinarily comfortable, parts can be hard to get and Christ help you if you have the Cummins ISX in it.

Freightliner is the polar opposite of those two facts, but is the equivalent of living in a tin roofed shack suspended on bungee cords sitting over the grand cannon on a heavy fault day.

 

Although there are fewer Volvo dealers, many Freightliner dealerships will tell you service will not be for DAYS when you call or visit them.

 

I have a KW and a Volvo the parts on the Volvo are harder to find and a bit more expensive but the ride IMHO is better and the MPG is much better. My Volvo has a ved12 with the Volvo 13spd trans I hate that you MUST clutch every gear in it. The KW has a cat 3406e and a super 10 I prefer the ride on the Volvo but love the power of the KW.


While working for a company I a few freight shakers and although newer I hated the ride and lack of power I found the shaker's were down on the road more often than my Volvo till I parked it

but truth of the matter is any truck you buy will be a gamble they all cost a LOT to fix. find the best deal that fits what your looking for in power and fuel and roll the dice as that's all it is even buying brand new

 

How many Mercedes engines do you see out on the road,Buy a Volvo with a cummins and meritor running gear.........

 

I got a good chuckle out of that ... it's not quite that bad, but close on some days, like running the jeep trails they call roads in California.