Married Team OTR In Lightweight Truck?

I’ve been reading about lightweight trucks and that Prime is one of the main companies that utilizes them. Does anyone know which other companies run lightweights? Do they have similar incentive programs to Prime’s, where the drivers get a CPM bonus for driving a smaller tractor?

I have also read Miss Miyoshi’s Lightweight Truck thread along with a few others here. My wife and I share her interest in tiny houses and making do in small spaces. However, there seems to be a general opinion that the lightweights just don’t have an acceptable amount of space for team drivers – married team drivers in this case. I would like to know more about this because so far I have only seen opinion but no objective, regulatory, or company policy reasons why not. Is there more to it that I am missing? An example from what I’ve read is that teams driving for Prime are automatically provided a condo. But is it possible to request a lightweight if the team is willing to have reduced cabin space in exchange for the lightweight CPM bonus? Are there any teams here that have given lightweights a try? Based on Daniel B’s thread from a few years ago, lightweights are equipped for the possibility of team driving if the sleeper berth safety net is any indication. What about team driving without the passenger seat in order to make room for a fridge?

I have some videos of European trucks, one is with a Czech team driving. There isn’t much to translate in the video, but in the comments there are people talking about how much space they have, how massive their fridge/cooler is, and a little bit about how the team is messy.

The second video is more in-depth. Does anyone here know about Iwona Blecharczyk? She is driving in Canada now, but she used to drive in the EU. She had documented her experience along the way similarly to other YouTube trucking channels. Her videos are in Polish with English subtitles. She raves about how much space she has in this truck review. Compare that to Randee Lewis' video where he talks about how limited the space is in his new Freightliner Cascadia. The Cascadia looks so much bigger compared to the Mercedes!

I would have to admit that the European trucks would probably test even my limits regarding cramped space and long-term OTR team driving. My wife looked at them and said, “Yeah, if we drove in the EU, those trucks would be no problem for me!” Bless her heart! The American LW trucks look like they have acres more living space in comparison. They look doable for someone like me and my wife.

Having spent the past decade in Europe, we have gotten used to living in a 390 sq. ft. apartment that would be considered tiny compared to US living standards. Moving into a truck really doesn’t look like it would be much of a stretch. Looking back at American sizes and portions of all types, they seem positively luxurious.

I realize that I am just kicking tires at this point because we are nowhere near signing up with any company yet, and that we may not even receive an offer from any of our first choices for companies. But since I haven’t found much discussion regarding team driving these lightweights anywhere on the internet, I thought I would see what might come of posting the question here. I guess we could chalk it up to doing a bit of research well in advance.

Ill ask someone at prime tomorrow. i never heard anyone ask because the LW are tiny. keep in mind, Miss Myoshis was an international and even she did not want the cascadia LW because of less room. Prime is no longer buying internationals.

Team trucks are condos because at some point whether loading or a 34 hr break both people will wind up.in bed. the sleepers are twins, so not much room for 2 people. theres no cabinets so not much room for clothes for two people. but if you could.make it work, good for you. ill call tomorrow.

I've never been in a lightweight truck so I don't know how tight it would be. As a couple you could probably make the sleeping arrangements work. My wife and I both fit on the twin mattress in my condo, although it's admittedly kinda tight. We make it work.

As a team couple you will mostly be on different sleep schedules, so that shouldn't be a concern except during resets or other situations like Rainy said.

I'd be mostly concerned with the lack of storage space. That truck will be rolling nearly nonstop. Having enough food, clothes, boots, jackets, etc for two people will be a challenge.

But I suppose it's possible. The extra 5 cpm on a team's miles will add up quick.

I've never been in a lightweight truck so I don't know how tight it would be. As a couple you could probably make the sleeping arrangements work. My wife and I both fit on the twin mattress in my condo, although it's admittedly kinda tight. We make it work.

As a team couple you will mostly be on different sleep schedules, so that shouldn't be a concern except during resets or other situations like Rainy said.

I'd be mostly concerned with the lack of storage space. That truck will be rolling nearly nonstop. Having enough food, clothes, boots, jackets, etc for two people will be a challenge.

