Glad I moved over to Poly Trucking

Againstthewind, you are correct when you type "everyone is different". However a driver's expenses at home are nobody else's business.

I understand your comments weren't directed at my me, thanks.

I can't speak for O/Os as an entire group, but most of the one's I know don't run slow. We find the engines "sweet spot" and cruise at that RPM. The speed associated with that sweet spot will differ depending on transmission and read end gear ratio. The vast majority of trucks will find their sweet spot between 58mph-62mph, and a few will be at a higher MPH, again because of tranny/rear end ratio. My current truck is at 62mph while my previous was 60mph.

The other benefit to running an engine in it's sweet spot is lower maintenance cost. If an engine/transmission/rear end are not over worked they last longer...just like us. The caveat to this are all the peripheral components for the emissions. Which is why I bought a glider kit.

Lower maintenance cost plus fuel savings equals higher PROFITS (the money retained after all expenses including taxes and salary) and profit is why I'm a businessman first and a truck driver second. A company driver is the opposite as their profit is a paycheck predicated on miles run. I've been on both sides of the fence and totally understand both sides. IMO a smart owner would find a way to pay a driver in a fashion other than based on mileage in an effort to encourage better equipment care.

 

as a former O/O I'll address this issue. It doesn't ruffle our feathers, it just shows that you are a driver, not a business owner. I'll explain it this way....why did you come to Poly? I came here primarily because they pay an above average rate per mile, pay actual miles driven, and they have a reputation for allowing the drivers to do their job without excessively micro-managing them. If the speed of the truck is what helped you decide to come here and not the pay, why didn't you choose a company that allows faster speeds (but pays less per mile)? Bottom line, why work harder for the same or less pay. As an O/O, if there is ample time on the load, why not save on the fuel bill by lowering your speed. Why burn more fuel to get to the delivery faster and then sit waiting on your delivery appointment? It is not that O/O's are so cash strapped that they have to run slower, it is because that slower speed increases fuel mileage and that increased mileage increases profit. (One of the reasons to be an O/O...a bigger paycheck). At $4/gallon of fuel, every 10th of a mile per gallon adds almost $1500 per year...in a truck, for every mile per hour over 55 decreases the mpg by 0.1. So instead of 70, if the driver drives 60 adding an average of 1 mpg. Instant $15,000 profit boost. So if there is time on the, driving slower pays off. The guy that used to have a show on XM ATBS Trucking and beyond...I think it was renamed "Let's Truck".(he may still be on there, I don't subscribe to XM)...his slogan was 'run smarter, not harder.' That is what O/O's are doing. Rushing to get there then sitting in a truck stop waiting for your delivery appointment doesn't pay, and customers generally don't ask how fast your truck is when setting appointments, so getting there faster only blows money up the stack.

Bottom line, the trucking business is a cpm business, every cost is broken down to a cpm...if you can decrease your cpm on fuel expense, then that is an instant profit boost. If Poly paid a fuel bonus, it would make many company drivers do the very same thing to their choice of speed.

Plus JD's comment about maintenance is also a reason. By increasing profits in fuel mileage, the driver doesn't have to run as many loads to make better money...less miles means less wear and tear, and less that driver has to hit the Speedco for a $400 oil change. O/O's like JD over at Landstar, and flease op's at Prime aren't paid by the mile. Landstar and Prime flease drivers are paid a percentage of the freight charges the company gets for moving the load...decreasing cost increases the amount of profit from that amount.

 

Well if simply slowing down actually saved fueled that be one thing, but it doesn't. Case in point, I have a 2014 Kenworth T680 with a ISX 450, ratio 3:36 pulling a 2015 dry van with skirts. I was averaging 8.5 mpg running on flat ground in the Midwest pulling 73K gross, Avg Speed 60 mph. A owner op in my company challenged me to slow down to save fuel, I did, dropped my speed to 55 MPH, my MPG dropped to 7.5. all of this is the same trip, I was running late so when I got into Utah I raised my speed to 75 and to my surprise my MPG went up to 8.0. One thing I noticed when running at 55 MPH is my RPM's was way under the green bar, my rpm's was too low, if I down shift to 9 my rpms are too high. At 75 MPH in 10th my rpm's are just above the green bar. I find I get the best fuel millage between 65 and 70 mph.

