Comments By Brian M.

Sorry I didn’t take pictures for you to see but I was so nervous I actually forgot. However, being a newbie at this, I was finally assigned our toughest delivery spot Friday.

It’s a place where you have to back into off the main highway. And it never fails that just as soon as you get twisted sideways in the road, traffic starts backing up making me even more nervous. Manage to get off the main road the first try and now you have to back about 150 yards all the way to the back of the building. However, you have cars parked on both sides of you the entire distance. You only have about a foot on either side to make small adjustments as you go back. Made it through this with no pull ups and then the dreaded last 20 yards. The last section is a small sight side twist into an immediate blind side twist. Sounds simple? No, because on your blind side is a drop off of about 80 feet straight down a hill. The driveway you are backing on is barely big enough for the tractor alone much less trying to twist around. Needless to say I took a GOAL to see how close my front end was from sliding over. Had about a foot to go. Nothing hit and nothing damaged. Might have been slow and ugly but I took that as a success. Hope I never go there again!

You'll be hard pressed to find anyone using 3.70 rears anymore that isn't doing heavy haul or some sort of dump, log or regional work where you're constantly in the hills. They're much too concerned with fuel costs and with your particular setup, it's definitely gonna be a dog on the hills.

We run basically the mountains here in southwest Virginia. We do have 2 other tractors that are running the 3.70 gears. Here is what stumps me and that is we have 2 other Freightliners with the Detroit engines with 10 speed trannys but 3.08 gears and they pull circles around my truck. Makes no sense to me but who I am? LOL Thanks again for the wisdom and insight!

Also forgot to mention that the running gears are 3.25.:1. If this had had a 13 speed manual instead of the 10 speed manual and 3.70:1 or higher would make a difference also. Thanks everyone! I thought it was something I was not doing.

Brian, that's life in a governed truck. We all experience it. These governed trucks simply can't get enough fuel when climbing a mountain, so... going 25 mph uphill is something you just have to get accustomed to.

You aren't doing anything wrong.

Old School, thanks! While at the shop, we turned the speed up to 75 but I asked to adjust the torque and horsepower up also which they said they couldn’t till they talked to Freightliner. Our tractors are leased from Ryder so they are supposed to come down this week and meet with us to see if many some other adjustments can be made either with the torques, horsepower, and even something with the turbo.

I’m driving a 2020 Freightliner Cascadia with Detroit Engine and 10 speed Eaton transmission. I can’t seem to make this tractor pull hills right when loaded. It came with progressive shifting which I immediately had turned off. If I let this thing drop below 1400 rpms when pulling it falls flat on its face. The power band seems to come in at 1350 and stays till 1750ish.

Took to shop and talk to mechanic and he showed me that most torque is seen at 1050 rpm so took tractor back out empty and let it lug down on hill to 1050 and floored the fuel to it and it fell flat on its face again. He explained to me that the newer tractors don’t run like the older ones where you have to stay in them. So what am I doing wrong? Tips? Advice? Anything? Thanks!

We have 2 companies that we deliver to that are separated by a 13’2” underpass but are only about 5 miles apart but because of this underpass we have to deliver to one and then drive about 20 miles through back roads to get around just to get to the other. Those 20 miles take about an extra 45 min even though they are close together.

Since I’m still a newbie and since this is a crazy question; but does anyone else get nervous when they approach and go under a low underpass? I had to go under a 13’7” and a 13’8” today and I’m telling you my butt got so tight that I think I ripped the seat cover. Anyone had a similar experience?

That will be about 6000 miles each trip. They might have the ELDs installed by then

As most of you know there have been a lot of troubles where I drive. After my run this evening, I was called into the supervisors office for a meeting. Not sure where this was go I was just about ready for anything. However, when I thought I was ready for anything I was floored. I was told I was chosen to make 2 trips to British Columbia in August. A total of 6000 miles. This can’t be real!

So if I understand correctly they are not running ELDs until Saturday?

Nope, not in the 3 newly leased tractors. Was told that Saturday was the earliest they could get the company out to install them. So now those drovers are running back roads avoiding scales. Just a matter of time before they get busted again.

How many trucks does this outfit have?

Very small company in regards to numbers. Just 5 tractors and 2 tandem straight trucks that run ELDs. They also have 2 more single axel straight trucks but they stay within the 100 air mile radius. One pickup and a display flatbed.