Husband and wife team starting with R&L Carriers

It came with the truck. All new team trucks come with a built in fridge. Built in inverter. 1800 watts. And the sleep number bed. Mechanic said they are 1600 dollar mattresses.

 

It's been 4 months now and still going good. We really lucked in to getting a good run . Still feels wierd because everyone is so nice to us. It's almost too good to be true. I mean at other companies there was always someone that would treat you like ####. Just not used to it. Great pay and people.
We got two rooms reserved at our daytona beach resort for week of Christmas next year. Found out each room is like a condo and sleeps 6 so we are taking our 4 grown kids and spouses with us . Going to make it a Disney christmas and new years. It's only 70 miles from daytona.

 

Here are some pics of our new truck. Haven't taken any of inside. Cluttered up now with our stuff in it.

 

Hey guys I haven't posted in a while so I better update. We are still going strong here. They changed our run up a little but still meets in Gurdon. But now we leave at midnight every night and get back about 9 pm the next night. So now we are done Friday nights at 9 pm and start again Sun/Mon at midnight. Our truck had to be sent to the dealer for repairs. The cruise quit working and it was throwing codes about a transmission fault and abs module. The loaner truck is a little older but still has a built in fridge and sleep number bed. . I'll try to update more

 

I COPIED AND PASTED YOUR POST AND ANSWERED IN ALL CAPS. HOPE THIS HELPS.
Love that they give you the 'top' model prostar with the full skyrise condo interior & both hood mirrors (the little details make a difference to me) the Bose seat & sleep number mattress sound awesome as well.

My favorite feature is the twin turn signal/marker lights on both sides of truck; most prostars (including full sized ones) only have the ones under the front doors not the ones under sleeper. Better visability for all those around you when signaling & satisfies my OCD for proper proportions; now all they need is the stainless windshield visor & bumper options.

Few nerdy questions:
Does the aluminum sidebox on frame behind sleeper on drivers side come with the truck or did you buy it? It comes with truck
Do they come with all team trucks as far as you know? It is so nice to keep the dirty stuff like engine fluids, chains, jumper cables, ect out of the living area in those. NOT ALL TRUCKS HAVE THEM. THE NEWER ONES DO.

Does R&L have regular pay raises past the full rate of pay in any way or is it just random?
RAISES ARE RANDOM. OTHER DRIVERS SAID IT USED TO BE EVERY 6 MOS BUT NOW ITS RANDOM
Gun/weapon policy in truck & on property? (Baton, mace, taser, knife, ect. also)
NO GUNS
Uniform/dress policy?
TEAMS DONT HAVE TO WEAR THEM. THEY DO PROVIDE YOU WITH THEM AT NO COST
I assume the mattresses you get are new anytime you get a different truck? (Please say yes) NO SORRY. OUR NEW TRUCK CAME WITH NEW ONE BUT LOANERS AND OLDER UNITS HAVE USED MATTRESSES

Are there standby trucks always available in case there is a breakdown like what you had with the transmission? (Have a new mattress in those too?) WE HAVE A LOANER THAT STAYS HERE IN LOUISVILLE. ITS A 2013 INT PROSTAR WITH 750K . ITS A STICK BUT NICE

Any 401k company match, profit sharing, bonuses, etc? 401k and BONUS EVERY YEAR AS LONG AS YOU DONT HAVE AN ACCIDE T. ITS 500 I BELIEVE

How much of your pay is per diem? No PER DIEM. YOU CLAIM THAT YOURSELF ON TAXES

Prepass, Norpass, ezpass, sunpass, Ktag, etc? PrePASS FOR SCALES

What Elog system do they use & does it have built in navigation like the qualcomm navigo?(if it does but is not navigo, how effective & accurate/stupid is it?) IGLOBAL MDT. NO NAVIGATION

Do the trucks come with satellite radio activated?
NO XM SIRIUS
Do they wash the truck for you? NO. BUT Several TERMINALS HAVE DRIVE THRU WASHES. LOUISVILLE PROVIDES A HOSE AND BRUSH

If you would have to fuel for whatever reason on the road how does it work? THEY GIVE YOU A COMDATA CARD. WE FUEL HERE AT TERMINAL SINCE WE ARE BACK EVERY NIGHT

How is the Bose seat in your & your wife's opinions compared to regular seats in the past you have used? BOSE SEATS ARE BETTER THAN OTHERS

Have you noticed any changes in how they ordered/specced the different trucks you have seen/been in on the inside & outside? (Any trucks with extra rear facing utility lights for backing at night especially?)

