Haul CARS!!!!

I wouldn't but one outright either, in fact there really is no good reason to get into car hauling at this time, maybe in a year or two, but right now things are bad...Even my friends that are busy are slow....

 

thats how it usually works.im sorry it happened 2 you bro.i know some car brokers and they are having a hard time finding trucks to p/u their p.o.v.'s because alot of the small & medium sized carriers have dissolved over the last year because of low rates & high fuel prices.it doesnt help that 1500 guys lost their jobs when p.t.s. went belly-up.

 

Those of us who are still fortunate enough to still have a good job in this industry are holding on tight and trying our best to ride it out and for the first time in many years there is a surplus or experianced car hauler out there looking for work and not many jobs available in this field right now and it looks like its gonna be this way for a long time to come. On the new car market we have had guy laid off since Feb and no sign of them getting back to work any time soon, about 40% of our terminal, we are being told that the projected numbers for us are going to be in the toilet till at earliest 3rd quarter of 09 so hold on tight

 

Well i just switched jobs...

Went from a 1996 Freightliner with a 11car Delevan, to a 2006 Western Star with a 10 car Cottrell high rail.

Right now I am Slip seating the Western Star with another driver, until the new truck gets here in about 2 weeks.

I worked 3.5 slow days this week, and made $1400gross. Kinda slow going getting used to the new rig, gotta go slow to prevent damage...

Love the Western Star, it is a classy machine, I love the wide cab it makes it more roomy.

K

 

I can find nothing more to add except that not all the cabinovers were lowliners. I drove a standard freightshaker cabover with a 12 Delavan headrack and trailer. I miss hauling cars, although a good friend of mine continues to try to get me back into it.

I screwed up once and wasn't paying attention while backing a Ford Windstar behind the cab and turned the wheel too far and ended up with the front end off the jump-ramps and the passenger door in the frame of the trailer. That one cost me...

Used to haul brand new Daewoos out of Port Hueneme to various dealers and then auction cars or rental cars back. My buddy is doing mostly POV stuff now and is keeping on top of stuff.

 

Dirty-
you'll love your Star. I've had mine a year now, same setup as you have. My only complaint is about the Detroit, 100 less HP at cruise rpm than the 550 Cat I got out of. It's far from a dog, mind you, but it's no big Kitty!

And the versatility of the high rail is awesome for multi-pick/drop loads. Love being able to take suvs and trucks straight to headrack w/o touching top of trailer! It does load slower than quick loader, but I can easily load combos that'd leave the low-side guys quivering!

Joetro-
as they say, it's not if you'll damage a car at some point, it's how badly will ya get it!

And POVs? Did that for six months, only thing I miss is the cool old cars. Too darn much hassle!

 

Yep, if I were to climb back behind the wheel, it would be hauling cars or machinery, the latter with a stepdeck.

 

Yeah, the Detroit is doggy, it is suppose to be a 475 but my old freightliner was 475 and pulled much better.

The boss is talking about bumping it to 550, we will see.

First load on it was pretty big, a load I could not put on the delevan.

from headrack to back top: Highlander, Tundra CREW, Ram 1500 CREW, Mazda 5, Lexus RX330. Behind the cab to the tail: BMW7series, Grand Cherokee, Grand Cherokee, and a wrangler.

On the Delevan I would have had a problem getting turn room on the top between the 2 pickups, but this truck is set up properly.

Should be good, rearing to go back out, getting restless sitting at home.


K

 

The only thing I'd done different is swapped the Highlander and BMW. It's a such pain to get a hand under low slung cars that I usually pop a smaller SUV back there. I like having a car pulled on up front, too. Goes down the road a little easier.

BTW, I don't have the slide behind the cab, gotta drag jump skids! And no way to raise to reach under cars back there.

 

Yeah, I had the same setup. Actually, I had a homemade headrack we called a Delawayne, since some guy named Wayne built it and some others. It worked fine, but had some quirks to get used to.