Current Company Driver Looking to Lease

Also do you have to run your maintenance account through the company or do you control it personally. That's important

 

Yes, age old saying man,,, #### happens.
Not talking u out of it just being the barer of bad news.

 

Basically what it comes down to is you have to earn enough each week to cover your fixed expenses ie: truck payment, insurance, and variable expenses ie: fuel. Before you ever see a dime. For example 750 payment+1000 fuel(calculated on 3k miles@7.5mpg × $2.50 a gal)+420 for maint.(3k miles @ .14 per mile.+100 ins. =$2270 you have to earn per week before you put a dollar in your pocket.

I'm not trying to burst your bubble. I'm an o/o Ann you have the potential to make great money. However if you run as a company driver for a while it will help you learn basics. And i would recommend finding a company that will let you do a one year lease and give the truck back at the end. This will give you the financial experience without the long term liability.

 

The short answer to this question is "no".

It is relatively easy to read on these forums or talk to experienced o/I'd and think you have learned from them. You will see the things they tried to tell you in an entirely new light once you experience it first hand for yourself. There is a reason o/o's on this board suggest having $40,000 in savings over and above your startup costs when you first start out as an o/o: you will burn through that much extra cash in your first year of relearning the business.

My suggestion: keep researching these forums and learn from as many guys as you can. Build up your savings. Set becoming an o/o as a longer term goal. Try and buy your first truck after two to three years as a company driver, but be prepared not to turn a profit that first year.

There are companies that will treat you better than Werner does. I run reefer for a company that uses a performance pay system: you can make .50 a mile here a lot sooner than you can at companies that base pay on experience. We also run nicer equipment than Werner. You wouldn't be a number here, either. I'm not trying to recruit you. Frankly, it sounds like you've had enough of reefer for a while. What I am trying to point out is that it's an entirely different world as a company driver once you get away from the mega carriers

One last thing: I've worked for a handful of car dealers, both new and used. The prices you are quoting the value of your pickup for aren't much less than the sale prices of brand new 1 tons that come fully loaded. I get that you've probably spent a lot of money personalizing your truck, but the reality is that highly personalized vehicles are a hard sell for most used car dealers. the problem is that most of the people who would be interested in buying such a vehicle generally are willing to spend the money to do the work themselves. Most used car dealers will quote you kbb value of the base pickup. They are going to take the modifications off anyway so they can sell the pickup easier, so they will quote you based on what it is you have that they actually want. I've literally seen guys come in thinking they are going to trade straight up for a brand new f350 fx4 king ranch club cab (sticker: 42,000, sale price: 36,000...this truck has a 55,000 sticker these days) a only to leave two hours later with 15,000 down on a cheaper truck.

 

I wish you luck and good running driver. In the meantime keep researching and asking questions these forums are a wealth of info