Truckers Report Jobs

Find Trucking Jobs

Company Driver Company Driver Dry Van Dry Van Flatbed Flatbed Refrigerated Refrigerated Specialized Specialized Owner Operator Owner Operator
More Trucking Job Searches ⌄ Fewer Trucking Job Searches
⌃

Taking the plunge. My journey as an O/O.

Discussion in 'Ask An Owner Operator' started by Farmerbob1, Jan 7, 2019.

Page 47 of 256
  1. May 25, 2019 #461
    Farmerbob1

    Farmerbob1 Road Train Member

    3,685
    5,791
    Jan 17, 2017
    0
    So I would need a separate block heater for cold weather operations, or is there a block heater included in the install for a Dynasis?
     
    Farmerbob1, May 25, 2019
    Farmerbob1, May 25, 2019
    #461
  2. Truckers Report Jobs

    Trucking Jobs in 30 seconds

    Every month 400 people find a job with the help of TruckersReport.

  3. May 25, 2019 #462
    Oscar the KW

    Oscar the KW Going Tarpless

    12,246
    28,115
    May 19, 2011
    0
    Putting an apu on a truck with 500k and then having it removed and installed on a different truck in the future is an extremely good way to waste a lot of money.

    Apu’s are a nice luxury to have. Between the outrageous purchase price, maintenance and the fuel use, they are not a very wise investment.
     
    Oscar the KW, May 25, 2019
    Oscar the KW, May 25, 2019
    #462
    Rideandrepair, Farmerbob1 and Midwest Trucker Thank this.
  4. May 25, 2019 #463
    Scooter Jones

    Scooter Jones Road Train Member

    9,551
    19,977
    Apr 19, 2011
    0
    This is a correct statement.

    When I worked on the inside, boss asked me to run numbers on installing, maintaining, etc., new apu's on his fleet trucks.

    It was a losing proposition for him. It just didn't pencil out in the long run.

    He just let the fleet idle. Most of the drivers were not frivilous in doing so. So, in toto, his fleet average was around 25% idling during warm mos and much lower during mild and winter mos.

    All his trucks had Webasto bunk heaters for winter use.
     
    Scooter Jones, May 25, 2019
    Scooter Jones, May 25, 2019
    #463
    Rideandrepair, Farmerbob1, Midwest Trucker and 1 other person Thank this.
  5. May 25, 2019 #464
    Midwest Trucker

    Midwest Trucker Road Train Member

    5,878
    21,147
    Aug 31, 2018
    0
    Thank you! Exactly what I do and how I feel about it. Everyone acted like I was an idiot in that other thread for not having an APU.
     
    Midwest Trucker, May 25, 2019
    Midwest Trucker, May 25, 2019
    #464
    Rideandrepair, Scooter Jones and Farmerbob1 Thank this.
  7. May 25, 2019 #465
    TallJoe

    TallJoe Road Train Member

    7,490
    16,271
    Apr 12, 2016
    Chicagoland
    0
    You mean new trucks without APUs? I thought it was a must have thing, even if you idle at a moderate level due to soot packing and DPF clogging being much more accelerated.
     
    TallJoe, May 25, 2019
    TallJoe, May 25, 2019
    #465
    Rideandrepair Thanks this.
  8. May 25, 2019 #466
    Midwest Trucker

    Midwest Trucker Road Train Member

    5,878
    21,147
    Aug 31, 2018
    0
    That seems to be what’s popular opinion on TTR. I don’t have APU’s on any of my trucks. I change the oil every 20k to keep soot in the engine down but as far as DPF I have extremely little to basically no problems. Bunk heater in the cold times, no idle in mild weather, and idle in the summer.
     
    Midwest Trucker, May 25, 2019
    Midwest Trucker, May 25, 2019
    #466
    Rideandrepair, zep1218, Farmerbob1 and 1 other person Thank this.
  9. May 25, 2019 #467
    Farmerbob1

    Farmerbob1 Road Train Member

    3,685
    5,791
    Jan 17, 2017
    0
    Well, turned the odometer to 500k today.

    I also drove from Victorville, CA to Flagstaff, AZ today, (short day, load was not ready at shipper when I arrived.)

    Replacing that one-box had a definite and immediate result, measured in power and fuel mileage.

    I averaged 6.8 MPG with 36k in the box, and I only needed to drop to a lower gear for climbing a few times.

    This is in addition to the change in power and mileage I got from the recent valve adjustment, which got me from @6.2 to @6.5 mpg.

    I was running at nearly 9 MPG in the high desert on flat ground.

    I will keep an eye on it, but I suspect that my overall fuel mileage is going to get back to around 7 MPG over all miles once I get through a few thousand miles of mostly-flat terrain.

    As for the APU, I suspect that I am going to simply keep the truck as an opti-idle truck. Mostly because I do not think I am going to keep this truck for more than 150k or so more miles, leaving 50k warrantee miles for the next owner. As an ex-mega-company truck, I won't get any sort of nice resale value for it.

    As was mentioned by someone else earlier, a dealer might offer me enough as part of a trade to be worth not turning it into an RV.

    So, after winter fuel went away I gained about .2 MPG. Valve adjustment gave me another .3 MPG, and it seems as if i might get at least another .3 MPG from the one-box replacement.

    Overall, I am looking forward to the next few months, to see how I can do in the second quarter of this year.
     
    Farmerbob1, May 25, 2019
    Farmerbob1, May 25, 2019
    #467
    Rideandrepair, dwells40 and JonJon78 Thank this.
  10. May 25, 2019 #468
    JonJon78

    JonJon78 Road Train Member

    7,141
    38,762
    Jul 1, 2018
    0
    No block heater. I had a plug in block heater installed a couple years ago and have used it one time...

    Never have any issues with the truck starting in cold weather.
     
    JonJon78, May 25, 2019
    JonJon78, May 25, 2019
    #468
    Rideandrepair and Farmerbob1 Thank this.
  11. May 25, 2019 #469
    JonJon78

    JonJon78 Road Train Member

    7,141
    38,762
    Jul 1, 2018
    0
    You trade your trucks in right around when the warranty is going to be up right?
     
    JonJon78, May 25, 2019
    JonJon78, May 25, 2019
    #469
    Rideandrepair and Farmerbob1 Thank this.
  12. May 25, 2019 #470
    snowwy

    snowwy Road Train Member

    20,537
    13,274
    Jul 6, 2009
    0
    That's probably why most megas if not all trade their trucks in every 3 years.

    My last company was doing the 3 year deal through england. After he decided it was cheaper to lease new then keep his old falling apart fleet.
     
    snowwy, May 25, 2019
    snowwy, May 25, 2019
    #470
    Rideandrepair Thanks this.
  • Truckers Report Jobs

    Trucking Jobs in 30 seconds

    Every month 400 people find a job with the help of TruckersReport.

    • Page 47 of 256