Seeking Advice Regarding First Purchase Of Truck

Hello,

I am currently a truck driver out of Quebec City, Canada. I've been driving for 1.5 years and all I've ever driven is an automatic 2018/2019 Volvo VNL 760 and Freightliner Cascadia. I am looking to purchase my own truck and am seeking advice before diving in.

In preparation of purchasing my own truck I asked my company to drive their older manual trucks and so for 2 weeks now I've been driving a 2013 Freightliner Cascadia with approximately 600k miles on it (approx what I was looking to buy). Here's a few of the things I noticed (lots of rattle all over the place, truly lives up to the Freightshaker moniker) 1. Grinding rattle from under the gear shifter (gets very loud when accelerating or going up hill) 2. Small random rattle from inside the console (sometimes present even when idling) 3. Multiple rattles from the cabinets in the back (have to hit, pull, punch them before they'll let you sleep at night)

I've spoken to my company about the noises but they say its all cosmetic, none of the noises are symptomatic of a deeper issue and there is nothing they can do to fix it.

My question to people who own this truck or a similar model of a similar condition, is this a common thing among all Freightliners or have I just got a lemon here. Is there a way to solve the issue in case it pops up in my own truck?

Secondly, could you please look over my approximate monthly revenue and expenses break down and see if I'm missing anything here;

Insurance and plate fees will be covered by the carrier Revenue: $14,560 Expenses; Fuel: $4600 Oil Change: $250 Tires: $150 Truck Payment: $1700 Misc: $300 Monthly Pre-tax income: $7560

P.S all the dollar amounts are in Canadian Dollar.

Here is an example of the kind of truck I am looking to buy 2014 FREIGHTLINER CASCADIA CA125SLP Highway Tractor # STOCK: C-27436

THE VEHICLES ARE LOCATED AT: 609 PRINCIPALE, SAINT-PAUL-DE L’ÎLE-AUX-NOIX, QUÉBEC, J0J 1G0

Engine: DETROIT DD-15 Liters: 14.8 litre HP: 505 hp @ 2100 rpm Odometer: 880,322 KM Transmission: EATON-FULLER RTLO-18913A Speeds: 13 Front axle: 13,300 Rear axle: 40,000 GVWR: 52,350 lbs Suspension: AIRLINER Tires: 11R22.5 / 11R22.5 Wheels: ALUMINIUM / ALUMINIUM Brakes: AIR Wheelbase: 232 “ CA: 88 “ Spead: 52 “ Frame: SIMPLE

Thank you.

Welcome to Trucking Red!

First off, this web site focuses on getting brand new drivers up to speed in their new career. Second, TT doesn't generally recommend owning a truck in the first place.

Two reasons come to my mind right off the bat:

You are investing your capital (your own money) in a $60 - 150,000 machine when a company will let you drive theirs "for free". You will be responsible for everything from windshield wipers to clutches. (A secret: companies buy new trucks, then sell them when upkeep costs start to hurt the money-making of that truck.)

And in doing your research, you have listed many other things a company driver doesn't have to worry about. I'll put all that into one word: headaches.

So my suggestion is to be a company driver and let the company take care of their equipment. Overall, an O/O's and a company driver's bottom line will not be very far apart.

Hello.

Our advice would be to not buy a truck. We are here to help and encourage students and new drivers become productive truck drivers.

There are owner op forums you can find to help you. But i honestly believe if you need to come to a forum and advice on buying a truck instead of a mechanic...and posting figures to determine the whether the revenue vs costs is worth it, maybe you arent ready to own.

Good luck

Red, we just don't advise truck ownership for a lot of reasons. I will say this, I'm not familiar with Canadian dollars, but I'd be reallly nervous about my ability to succeed here in the states if $14,560.00 was my projected monthly revenues. That sounds really tight. I generally produce twice that as a company driver. I'm not so sure you've got your expenses covered either. I think they will exceed what you've listed.

I suggest you join OOIDA. They can help you formulate a better business plan or give you some help and advice.

Why on earth would anyone buy a truck with almost ONE MILLION MILES, for any price. That sucker has been fully depriciated by prior owners at least 2 and probably 3 times. Please don't reply with, " these trucks will go for THREE MILLION MILES crap". Yes they will, by continually throwing tens of thousands of dollars into a worn out POS RATTLETRAP that is worth less than $20,000 to start with!

Whew.......now I feel better!

I drove one of our trucks that have 850k miles in it and yes it rattles in the same spots you mentioned with the exception of the sleeper since it was a day cab.

And although this site really is not geared toward owner ops, I think your numbers are way too low especially income. I would strongly suggest to reconsider buying a truck.

Hi red,

Hrm,

I would recommend buying a truck with a warranty on it instead of gambling on an older one.

I would say one of the most important thing is how much you have in your savings after you buy the truck.

I owned equipment when I was in construction. Skid steer, dump truck, trailers, etc. I still own a skid steer because it is so versatile But all this equipment was expensive to own and maintain. Now I drive company equipment and all the worries and expenses are not mine anymore. Owner operator and even lease operator is highly overrated in my opinion.

I would say one of the most important thing is how much you have in your savings after you buy the truck.

That's a great point Sid - very wise advice!