What is Good Truck for owner operator!

Discussion in 'Ask An Owner Operator' started by NewbieTruck, Jul 28, 2020.

  1. NewbieTruck

    NewbieTruck Bobtail Member

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    Hey Guys!
    I am looking to switch to Amazon Relay or Uber to do my authority. What Truck is good buy now? I am looking at 2015 or 2016 Frieghtliner. Maybe around 500k miles.
    also is the extended warranty from Tru-North is worth or not? I hear they have warranty comes with 4 years 1.2mill miles. Also will 400hp and 450hp? Will make big difference? Thank you guys. Appreciate your times.
     
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  3. abyliks

    abyliks Road Train Member

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    You would make more money driving a Prius to Walmart to work 8 hours then to pull amazon ####. There is no way I would buy a used emissions truck to begin with, or a useless 3rd party warranty
     
  4. Ridgeline

    Ridgeline Road Train Member

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    Are you a driver?
     
  5. 201

    201 Road Train Member

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    A Freightliner with 500K is a recipe for disaster. Usually trucks need a complete refurbishing at 500K, it's why the last owner got rid of it. I too would never buy a used emission truck, and a 5 year old Freightliner will be even more worthless when you are done with it. People rip on me, Freightliner folks, mostly, but I'm a firm believer in a Pete or KW as good sellers always. I'm out of touch as far as power, I seem to like the "million mile" Detroits, but that's up to you.
     
  6. NewbieTruck

    NewbieTruck Bobtail Member

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    Thank you. Your thoughts what I should do? I am right on budget. If you say Amazon is bad choice what are other better options for me than Amazon. I don’t want to buy trailer, since amazon loads are light and it has its own trailers.
     
  7. NewbieTruck

    NewbieTruck Bobtail Member

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    Yes, I drive for company now. I am driving 2017 Cascadia 125.
     
  8. NewbieTruck

    NewbieTruck Bobtail Member

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    Thank you very much. So what would you suggest I should buy? I drive company truck Cascadia 125. I have been hearing used Pete and KW very hard to get it fixed because of the busy dealers and cost is much higher than Frieghtliner. My question is if the truck goes to 1million miles, why 500k miles is disaster. Isn’t it gonna go another 500k with good care?
    thank you
     
    77fib77 Thanks this.
  9. NewbieTruck

    NewbieTruck Bobtail Member

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    Also Why do you think the 3rd party 4years up to 1.2million mile warranty is worthless? Tru- North is not good choice? In your opinion as an used truck what would you suggest. And I shouldn’t buy warranty? Thank you
     
  10. abyliks

    abyliks Road Train Member

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    If you are not buying a 2007 and down buy new, with a factory warranty that will actually cover breakdowns while you go broke waiting for your free repairs go get done, even though you will still go to the back of the line for repairs because cash is king, (~20k should be a good number to have saved for a newer truck, used to be 10-15 with the older stuff that was cheaper) a million mile freightliner is flat out whooped, and parts for newer trucks are 5x the price of the old ones, I can do an inframe on my n14 for almost what an exhaust filter costs on a new one. KW is one of the best parts networks we deal with, we can still get a blower motor for my uncles 1976 from them. Pete laughes at us when we call in for the 1989, but after some searching, they do usually have it, then you don’t have to take half the truck apart to work in it

    you are leaving a lot of money on the table by not having your own wagon, Start looking in your area for better choices, last I knew amazon was paying like $1.60 a mile, almost what it cost to run the truck down the road
     
    Dino soar, Brettj3876, Coffey and 3 others Thank this.
  11. Vampire

    Vampire Medium Load Member

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    If you are looking to go wholly independent, do some research here and you will find your answers regarding load boards, rates and basically everything else you need to know. There are so many awesome people here with truckloads of experience.

    Amazon's rates are in the gutter. Join OOIDA, as they too offer help regarding starting your own authority.

    The other option is to lease on to a carrier. Which can be a good start before going out on your own Authority.

    Have you written a business plan? Do you have at least 60K - 70K saved up?

    • What are your financials like? How much do you have saved up in order to start your business? Will you have truck payments, or will you be going in with no overhead?
    • What freight are you planning on hauling? Which will lead to the next question
    • How are you going to spec your rig? Remember, versatility helps when rates change between different freight.
    • How much will your insurance be? Have you gotten any quotes?
    • Retirement account, health benefits/insurance? Ensure you have coverage if you are out of work
    • Maintenance account
    • Budget for an Accountant and Attorney for taxes and legal work
    • Will you factor your loads?
    • Where are you looking to travel? You can have a fuel efficient truck, but that goes out the window when you are pulling hills with an under-powered rig.
    • Do you have any potential accounts lined up for work? Most people will promise you the world. Read everything, don't count on anything and believe it only when a contract is signed.
    Do you own a home that is paid off? Being debt free or close to it will help tremendously regarding your quality of life, stress levels and home time if you have a family. Especially if you are laid up for any period of time or there is downtime due to rates that are in the gutter. If you are going to jump into this with major overhead and no savings, you are more prone to failure in this business. You should never run a business with mismatched assets and liabilities. I wish you the best of luck.
     
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