Cost Per Mile

1.5m a lot of them have gone. We got the 93 with 790 k and it's right around 1m now and its getting rebuilt right now. If you can do the work yourself you can get heads turbo liners-pistons & rod and mains and oil pump for 6-7k

 

I smell troll thread.

 

Mack engine is the history to expensive not many shops know spec's

 

When I purchased my Midroof 120 with the 425 Cat and a rockwell 9 short about 1994 (I owned until nullified by discriminatory bigger lease/owner holder of business that sold it to me for 41,000 in about a week.) I hope he ate that truck. It's the best of the 35 or so he had on the property.

Anyway.

70 hours to run each week.

35 mph trip planning comes out to 2500 miles a week.

Fuel 300 gallons (Actually 320 but less than that but more than 300 usable. Splitting hairs here) Diesel was around $1.15 give or take a few cents a gallon. Figure 5 miles to gallon. Or 12 gallons idle overnight 8 hours in berth more in winter at high idle. About 20.

Anyway.

2500 miles to drive in 70 means fuel will run me 500 gallons to drive. $575.00

To drive 2500 miles in the 70 hours means about 5 nights sleeping 8 hours at 14 hours per day driving midnight to midnight. My trip plan speed is rather low so give or take a few hours. The 5 nights sleeping at 12 gallons a night will cost a additional $70 dollars or 61 gallons of fuel give or take a few in good spring weather will be less with engine off, window screens installed etc in summer more for cooling but winter is worst for high idle heating.

575 plus 70 total fuel for 2500 miles that week will be $645.00 That's 0.26 a mile.

Truck payment would have been 1200 a month. If I ran 4 70 hour 2500 mile weeks for a total of about 10,000 that $1200.00 will cost about 0.12 a mile. So That's $300.00 each week flat at 0.12 a mile over 2500 miles. Ir really does not matter if you made 0 miles or 10,000 miles the truck payment would have been 1200 flat. Principal is 41000 in 48 payments it's total will be about 57000 paid while the value of the truck drops quite a bit in that time. That's pretty neat huh?

fuel 0.26 plus bank payment 0.12 = 0.38 a mile so far.

Insurance would be the biggest nightmare by far. Without hazmat (Which I have endorsement but wont haul) and covering truck, trailer, general minimum liability, bobtail insurance, cargo insurance etc etc etc etc Probably on the order of about 6000+ per year if not more. Much more for me as a newbie with bad credit then. Call it 9000 annually.

Divided by 12 months... $750 a month. call it 0.08 cents per mile at 10,000 per month run. about 1994 maybe.

we are up to 0.46 a mile so far.

One oil change a month, 120.00 roughly. A few 5th wheel greases and other fluids necessary in the side box such as extra coolant etc. Call it 200 total a month. That's 0.02 a mile.

up to 0.48 a mile so far.

Maryland tags in 1994? For a 18 wheeler? Call it 10.00 per thousand to 80000 plus maybe 350 I think basic fee. $1200 a year maybe. 100 dollars a month 0.01 a mile.

0.49 so far.

Some states in those days probably added around 0.03 cents per mile used loaded above 60000 pounds within each state.

0.52 so far.

(Tax preparer? Each year? Who knows? I don't think that high. Incorporation? Company MC Number etc? all of those figures are state secrets to me.) Anything I try to guess would be just that. A guess.

The company that sold me the truck would take 12% intoa account strictly to be used in case of major engine failure or other catastrophic mechanical problems that costs a large amount of money. So if the freight rates are around maybe 1.40 to 1.60 or so in 1994 overall average, 12% of that would be 0.19 a mile.

So 0.71 so far.

One set of ten new tires each year for the tractor before winter. $250.00 per tire, call it 3000 dollars annually. (Older tractor tires will go onto trailer if tread depth still has life) Worse case scenario 18 new tires (Never recap) would be $4500.00

So. $500 a month put aside over 10,000 miles. per 9 months (Annually you are approaching 100K per mile total on the original new tires... if not exceed before next winter) 0.05 a mile. Throw in maybe 4 flats, cuts or damage per year, that's about a thousand in damage you did as a driver just in tire. call it 0.07 a mile.

0.78 so far.

Consider two or three alternators or routine work to be done to the truck each year. Call it say a 2000 dollars in labor, parts etc. It's very light it could be very much more or nothing if you are lucky. (Yea right..) 0.02 a mile.

0.80 a mile.

Payroll, shop use, people, brokers, phone bills, a address with land line rental etc. The ordinary and office type stuff to gather and maintain records for you and your truck. Call it oh... 8000 per year. $670 a month. 0.07 to 0.10 a mile

0.90 a mile.

Insurance for your little storage, office and all of that. I am not privy to that information. That's a business rather than rental or household insurance.

Guessing 10 a mile per year.

We are now at 1.00.

Making sure to have a 10% reserve into savings built into that base cost we are up to 1.10 Each year savings will build at a rate of 0.10 a mile run per paid mile.

1.10

Remember in those days it's HHG miles. So you lose 20% potentially against you in pay miles zip code to zip code. There was no GPS, no internet no nothing. Call it 0.20 a mile.

1.30 break even.

Does not include driver pay, driver food, driver anything. (Perdiem etc into taxes earned and paid. in those days)

If I picked up a 1.60 per mile load. Break even 1.30 for 2500 miles then it's profit 750 for the week. At 3250 cost to run 2500 miles for a total revenue gross of 4000 per week.

Sometimes it's much better to be a company driver running 25% and most of that overhead will vanish to someone else who is owning that truck and paying you. Even more better if you can find company work that pays more than the base 0.30 a mile you would get in 1994 for all your troubles for 4 years. Your net income will be $36000 Your taxable federal gross will stand at $192,000 for the business overall at 1.60 a mile times 12 months at 10K miles per month run annually.

I don't know what the taxes will do to you at the federal and state levels against almost 200K annually in gross revenue. Minus expenses, fuel tax etc etc etc. It will most certianly be a line item deductions top to bottom from blown engines all the way down to a 40 count box of pencils sitting on your desk by the phone.

Your net will be lower than 36000 Maybe. Per diem will help alot in those days at 45.00 per service day logged away from home.

You would be filing 1099 taxes each 3 months. So whatever that 200K annually comes out to every 3 months, you pay a percentage.

That 1.60 freight does not look very good does it now?

We have not gotten into detention, angry tow motor doing OSD damage to cargo, a accident or loss of load or part of etc. Anything is possible each year. Maybe enough to end your business if not also your ability to continue driving or live at all.

 

It sounds like what you are asking is what is the cost on running an older truck because an older truck may need more repairs.

If that is what you're asking, think about this.

If you are going to run an older truck you need to go over it before you start. I don't mean change oil and put air in the tires. I mean go over it. From front to back and replace anything, anything that needs to be replaced. Including the engine if it's tired.

You have to start from a place where everything is operational functional dependable and going to give you a long service life, if not you must replace it.

Old trucks are great, way better than the new junk. But if you do not repair everything that needs to be repaired before you begin, you will have breakdown after breakdown after breakdown which will cost you more in the end than if you would have fixed everything up front. You also would be paying for insurance and repairs having money go out while the truck sits and no money comes in. It is best to do your best to Bulletproof the truck before you begin. If you want an older truck you need to have the time money and ambition to do this.

Then you can figure your costs on normal things like tires and insurance and fuel Etc while you have a maintenance fund if anything larger goes like a turbo or radiator or transmission. But at that point breakdowns will be the exception, not the norm.

That's really the best approach to having an older truck.

 

Who the heck trip plans at 35mph? A lot of this info is old and outdated. Per diem, for instance, is way higher than that now.