How is it like driving OTR with a 389?

If ur going from a Cascadia to a hood.. the only thing that will be different is you won't be able to see #### on your passenger steer tire.. make sure u clear it out before changing lanes.. other then that it's not much different

 

Were you in a flat top?
I got a 78” mid roof dbl bunk and it’s very comfortable for me. After driving a 285” WB 389 for 4 years there’s no way in hell I could ever go back to driving anything else..well maybe a W-900 but I’ve never driven one.

 

D.tibbitt is correct, when you are changing lanes on the passenger side in traffic, you can't see crap after the passenger window, I basically stand up and look over there if I am not sure something is there. A full car can hide over there, pretty easily on almost every hood I have driven, currently in a 379 regular hood.... Don't call it a short hood..... And even with the smaller hood it still will hide a full size car

 

Get used to making small pull ups to adjust with the backing, you are not going to be able to catch back up to the trailer when backing and will have to get used to just taking small pullups to catch back up to the trailer. You get used to it, I have been in this truck since April of 2020 and don't know if I could go back to driving much else. They ride better and you just get used to them, more immediate room in the interior, every aero I have ever driven has horrible interior room for the driver, hoods are a lot different

 

Marvelous, simply marvelous, coolest trucks made, but wait,,,I bet you a stack of Entenemanns donuts, that Cascadia rides better.. For years, the long hood Pete has been the epitome of trucks. Remember when Werner had those double bunk Petes? I heard many drivers bought them when they went to Volvos. KW and Pete have always been the utmost in road trucks, but KW, I feel, is a bit stronger and more popular with municipal or day cab grunt work. Tell you what though, the fun stops when trying to get into a tight dock, you'll wish you had that Cascadia. The real fun part is out on the boulevard with company Volvos struggling at 62mph, and you out in the hammer lane gliding down the highway, I had a lot of fun with my old Pete.

 

Ive driven volvos, macks kennys petes internationals day cabs sleeper cabs hoods and aeros. Honestly i find hood petes to be the worst riding of all trucks just behind W900s unless they are the longer frame sort. Followed by daycabs period, then volvos and then "other brand" hoods and then its aero cab petes and KWs macks and cascadia with aero internationals rideing the best overall imo. But thats just my experince.

Interior is a mixed bag and depends on how its set up and how much the company cheaped out. But as a rule hoods are laid out better and more comfortable overall. They also nearly never ####ing squeek or rattle which MORE then makes up for the rougher ride. They are also usually much better sound insulated so they are much more pleasent to drive. So much so that even though the ones i used all rode rougher the ride was far less stressful and for more comfortable overall which more then offset the kidney damage.

Hoods block the everloving #### out of the right side of the truck. Ive had entire 1 ton pickups hide there before and it behoves you to reaaaaaaly check that space before you move over. Also know the phrase turns on a dime? Most hoods turn on a manhole cover. Your going to get used to really turning that truck into some weird angles with lots of pullups to compensate for for that #### turning radius. Some are better some are worse. Just depends on where that front axle is positioned. Same for the ride. That axle position can really hurt or improve the ride.

Hoods also have a pretty nasty hit to fuel efficency. If you got a fuel bonus before expect it to get much smaller or even go away. And they do tend to be pretty heavy compared to a comparable aero cab. So if your paid on weight it can negitivly effect your income.

Dont get me wrong hoods are fun to drive and there is the whole cult following of them kinda like harleys or super cars for a reason. But they do have a lot of negitives too for that style and.comfort. Overall though its just a bigger truck with a more narrow view and a worse average turning radius and the same as any other truck once you get passed the quirks.