Random LTL Rants (all are welcomed)

It really is, you could get all that data, if needed, from an ECM dump, which our shop is definitely setup to do. I think it's just a little value-added feature that the management types have latched onto.

We don't have anything more automatic than the transmissions, at this point in time. No lane-departure, no auto-braking forward radar nonsense, no driver cameras. From what our terminal manager has said, there are no intentions of putting that stuff in the pipeline either. They would rather spend the money attracting drivers with better qualifications, than spending millions hand-holding people who either need it and are a liability anyway, or who don't need it and thus just get pissed off and leave after their tolerance for continual nanny behavior is exceeded. So far it's working..across 63 drivers, our average tenure at my location is 18 years.

 

We're pretty low tech too, we have the Xata stuff and it's a cultural thing, but heck are trucks are still manuals even the new ones are still manuals and over all our DOT score is fairly low and the rest of the stuff that you mentioned isn't even on the radar or ever even talked about. I don't think they want to spend the money.

 

Half the time all that fancy technology breaks down and causes lots of trouble anyhow and it malfunctions and causes the trucks to be down for the count for a while. BTW I am not against automatic trucks I had one at the beer company and it was fine. The other features though all that crap is just added glitz and nonsense that malfunctions.

If I was a fleet buyer gosh we would have the most antiquated fleet around LOL! I would have 6 & 10 wheelers for the hard down town stops.

Then the semis I would have bought and restored many FordL9000s because there dependable do not have a lot of EPA stuff on them and have a nice sharp turning radius.

 

Drove a four axle dump that was an L9000. It was surprisingly comfortable and quite dependable. The company that I worked for bought if off another aggregate outfit who had bought it off........etc. But it was a good old work horse.

 

First semi truck I ever shifted into gear was an ex-R&L Carriers 1994 Ford Aeromax L9000 single screw totally beat to H-E double hockey stick.

 

I ripped around in a '92 Aeromax for a while, weird thing is that is was nearly new when I had it!!! Guess I'm showing my age a little.

 

We had three L-9's when I started with this company. Two singles and a tandem axle.
Still have the tandem axle. Its one of my favorite trucks to drive.
Has plenty of N-14 power, a 10spd trans and COLD A\C.

It is Fugly to look at though.
Looks like a rolling DOT magnate. But the Air system is sound, brakes are decent. Tires are round, black, and hold air. Exhaust is still solid.