What to look for when specking a truck for a general freight?

From what I hear from the local wabash dealer today is that no trailers until 2023 and that they are going to build more vans then reefers next year. I’m going to chat with my other sales person in Cali and see what he says.

KW dealer says my two trucks built last week will be delayed 30 days so that sucks. They are built but still delayed. Smh.

I went ahead and put my name on two more for next March but he said those may get pushed out 4 months as KW is pushing 10k trucks to next year. However, he said some build dates actually get moved up for no rhyme or reason.

Sounds like a complete cluster #### all around. Said he’d call me in two weeks as things become more clear.

 

it’s also how you prematurely wear out trying to take off loaded, never mind what the bottom end will look like after a few years of “idling” along, whether you turn the diff or the drive shaft more, any savings by running in 11th will be off set by the useless rears

tripping over dollars to pick up pennies

depending on what you want for rubber, 3.25-3.36 with low pro 22.5 should let you cruise in 8 direct then use the big hole for empty/the hammer lane, I’ve heard good things on the new x15s, too new for anything I would own though. If you plan on flipping it every few years you may want to spec for a higher resale, flat bed or van is still only 80k, nothing special, not like you are hooking to something weighing 100k+

 

The torque curve of the X15 is pretty flat from 1000 to about 1450 rpm. Setting it up to run the speed you want at 13-1400 would be the most economical.

 

Wow. We're gonna have some real big problems in this country when the non emissions trucks are outlawed and no one can get new equipment because no OEMs can make it fast enough. Big problems. And guess who's holding the bag? Yep, us in the middle as usual.

It's all fun and games until the store shelves are bare.

 

Here's what I did.

Engine make and model? Monkey method. I follow several peers on various social media whom I believe are credible. I watch the ones that are having the most success and least problems with their choice. Of course that will depend on who exactly you're following. In my case, the lead was with Volvo/Mack, followed closely by Freightliner. Past negative experiences with the dealers of the latter ruled them completely out for me. Too many sad breakdown stories from Paccar owners, so not even in the running. Not enough info on other brands, and I don't particularly like their cab construction or layout, so not considered either.

Then settle on the choice within that platform. My mindset is get as much power as possible then plan not to use all of it most of the time. Mack was the value choice for me, and I am sold on the new turbo compounding setup. So that leads to the MP8HE 445/1850.

Tire size low-pro 22.5 because they are the most plentiful when you need one.

Transmission type is next. I am also sold on the benefits of automated manuals. I was already a big fan of Volvo iDrive over others just from rental units I've driven. Mack mDrive is the same thing. The only choices just add deep reduction creeper gears that I don't need. Standard 12 speed is the one.

Drive axle ratio choice depends on tying optimum engine rpm with routine road speed. My engine choice has it's sweet spot at 900-1250 rpm. I got a performance analysis done for 65 and 70 mph. The 2.47 ratio nails it. 1069 rpm @ 65 mph, 1151 rpm at 70 mph.

Once you've optimized engine sweet spot to road speed, ideal fuel economy is also achieved there. That's not a value, it's a range. The exact number you get depends on trailer configuration, route, and so on.

I keep bringing up that performance analysis because it's packed full of predictive information. This is one of several charts for mine, and gives an idea of hill climbing performance. It's based on a gross combination weight of 60k, which is actually a little low for my operation. We're usually loaded at 65-80k. It was close enough for me to see my spec will be adequate for 99% of the routes we travel, but definitely won't win any races to the top of Moneagle, Fancy Gap, or Jellico. I can live with that, and experience shows it makes almost no difference in total trip time when this truck climbs a hill 5-10 mph slower than my old KW. The remarkable thing is that the new Anthem chugs up the hill pulling just as hard at 900-1000 rpm (as it's designed to do) as the 15L CAT did at 1600. At first it just doesn't feel right, but you get used to it. These are the maximum grades in each gear where you won't lose speed while holding the throttle to the floor.

 

The simple answer is that all 4 on your list are tied together. And a decision about one item can affect the other three.

Look at how fleets spec their trucks and make adjustments for what you want. They’re set up to maximize fuel mileage with a brand new driver behind the wheel. If you use that for a starting point you can tweak the engine and how it’s tuned, same with an auto trans. Software controls it so that an inexperienced driver can’t destroy it.

