Looking for input on first truck purchase

Hey guys,

I am 4 years into trucking now, 1.5years of that long haul and I'm about to jump into becoming an owner operator. I've looked at a few trucks and would like some experienced advice on which to proceed with.

Purpose of truck is hauling Van/Reefer loaded around 70,000 lbs gross to the mid west.

The trucks are;
1. 2016 Western Star 5700XE
Engine: DD15, 505HP
Transmission: DT12 Auto
Axle Ratio: 3.23
Mileage: 450,000 Km or 280,000 Miles
Price: $95,000 CAD or $71,000 USD

Pro's: Below market price, and low mileage.
Con's: Has been in a small accident (cosmetics damage only, has been sufficiently repaired), excessive rust from operating in western Canada.

The rust is excessive and I'm wondering if it needs to be sand blasted off and painted or is it something I can handle with a drill wire brush, rust remover/inhibitor and some spray paint.

2. 2015 Volvo VNL780
Engine: D-13, 455HP
Transmission: Eaton13
Axle Ratio: 3.42
Mileage: 725,000 Km or 450,000 Miles
Price: $80,000 CAD or $60,000 USD

Pro's: Looks well maintained, very little rust showing on the entire truck, Better interior and larger cab
Con's: Priced at market value (5700XE is around 10 to 15k CAD below market value)

I'm leaning towards the Western Star because of the value. The biggest cause of friction for me is the rust (I've never driven a truck with this amount and I don't know what problems it can cause in the future). I've attached a few pictures of the rust, what do you guys think?

Thank you

 

The Western Star is basically a Freightliner, isn't it? All the large components are the same as a Freightliner. Could you please give me an example of a part that would be harder to find for the Western Star vs Freightliner?

I'm going to get a blowby, dyno, and oil analysis before purchasing the truck. What other tests would you suggest to check the quality of the after treatment system?

The WS is priced that low because it's a Daimler repo, I can put in the deal "pending approval of my mechanic" so if he says there is frame damage I can ask them to either fix it or just move on.

There's no warranty left on the Volvo, the WS has 800k Km or 5 years warranty expiring in mid 2020.

I am not running under my own authority yet. Plates, insurance, authority and its relevant documents are the carrier's responsibility. I do have the emergency fund set up. I've gone through the numbers and it does make sense for me to become o/o, after all expenses I'd be making 0.72c/mile.

After hearing a few horror stories about the Cascadia's 1-box I've been looking into gliders but they are just so hard to find in Canada.

Beyond the dyno, blowby, and oil analysis is there anything I can do to check for the things you mentioned? I will have the truck inspected by my mechanic to make sure there is no frame damage.

Could you please elaborate? If you were buying a truck in Canada with the purpose of operating Van/Reefer, what would you be looking for?

I've been looking to buy for a few months now and these are some of the better options I've found. What is wrong with a market price Volvo or a below market WS with a few issues?
I've seen plenty of Cascadia's, none of them were fairly priced or there was some major issue to be resolved.

Ideally, I'd like to stick with Daimler because they are the cheapest trucks to operate, get the most fuel mileage and after 2015 seem to have their emissions crap figured out more so than the other manufacturers.

That's exactly what I'm looking for but while looking for Cascadia Evolution's, I found a fairly priced Volvo and a cheap WS (as I understand, it's basically a Cascadia that's a little less aerodyynamic)

i.e if you check the Cascadias on the Select truck Toronto website, they all have 60k miles more on them than the Volvo and are all priced $5-10k CAD higher. They don't even have a truck with low miles on it like the one you linked.
Toronto Used Semi Trucks Inventory | SelecTrucks

They have 1 Cascadia with similar mileage and it's this vomit coloured beauty listed for 8k more than the Volvo I'm looking at. 2015 FREIGHTLINER CASCADIA 125 EVOLUTION Z3163