I am currently in the process of looking into becoming an O/O. I will not be getting my own authority (yet), rather I will be leasing with a company (still unsure as to exactly which one). I know most people just calculate the cost of fuel and truck payments into their cost per mile; however, I'd like mine to be a little more accurate. I am wondering what parts need to be serviced/replaced at certain intervals and how much they cost? Tires: Brake Pads/Drums: In-Frame: Turbo: Etc... Basically, what I am going to do is, for example: Tires: last for 150K miles and cost $3,000. so that works out to $.02/mile that it wears down the tires. Any help will be greatly appreciated. Thanks and Drive Safe. Iceman
Regular maintance; Oil change 200-350 depending where serviced belts 100 and up Batteries every 2 years about 550 Front shocks every 200,000 miles maybe 200-300 Brakes depends all wheels and drums depends on whereand how you drive. If you are going to lease, try and get a truck with a warranty. If not you're playing with fire and really need a cash reserve of $10,000 to cover repairs....it can add up fast. Don't worry about the break down of maintance costs so much as How much is the payment? How much is the insurance? You've also got some hidden charges IFTA is anywhere from 400-500 a month. Most important of all is to keep rollin. need 3000 a week as a leasee to make it. everything else is irrelevent if you can't get the miles. Starter could go whenever # $550 and up. Try and buy the truck, leasing is expensive. You have no equity until lease is completed if its a lease to own. Straight lease...no equity at all. Good luck Chefbob
Chef, Thanks for the input. Maybe I didn't make myself clear. I have absolutelt ZERO intention of leasing from a company. No thank you! I did the math there and paying over $80K in 2 years and still having a balloon payment...just doesn't make sense to me. I intend to buy my truck at a dealership and then lease on with a company so they pay for plates and everything while I get started.
Seems your buying fuel based on pump price only. Not net fuel cost. The fuel taxes will be the same no matter what you do. Based on miles and the jurisdiction. The pump price less taxes will gives the net fuel cost. Take NJ and PA, pump price in PA is usually $.10 or so per gallon more than NJ. PA price has$.385 taxes and NJ is $.16. So net is that NJ fuel is about $.12 per gallon more than PA. Buy PA fuel and drive in NJ, get $.22 taxes to be used else where. Buy NJ fuel and drive in PA, and you pay$.22 per gallon plus the $.10 higher net fuel cost.
I just figure my mpg vs the amout of miles driven per state and try to buy enough fuel in each state to cover the miles. Works out well for me. 1200.00 is absolutly crazy and you need to figure your IFTA on a better system.
I'll add my .02 here as well (as somebody who is and has been leased to a company for almost 10 years, (April will be 10)). The IFTA this has been covered already but, $400 per month. You need to do a better job of spreading out your fuel buying. Really depends on where you run most of the time. Mine is calculated monthly by the company and it usually runs about $60-$70 or so on average. But I run mostly I35 east and Pa,Il,NY,Fl are all "good" states to buy in. (especially New York, if you run the thruway those toll miles offset your monthly bill). Tires, if you are spending 3k a year on tires, you are doing something wrong. Steers once a year or so, drives you should get at least two years out of. Stick a gauge on them at least once a week (not just thumping them) and rotate them you should be fine. Maint and Repair, try to do as much as you can while at home and on your off time. Oil changes are 200-300 as chefbob said, depending on what you get done and where you get it done. Repairs, that is a crap shoot. My last truck had over 970k miles when I got rid of it and I had very few issues with it (didn't replace the clutch until 900k miles) and others have had issues start the day after they drove it off the lot. You just never know. Number of miles or money you will need each week. That is pretty simple. It depends on how much you make per mile and what the payment is, plus your insurance. Obviously a used truck will have cheeper payments and lower ins, but, possibly higher maint and repair. Or you could get lucky and the truck might never see the shop except for reg sched maint. (my last truck 970k miles, never blew a wheel seal, current truck lost a wheel seal at 102k miles you just never know) Everybody out here is different. How much and how many money and miles I need per week is different then everybody else. So take the "you will need x number of dollars or x number of miles per week to make it" quotes with a grain of salt. As that may be what they need and not you. Also, and this will probably put some people's noses out of joint, but too bad. But look at who is offering advice, do yo really want to be taking advice from a "wanna be", "student" or one year company driver? Nothing against them, but they just don't have the knowledge to give accurate info. (listing on the cb or overhearing a conversation at a t/s does not count). If I were you, I would gravitate to successful o/o's (and not the ones who are constantly whining and complaining all the time either) and try and tap some of their knowledge. bueno suerte
Go to OOIDA.com, locate and click on education and business tools, then click on trucking tools, then click on cost per mile, scroll to the bottom and download the completed spreadsheet. It has everything you need already built into it.