 

They are tied together to a point. The buyer will set some priorities as I described. Something else will be more important to others. I also think a lot of buyers spend too much time hand wringing over differences that really don't matter all that much. Or apply experience with an older platform to spec something out that doesn't make sense on the new one. In my opinion, the sweet spot of whatever engine you choose and tire size dictates the rest. Anything deeper than that is either just some kind of one-off operation requirement, or lunch counter tale.

Fleets spec their trucks to run as inexpensively as possible. Probably the worst starting point, or at least less than ideal, for a one truck operation or very small fleet. It's not a truck, but I kind of ran into this with a trailer (reefer). I was talking to Great Dane and my salesman had one inbound for December delivery that the customer wasn't going to take delivery of. I looked it over and it was all fleet spec. The deal breaker was they spec'd kemlite liners. That stuff has been around since forever, but absolutely doesn't hold up like the newer steel core laminated products they offer. I opted to just wait until Q2 next year and get exactly what I want. For the fleet that ordered it, they probably have a stack of kemlite panels and a barrel of resin in their shop and a guy that works full time time patch it up. All for a lower cost of ownership, for them. In their case, the upcharge for puncture guard or thermo guard wasn't worth it.

I also disagree with generally negative opinion on automated transmissions and software controlled shifting. That it's just to keep rookies under control, or prevent them from tearing up the truck. Probably more true at one time, and still a feature. That said, when you own the truck you can set up the programming and limits however you want, even to the point of destruction if that's what you need. Going to my new Mack with the mDrive, I had my hesitations. I went with a balanced program (economy vs performance), permitted manual override and downshifting, and disabled the idle timer. Mine has the better shift control that has a power button to override the installed program and extend upshifts and so on. After driving it, I have not missed the 13 speed in my old KW. I tried the power button one time and all it did was really just make noise. There was a tiny power benefit but not enough to bother with. The mDrive shifts almost exactly as I would if doing it manually. Close enough it don't matter. The only time I've manual shifted it is in creeping traffic where I wanted it to hold a gear so I could move at super low speeds without unnecessary shifting and braking. May have been one or two times I bumped it down to 1st when pulling off on a steeper grade and I disagreed with it's choice of 2nd or 3rd. Otherwise, press D and go. I get it if you just like the feel of rowing gears and want a 13 or 18 speed. If that's you, just admit it. We'll all understand.

 

It took me a couple times to get used to getting a full, hard pull at 900 rpm when pulling out to pass for example. It is deceptively quiet, which is another feature of a brand new truck that hasn't already been beaten to death for decade and a million miles.

What you said about the fuel economy was almost my entire cost justification. When fuel costs me $3.25/gal, I am literally taking money away from EFS by purchasing less fuel then sending it to Mack as a monthly payment. That is my break even, not counting less repair and extended maintenance intervals. If fuel goes higher than $3.25, I am increasing my profit with the new truck versus the old one.

Regarding the programming: You can do anything you want. Mack supplied me a 40 page power point deck describing all the possible programming options. Half of them are features more suitable to something else. Dump trucks for example. Or tanker haulers that need to run a PTO driven pump. More options than you even thought you needed. Volvo and Mack have some configuration sets that cover a dozen or more parameters in a group, in order to simplify it. Then you can go into those and tweak some things if you want, but usually the package includes the best options for the desired group feature. I can also have those parameters changed over the air. Don't even need to take it to the dealer. The base package only includes a couple changes the first two years, but you can pay to get more. An example of someone that might do more changes would be a truck that goes in and out of Canada. Hit speed dial on your cell phone and get your max speed dialed down before you enter Canada, then call back and get it turned back up when you return, and never set foot in a dealer. I am sure the other brands offer similar options and features.

 

This is the reason I don't see why a lot of old truck guys don't upgrade. Not really meaning you Joe, meaning the guys feeding an old 5.5 mpg truck. With these new ones getting 8.5 you can literally pay the new monthly note in fuel savings alone with the added bonus of a warranty for a few years. I can get over round plastic edges vs. chrome square ones for this reason. It becomes a business decision, not a lifestyle decision.