9 speed trucks

Depends on what your doing. Their ok for van and reefer loads but crap for heavy or vocational. I dont like them but many swear by them.

 

Imo I'd rather have a 9sp over a 10 but that's just me. They've been around forever

 

I liked 9s better than 10s, 9s have better speed ranges in each gear in my experience. I’ve never been OTR so can’t attest to that part of it tho

 

Exactly why i like the 9s better. Hated the 10sp. Dropping 2 gears on a hill compared to 1 in the 9

 

9’s are 13’s without the overdrive splits in the top 4 gears. Most 9’s have the same low and dir ratios as 13’s and make them much better than 10’s in most cases.
I’ve always heard way back before the 18’s became the king of the road and the days the 13’s ruled that if you weren't lucky enough to have a 13 and you wanted to pull in the hill’s the 9 was the way to go over a 10 any day.

 

I always liked a 9, even TMC used them for years, think they still do

 

If i wasnt lied to
They started speccing their newer (aero petes) trucks with 9s (2014ish) because paccar wouldnt warranty the engines if they had a 13.

Some SAID it was so they could just convert em to 13 spds after warranty was up, but i doubt that they ever had plans to do that, having a single fleet spec makes more sense on that scale

 

Use to drive OTR in a Mack with a straight six speed. Maxadine engine transmission and rears. The thing was bulletproof.

 

we still have a 237 in the yard with the compound twin stick, will be a great day when that thing finally dies.

some of the 9s are convertible to 13s either by adding the back box or some are ordered with them and just not plumbed, but there are different models and that’s not all of them.

13/18 is still the way to go, and be glad the 15s have gone the way of the dinosaurs….