Getting sprinter van after otr for $1.00 a mile pay?

What do you guys think about this? I wanna do OTR to save up and get me one of those pro master/Mercedes sprinter or cargo vans. I have a friend whose his own pro master and gets paid $1 a mile. He was fortunate enough to not have to do OTR, however. Anyways he pulls in 70k+ NET. And is home daily most of the time since he works for himself.

Why don’t more OTR drivers do this?

 

What? Slave all day fighting the wheel for Mr Horsewhip Dispatcher and Express and then go home and sweat over the small stuff in a van?

No thanks.

I tell you what though. I have had dry van 18 wheeler and flatbed loads that were just two pallets. You could stick that into a van. Even better if you hung a rack for sleeping somewhere in the thing as well. Who knows, you might be onto something.

Enginewise I don't think those little things can back it up with beef and horsies when loaded long term. Sort of high maintenance. Never a Mercedes without some sort of maintenance headache in my experience. If they were any good, they would be a Audi. HA... I had a few in my time and they were FUN.

 

Some of us prefer OTR. I've talked to a few drivers with their own cargo van and they like it ok. Some of us just prefer running the roads in a big rig.
V3 Transportation has ads running for cargo van, box truck drivers and company & 0/0's.
V3 has a variety of trucks/vans.

 

driving a big rig is awesome

sprinter van, not so much

 

Van life is not what it's made out to be. Tell your friend to go over his numbers again. That sounds way too high for a net.Don't ask me how I know. Once ELD became mandatory it seems every one wanted a van, you also see a bunch of old Penski trucks and now cube trucks with canvas sides, since they are not regulated. I question that.
When I go to truck stops, mostly Laredo TX, you see maybe 30 to 40 bunch up waiting for a load. They remind me of seagulls waiting for the "lady" to throw crumbs out to them.
Mine,mine,mine, mine

 

I will never forget the gulls in the Lehigh elevator across from Fort McHenry in Baltimore on the Harbor Seaway. I had a box of doughnuts and coffee with sugar etc among other assorted snacks pending later in day lunch etc on the dash arranged nicely while unloading bulk.

Sitting in the cab, a mack with all the windows down and a door open for ventilation, after all it's hot, two gulls had managed to get into the cab ignoring me and going after the food. Stubborn little things. If I did not know already that they enjoyed the same federal protections as do Hawks etc I would have done some terrible things to them critters.

Mine, mine, mine, mine. I tossed one out and shooed the other. The one I tossed out was memorable busy gulping a chunk of food while being tossed with both hands. Persistent stubborn #### thing.

That was the other problem. One shows up to feast, 100 more show from all over. Empty blue sky early in the morning, nothing on the water etc and just one gull. Next thing you know 100 more are clouding the problem of food I left out. Outrageous.

 

I have a 2018 ford cargo van.
I just started. I did u-ship for 3-4 months and I got pretty good money. Now uShip is asking me for MC number. I applied for it and I have it but I can’t find a company for cargo insurance. Maybe you guys can help me. Also, having a cargo van you limit the loads and the trips. Maybe you can ask your friend how he finds the loads. I started reading for the past month about loads... tried different apps and websites; pay everyone and not one load.

Thank you.

 

Thompson, TST, Sprinter, Expedite Direct etc.

$1 a mile is not that great (CDN$$) if it was all miles, at least that's something

I had the same question, why don't more OTR drivers do this...but I'm happy if they stay where they are

 

Mostly the waiting time, most times days, the lack of acamadation, the cost of hotels, to name a few.

 

Uship and good money? I thought you couldn't use them in the same paragraph let alone in the same sentence. UShip were you publicly demean yourself in front of thousands of viewers under bidding each other, no thank you. My price is usually firm, I will deal with a broker personally, not in front of a circus on who can do the load for rock bottom pricing .