But I suppose it's possible. The extra 5 cpm on a team's miles will add up quick.

yeah, i was thinking about having TWO peoples stuff at the end of the bunk with 2 people in it.

seriously as a woman i have a ton of crap. the whole top.bunk is full right now hahahha

Ha yeah we have every available nook & cranny filled with something. I can't imagine doing it in a LW.

The mattress in a LW is smaller than the bottom bunk of a condo. It’s similar to the top bunk in a condo. That said, I’m 5’ 7” & it’s a tight fit even for me. Haven’t tried to do the hanging storage space like Miss Myoshi did in her LW. Maybe when I’m done paying off my debts after Jan 1st, I’ll give it a shot. Especially if I’m allow to switch divisions to intermodal.

I don’t know if it’ll be legal to remove the passenger seat for fridge & microwave space due to seatbelt laws. If one partner is driving, the other won’t have a way to strap in. One can’t lay under that net but for extended period of time.

Good luck on making it work. If you drive 100K miles, that’s an extra $5K in your pocket.

Thanks everyone for the replies so far.

 keep in mind, Miss Myoshis was an international and even she did not want the cascadia LW because of less room. Prime is no longer buying internationals.

Understood. I think if I had the choice between a smaller or larger lightweight in order to get the same CPM bonus, I would take the larger one too. But if not, no biggie as long as everything else works out.

My wife and I both fit on the twin mattress in my condo, although it's admittedly kinda tight. We make it work.

As a team couple you will mostly be on different sleep schedules, so that shouldn't be a concern except during resets or other situations like Rainy said.

I'd be mostly concerned with the lack of storage space.

My wife and I are similar. We took the mattress measurements that Daniel B gave in his thread and compared them to our current double mattress bed. Daniel's lightweight mattress is wider, but slightly shorter than one of our mattresses. It would be cozy, but we could likely make it work. We do like each other after all.

yeah, i was thinking about having TWO peoples stuff at the end of the bunk with 2 people in it. seriously as a woman i have a ton of crap. the whole top.bunk is full right now hahahha

My wife is a bit of a freak of nature. What woman has fewer than half the shoes her man does? Maybe I’m the freak rofl. I consider myself to be pretty minimalistic, but my wife often chooses to get by on even less than I do. Aside from the extra person and their clothing and extra food, what else would need to be doubled up in the truck?

We don't have or want a TV or gaming console. We haven't used a microwave in over ten years, though I can see the benefit of having one if living on a truck. Crock Pot and electric frying pan seem to be a pretty good way to go. A couple of small tablets during mutual downtime for internet browsing and reading. That's pretty much how we are already are when we get home from work.

I’m 5’ 7” & it’s a tight fit even for me. Haven’t tried to do the hanging storage space like Miss Myoshi did in her LW.

Hanging/vertical storage is the way to go. I suspect a lot of space could be utilized over the foot of the bed. We do a lot of that in the place we are living now. You should see what IKEA is like on the weekend. It’s nuts.

I don’t know if it’ll be legal to remove the passenger seat for fridge & microwave space due to seatbelt laws. If one partner is driving, the other won’t have a way to strap in. One can’t lay under that net but for extended period of time.

This is the money question. How does this work when there are more than two people on any truck? I see people talking about it. Teams going out with their trainer. The off-duty driver can’t be in the passenger seat for more than two hours without being required to be on duty not driving. The off-duty team driver is chilling in sleeper berth making YouTube videos. What are the actual laws on this point?

Pam at success leasing (who handles all truck assignments, lease and company drivers) said

"sure a husband and wife can team in a LW if they can stabd thise close quarters"

Pam at success leasing (who handles all truck assignments, lease and company drivers) said

"sure a husband and wife can team in a LW if they can stabd thise close quarters"

Cool! That's great to know! Thanks for calling them for us!

Absolutely. One thing i love about prime is that problems get solved and questions get answered.

If you have other company specific questions, post them on different threads to be sure drivers from those companies will see them.