Wow all that to say this, it's not the speed that matters on fuel mileage, but rather what speed is your truck designed to cruise at.
I know for a fact that I can run between 65 and 70 on flat ground and get well over 8 MPG. so why wouldn't I? Now in the mountains that's different, I do slow down and run in lower gears because a 3:36 in the mountains stinks.

 

When Crete 1st dropped their speed to 62, they experienced the same kind of thing on one years trucks. But I think the one point JD touched on it was spot on, and it's what you're experiencing...it isn't the speed but the engine's sweet spot that makes the difference. Sounds like your truck is geared for more of a flatland type of operation. Or else whomever spec'd your truck needs to address the final drive ratio on your transmission. MVT (who was one of the first to use aero-enhanced equipment) use to run,or may still run, a drive ratio in the 2's, with a single drive/tag axle setup. But they also ran a 10 speed direct transmission.. and when everyone else was struggling to average 6 they were in the 8's. I'm not sure how they were in the hills with that setup, but since they are based out of NM, I'm guessing they weren't too bad since they ran through the rockies a lot.

 

i agree with all that an thanks for all the info, i dont need to know someones living expenses, my problem is drivers that ive worked with at my last job making 70k a yr would tell someone interested in that job that they would go broke workin there,so some may think the pay stinks at that job and not apply, when in reality they fail to say how in debt they are,that i guess is what i was trying to say. ive seen this many times and most wont just give u gross numbers like u have, i appreciate all the info it gives me much to think about, now i will go read SS response, maybe i shouldnt lol

 

i do appreciate all the info, i think alot gets misunderstood on here and i can understand why, i would prefer to just post numbers and miles and where ive been on here rather than opinions but i figure who wants to see that lol i might not post at all but i kno if jd or chemstar didnt then i wouldnt be here, so i try to stick to the way they did it but sometimes get off track. i guess i like to post for anyone who is lookn into poly. i have realized how bad my spelling and english is when post as i dont use autocorrect lol

 

i hope this continues to be about all things poly, i have run us off the rails, lol there are already too many threads with debates, although ive learned much from them sometimes it gives me a headache lol

 

since i had too much time on this backhaul (cant deliver till mon) i cruised down and spent the day at Biloxi beach, went to Snappers seafood for lunch, had gumbo and tilapia.on the way out noticed they have truck parking at the big casino an hotel down there, if i woulda known maybe i woulda went ther for the day and nite, but that place surely didnt look cheap, not that i like casinos but a room near the beach and downtown is nice.

 

It'll continue, but lately things have cooled off a bit..everyone is too busy to post. It's good to have someone chime in and keep the thread moving...I've been trying to limit how many post's in a row I do.

Since my next outbound doesn't pick up until Monday, I am spending time cleaning my truck. I always try to keep the floor blown clean with the coily air hose...but decided to get out some of the paper towel I bought at Poly day at Sams and give it a good scrubbing...after all, they do pay me back for cleaning supplies, may as well put it to good use and stop being such a slob.

And I do have to apologize for thinking Poly short changed me on some motel reimbursements...turns out I had got them after all, my wife saw an extra deposit and thought it was an error and was expecting that money to be deducted on the next check. Turns out, they were on the ball and we weren't.

 

I have 123k miles so far this yr. Only deadheaded 600 miles to polywest. Put myself on sat board got offered a slc for mon am dlv or 1 of 4 loads all going to sumner delivering on thursday 5 days to go 1300 miles. I took slc that why I hope they can get me rolling mon afrer delivry as I will have a fresh book. Be careful if your going into northern rockies or upper midwest bitter cold and snow.