Which Fleet to buy a truck from?

The reason that fleets have a specific trade-in cycle is so they can get away with an absolute minimum of maintenance. I worked for Penske Truck Leasing, they know they are getting rid of it at 450k-550k miles, so they do oil changes and grease jobs at 25k intervals and only fix other stuff when the customer complained.
All large fleets operate with a similar business model. Knowing that it almost doesn't matter where you get the truck. Do your due diligence on a vehicle speced according to your needs, inspect it for obvious damage/abuse, look at any records available including ecm records. Make a choice but BUY IT CHEAP. There are plenty of these things to go around, don't let a detailed interior and shiny wheels with virgin Chinese tires fool you. The money you save buying it right will be used for the inevitable repairs down the road.
Good luck. That is one of the variables here.

 

Umm I bought a 06 century about 2 years ago from sni and I paid 18k with 589k miles, I was just offered 30k for it, even after rebuilding transmission (2k) and all New tires I would still make a profit, my truck is a work truck .make money so I can enjoy it with those who matter the most!, buying a used truck is a risk that I took, inspect trucks inside and out until you find the right for you!

 

with virgin Chinese tires Sorry but that's not what was on the trucks my son bought from PRIME after being around trucking and trucks all his life he knows better and also knows how to check out trucks , he happy with what he bought and makes $ with them.

 

most fleets do not change oil often 40,000 miles or more,,had 2 friends who bough Werner trucks and both had to go into the motor with in a couple months, I generally would advise avoiding big fleet trucks,,Walmart sells theirs at Ritchie bros auction they probabily do better than most,, Get a cummins, with a 13 spd, buy a peterbuilt avois Freightliners they have no resale value .Don't expect to turn up a low HP engine,many can not be turned up because internal parts are made for low HP,,many 9spds can be converted to 13spds too,,good luck it is a crap shoot,,also avoid Volvo

 

Before you buy the truck, What are you going to do with it? Don't buy a condo to pull a tanker or flat and do not buy a flat roof sleeper if you plan to pull a reefer or dry van. Different areas of the country may change your horsepower requirements and transmisson / rear differential choices.

 

I'm with the Hawk, put your money on the fat gal. Bigger fleets are changing fluids at the top end of the recommendation and don't think twice about going over to make a load / week. TMC, Altom and Dillon ( Chicago ) are worth a look IMO. I like Weiner man and Prime in #2 spot.

And if it were me, all the cash and time in the world ? Fitzgerald glider, 505 Yamaha and a fresh 18 with 3.70's.

JMO

 

Ritchie bros The trucks sold at their auctions ( as with most auctions ) are sold AS IS / WHERE IS so expect to spend some $ right out the gate to get a safety and repairs required to get them on the road, not always the bargain that some keep harping on !

 

Woo Chinese virgins. What a selling point.

 

-Buy from companies that was pulling light loads on flat roads, south- south east; Texas to Florida the best;
-Stay away from trucks operating north on roads covered with salt and deicing chemicals few month/year; my 2008 truck frame is a mess in 7 years through Canada, need to paint it;
-stay away from truck operating especially heavy/ reefers west states, CA,WA,OR,MT,UT,NV,ID WY,CO,BC mountains and heavy loads are overheating and wearing premature the moving parts; I busted 2 motors pulling reefer on I-80 in Utah,Nevada;

 

Tough to buy a fleet truck, you can find a decent one but not on any consistent basis. You gotta hope not too many Hands have been in there.