Time for Prime.....

I started at Prime about 6 months ago and I have to say that unless I bought my own truck and went local, I would go nowhere else! They told me just how it was going to be without any lies and kept to their word. I bring home anywhere between $1350 and $2100 but have to pay the taxes out of that of course. It is best to stay out 4 weeks at a time to stay in a good pay scale but you can go home as often as you can afford to. I talked to 20 drivers for Prime before I came over from another and all of them said the same thing, "I will never ever leave Prime and now I understand why. Bottom line is that your success depends on you. If you do not pull in these types of checks with Prime then it may be entirely your fault. If you feel it is your DM then you might want to consider firing him or her.

 

GOSH! Hwe sounds like the devil making it soooooo easy. Just wait, I owned a Pete, put $18,000 dn, made good money, Paid 400 ea for tires and bought my own trailer and paid 400 ea for lots more new tires. I dont run recaps due to being raised in the desert and having peeled a few. I ran up a $20000 fuel bil on my credit card. Paid $1100 a month for insurance and that was for the truck. Oh ya, You say you have a $700/wk pmt? What about the week you take off every month? You cant run 7 days a week for long. Lets see your average after a year and 5 years. Then what are you going to do when you pull in the shop and they say, You need a new engine!! I know all their tactics as I worked for one of their subsidiaries once. They are still crooks, just in sheeps clothing. I think you're a fool for going for the scam when you've been warned. I'll bet they busted 10000 people.Have fun watching your money go down the tube or you could just stop in Vegas and pour it in a slot machine.

 

Well goodness gracious, Im glad it's a walk away lease program.

And what does any O/O do when they "need a new engine"? They get one! Atleast the truck I'll be driving will have a powertrain warranty. I only have to worry about the overhead of the truck bills.

 

wonder what the warranties are for then

talk about low ballin someone jesus

 

Glad to hear your ok.


(come on 50 posts so I can pm)

 

Hey folks! Been reading the thread for a number of days now, and I'd like to chime in. I started with Prime in September as a C-seat with a shiny-new CDL. I'm finishing the 60k miles with my trainer in the next couple of weeks, and expect to be back in Springfield for my upgrade test to A-seat sometime in the next couple of weeks. So far Prime has been good to me, and I'll be happy to get my truck. I'll still have 20k as a company driver, and then I'll see about a lease.

On the training: Looks like the Prime course works out to something like three months for those of us with a CDL. Prime also runs a CDL school, if you can deal with no/low pay for awhile, and life in Springfield. I've run across guys with practically no experience driving their own trucks after a 10-day orientation. This group tends to struggle, being thrown in the deep end, so to speak. Personally, I like the training that Prime has given me, I'm a lot better and safer driver than I was. I've had mountain and winter experience, and driven safely through the recent ice storms, while marveling at the truck wreckage I've been passing. Thumbs up on training!

On trainers: I've been with mine since the start - he's ok. Good driver, who has shown me alot. He's a younger guy, and sometimes difficult to deal with. I ran across three guys I went through orientation with back in the Sprinfield terminal last week. One hates is trainer, but is jazzed about upgrading to A-seat shortly. Another (flatbedder) just got his truck, and went through with the same trainer all the way. The third has had three trainers: the first couldn't deal with sleeping in a team environment, and went back to solo. The second was a pig, and my guy couldn't deal with life in the truck with him. He's really happy with the third guy, and should finish his 60k in a few days. Point is, if you are unhappy with your trainer, contact your fleet manager, and get something done about it.

On fleet managers: AKA, the dispatcher. You live or die by this guy, he can make or break your bank account. Steve and Lo have a good one - I have some reservations about ours. You can change dispatchers... so keep that in mind. As a company driver, I'll be concerned about dispatched miles. As a leased operator, the folks on the thread are absolutely correct, it's all about revenue.

On the Freight-Shaker: Prime runs them because of fuel economy, and the guys in the shop say they have less trouble keeping them running. As a lease operator (especially ACE II) you can pick and choose your truck. I'm a bottom-line guy, so as much as I like the style of a flat-nose Pete, I'm liable to go with a Freight-Shaker. Plastic trim and nets or not!

On the whole, I'd say Prime is the way to go!!
ironpony

 

Prime will give you the tools, all you have to do is use them!!!! Alot of lazy old timers with attitudes cant handle the fact that competition and jealously hurts. Find what works for you and make it work! DRIVE SAFE

 

Do the prime drivers pay for the reefer fuel?

 

Prime pays for reefer fuel. Most of this information is on their site. It's just poorly designed and difficult to navigate through.

 

I hear ya on that, I tried to find it. There site is funny, you'll click a link and find a page that dates on it from 2002.