Do they have a drive weight gauge, airbag pressure gauge, air application gauge, air filter flow gauge, ect? (Any interesting options added that might not come on a bare bones truck?) NO ONBOARD SCALES.
THEY HAVE SCALES AT MOST TERMINALS
Do they have a Cummins or Maxxforce engine in your truck?
CUMMINS
Is your tractor assigned to you or is it used while on home time?
ASSIGNED
Time for showers on the road? (Any showers at the terminal & how clean/nice?) THERE IS ABOUT 2 AND 1/2 HRS ON OUR DEDICATED RUN WHEN U GET BACK TO TERMINAL. WE HAVE A SHOWER ROOM AT OURS.

How has the shop responded to repair orders? (Speed, professionalism, effectiveness, do it right or just good enough, general compentancy, etc.) THEY ARE PRETTY GOOD FOR REPAIRS ON THE SPOT. IE LIGHT OUT OR FLAT TIRE. THEY HAVE TO ORDER PARTS FOR MAJOR REPAIRS IE STARTER OR ALTERNATOR. THEY DO A GOOD JOB

Does the in house shops do most work on tractors or do you have to take it to dealer? IF ITS UNDER WARRANTY THEN IT GOES TO DEALER. MAJOR REPAIRS THEY CANT HANDLE GO TO DEALER




Does truck have a chain rack of any kind? MINE HAS CHAINS IN STORAGE BOX. SOME TRACTORS HAVE CHAIN HOOKS ON FRAME
How many gallons are your fuel tanks? 120 GALLONS EACH SIDE

Are there any other R&L sleeper trucks you have seen besides the prostars? YES THERE ARE SOME PETERBILT. THEY ARE CONDOS AS WELL.

What APU does it come with, how effective has it been working for you, & what is the idling policy? DIFFERENT APUS. OURS HAS A DYNASYS. IT IS EFFECTIVE FOR SLEEPER BUT NOT WHOLE CAB. HAVE TO HAVE CURTAIN CLOSED. OUR LOANER HAS A THERMO KING.

Is there a pet deposit if you decide to bring animals onto the truck?NO PET DEPOSIT.

Can/do you take truck home if you live within certain mileage of terminal? TRUCK STAYS AT TERMINAL

When is the truck PM services done?
Do you ever do it on the road or when you are in the middle of work week? ON WEEKENDS.

Are there any electronic nannies on the truck? (Lane departure, wingman object detector, cameras, anything that takes away truck control from you at any point in time or dictates how you should drive?) ONLY ELETRONICS IS THE E LOG

What is the average quality of the equipment you deal with every day & how responsive are they to getting DOT violation things fixed before you drive? (Are you forced to run with a busted trailer light?) THEY FIX DOT STUFF ON SPOT. MOST EQUIPMENT IN GOOD SHAPE. EVERY NOW AND THEN YOU GET AN OLDER TRAILER BUT NECCESARY REPAIRS ARE MADE.

Do they give you basic maintenance equipment for on the road repairs?(fuses, bulbs, wiper blades, oil, coolant, chains, jumper cables, ect.) THEYLL GIVE YOU BULBS WIPERS AND FLUIDS AT SHOP IF YOU ASK

If you ran in states that required chains, are you forced to chain? HAVENT RUN IN ANY. OUR RUN GOES LOUISVILLE TO ARKANSAS

What is their policy on driver calling weather related shutdown? THIS WINTER IT GOT SO BAD THAT WE HAD TO STOP AT MEMPHIS TERMINAL BECAUSE ROADS WERE DANGEROUS. IT WAS 10PM. I CALLED AND TOLD THEM I DIDNT FEEL SAFE AND WE'LL TRY AGAIN IN MORNING. THEY SAID THAT WAS FINE AND TO CALL WHEN WE LEFT. WeLEFT AT 9AM AND HAD TO STOP IN KY BECAUSE ROAD WAS SHUTDOWN AT HORSE CAVE. IT WAS 3PM. I CALLED AGAIN AND THEY SAID LET US KNOW WHEN YOU ARE MOVING AGAIN. WE ENDED UP STAYING THERE TIL 9AM NEXT MORNING BEFORE ROAD WAS OPEN. THEY NEVER TOLD US TO KEEP GOING AND TO STAY SAFE.
Say you look ahead on traffic maps & want to detour around an accident/slowdown/rush hour city, are they good with that? THEY DON'T MIND DETOURS AS LONG AS YOU KNOW ITS INCLUDED IN YOUR PAY FOR THAT RUN

