Cabovers

well, I understend your guyts, there are no new designed in the USA COE trucks, all US COE trucks I see here are made 15-30 years ago and really they are of levell of Volvo F10-F12 ore of Renault Major... trucks of last century.

The only one modern semi offered in the USA was Argosy. Freiightliner wanted to use in line engines only in the USA and that's why Actros was not intrdused in the USA, Atego/Axor cabine was too small for sleeper version and that's why they made this a bit strange mix with some ideas of Renault Magnum and Actros. Anyway project could be succesfull if it could be offered on EU market but Mercedes did not want to get lower cost truck there. Now Mercedes will use some elements of Argosy design in new Actros MP4 becouse they will discontinue V-designed engines.

Other companies, like Paccar, Volvo Group, MAN do not offer COE trucks on US market becouse they are not sure will US companies purchase them.

European limitations are sill, really, I'd let operators choose where to use conv. truck, where COE. I see experience of CIS, where both the EU and US trucks are widly used, Dispatchers know well, where they can use Conv. truck and where COE is better. I'm sure COE trucks are much better for use on East Cost becouse and in San Francisco with hills, sharp turns and narrow streets, for driving on German autobahns I'd prefere conventional trucktor. But really we have to use COE trucks in EU and there are no COE trucks in the USA.....

well, who will agree/disagree with me?

 

I've never been to Russia or UA but what i saw from your video on YT about recording during drive

your roads are wider than ours here

here even classic eu semi is too long best for driving here is truck +drawbar trailer combination

last week i have seen one warehouse in customs area where semitrailer combination need 10 minutes to enter on reverse and need help from other driver to tell him how much space he has

and many trucks go at that spot

I spoke with one guy he has 5 containers trucks here and i ask him is it possible to use 6x2 conventional truck for that ( for 44ton)

and he said that even short COE is problem in container business because they always go in particularly narrow places

but it will be hard to find parking on german motorway i often see trucks parked at emergency lane on motorway there is not enough space for all of them

also for example scania T need 2 parking spots to when you enter on parking or go out from it because of extra long wheelbase ( 4.7m on 4x2 truck 185 inch) even it have 57 inch setup of front axle and 60 degrees of front wheel angle

 

I've never been to Croatia, but I've been to Germany, Austria, Poland and I'm sure there is more room then enought for US truck.

Drvers here say there are problems in Italy.

 

A lot of AMERICAN trucks are exported to Europe , do you guys ever see any ?

 

They usually reexported to Russia. Some of them are converted to EU standards and operated with short trailers, with dump trailers in EU, but more then half are reexported to CIS.

 

Ok thanks , seen quite a few in the past at the PORTS being out on ships to Europe , Old JB HUNT and SCHNIEDER tractors.

 

The last COE's built in USA in big numbers was 1998,and that was it,only special builds mostly for oversea,,USA relaxed the overall length law and thus COE's fell out of favor with most if not all carriers

The point i was trying to make was the overall cheapness to build comapared to a Conv and the exceptional weight savings as COE's are considerably lighter and thus you can load a COE with more freight(with what the "ideas" floating from Wash DC of larger and longer trailers again to offset the rise in fuel prices

 

Just like Conway did about 3yrs ago. I remember hearing all their comercials on XM and seeing them in the paper "Come join Conway as a team and you can pick to drive either a NEW Cascadia or a T660" LOL...how's that working out for ya???

 

Dont understand the "supposed' point you are trying to make as it pertains to the original OP,

If you are trying to "slight" me in some way(which your not) I was here long before it became Conway Truckload(I was with CFI)

The add NEVER implied you could "pick" a truck,thats all they were buying,now we are buying nothing but 660's and Prostars
When i came to CFI all they had were T-2000's and then went to T-600's(a cost cutting measure)

BTW,I am presently driving a 07Cascadia and i am picking up my brand new Prostar tomorrow(april 9th) in Joplin,this would be my 4th BRAND NEW truck in 10 years(Ill post some pics 4 U)

As for my reply to the OP it was in reference to the industry moving away from COE's(over 10 years ago) merely because of the "perceived" drivers shortage which back then (and somewhat now) due to drivers job hopping from one carrier to another,lets face it Like i said pay HASNT really changed industry wide in the OTR field(even now,all carriers basically pay the same) so all the carriers could do was to entice a prospective driver with a shiny Hood,,,(different color truck,same BS pay scale)Am i wrong in this assumption?

Did we(CFI/Conway) advertise on XM ?why YES we did,why? well we were the first fleet of this size to install all of our trucks with XM free of charge to drivers since XM radios became available(to which this driver is very appreciative)Do we still advertise???YES and if you call up you will be told there are 2 lists,1 for coming to Orientation,and 1 for after and your waiting on a MT truck

On the COE note here at CFI/Conway as it pertains to this thread,see i couldnt actually remember when CFI got done driving COE's so i had to call a driver who had been retired,he seems to remember it was around 83-84 was then last COE they had,so in essence im pretty sure we over here at "CFI-Way" have been at the forefront of change for the driver

I dont know who you drive for,and whoever it is it must work for you,Me well I would be lying if I said everything was perfect over here but it aint(like any Company),but not much has changed,i get my 2500-3000 miles a week,go home for 5 days a month,Conway works for me,but if I could find a Daycab job and I could be at home everyday OH Yeah I would leave,cause after almost 15 OTR Ive seen all I want to see,and been all I want to go to,I dont jump to another company for the reason I said,Same BS pay,different color truck,so why jump???

 

I wasn't trying to slight you in any way. I was wondering how things were working out for ya is all.... sounds like youre happy

YES, the add did say you could choose the truck you wanted to drive if you signed up as a TEAM. A friend of mine and his wife did so in 2008 and chose a T660 and they picked it up from MHC with 225miles on it.

I almost leased on with CFI but heard they may be selling to Conway so I chose to stay where I did.

5 days a week hometime sure isn't much, but better than some of the larger companies I heard of.

And just FYI, I drive for myself and I hate my boss LOL