Has your trailer(s) been loaded on time every time (starting your week or during your week returning from your run to head back) or have you had to sit waiting at all? (unpaid correct?) OUR CUT TIME IS MIDNIGHT. MOST OF THE TIME ITS READY BY 1130pm. BUT SOMETIMES THEY GO OVER A HALF HR TO 1 HR. NO PAY

Is the 72mph on cruise 75mph on foot still in effect? (You said the new truck was faster or something?) PRETTY MUCH ITS 73MPH FOOT OR CRUISE. ONE TRUCK WENT 75MPH WITH FOOT

Do they mind if you drive 75 all the time? (When legal of course.)THEY DONT MIND. WE TRY TO RUN 73MPH ALL TIME

Do you get dinged & have to explain yourself to safety if you go past XX(X)mph? NO

RPM governor?
Dinged for overreving past a certain rpm using engine brake down hill? NO

How many speeds is the auto transmission? 10

How is the automatic working out in general & specifically with engine braking down hills? We LIKE IT. IT BRAKES AT ABOUT 77.

Talked to any other team drivers that run OTR on non fixed routes about their experiences & opinions on what can be improved in the company? SOME TEAMS I HAVE RUN INTO THAT RUN WILD SAY THEY DO SIT AT SOME TERMINALS. THEY SAY ITS NOT TOO BAD AND THEIR PAY IS A LITTLE HIGHER THEN OUR DEDICATED

How many states do team drivers that run wild/OTR service? (Out ((north))west, I nearly always see plain white sleeper cascadias with a different company name pulling R&L whenever it is not a R&L daycab)
THEY RUN ALL 48. THE CASCADIAS ARE A OUTSIDE COMPANY CALLED BENEFIT TRUCKING. WE HAVE SO MUCH FREIGHT THAT THEY USE OUTSIDE CARRIERS FOR OVERFLOW. WE WERE TOLD AT INTERVIEW THAT THEY WANT TO GET AWAY FROM USING THEM
Allowed to stop at walmart, movies, resteraunts along the way IF you happen to have extra time on load? (Know you said your run was tight just wondering in general if you ran "wild.") I STOP AT WALMART ALOT. THEY DONT CARE

Do you have the option to work extra days as team or solo or dockwork if you so choose? If so, what payscales do you fall under for each category? DONT KNOW. WE GET PAID 8 HRS AT 21 AN HOUR FOR HOLIDAYS. WE WERE PAID 18 AN HR AT ORIENTATION

Seniority carry to different terminals or not? TERMINALS ARE 1ST IN 1ST OUT AS FAR AS I KNOW ON WILD RUNS

Just bought a house in Spencer,TN & wondered if, like old dominion, they might hire a team out of a terminal they might not specifically be hiring from because there is a lot of freight to move OTR/wild/non dedicated routes? (Would be looking at primarily the Chattanooga term or secondarily, the Antioch or Knoxville terminals.)
Not SURE
How much paperwork is associated with trips you run & how online friendly are they with payroll, tax forms, accessing past pay stubs, ect? (I love being able to not talk to anyone in the company & get my own information I need without having to go through channels.)WE HATE TALKING TO PEOPLE IF WE DONT HAVE TO ALSO. PAPERWORK IS EASY. YOU DO HAVE TO FILK OUT A MILEAGE AT EACH STATELINE. THEY ARE TRYING TO GET THAT THRU ELOGS EVENTUALLY. THERE IS A PAYSHEET YOU HAVE TO FILL OUT AND A DVIR

Just to confirm, if you have to go OOR, detour, extra miles, breakdown, weather shutdown, chaining, traffic you don't get extra pay right? PAY IS INCLUDING IN PER RUN RATE.

Have you ever done anything other then your dedicated route the entire time you have been there? WEEK OF BAD ICE STORM IN DALLAS THEY SENT US TO ATLANTA TWICE BECAUSE DALLAS WAS SHUTDOWN

Do you have to let them know if going OOR for any reason? NO

Still loving your job?
Yes
Would love to see interior pics as well; the more the merrier!
Love to see rear view of truck without trailer as well. I WILL TRY TO GET SOME

 

Its 70 per week for me wife and kids.