Over the past sixteen years, I’ve operated Freightliner Trucks to run my business. A familiar comment from drivers has always been “Oh… a Freightliner, that’s just a fleet truck.” This statement in most cases is intended to get a reaction from me.


Let’s take a look at what it takes to be a “good” fleet truck. Company trucks demand the maximum amount of uptime, reliability, maximum fuel efficiency, and in general the lowest total cost of ownership. A fleet truck is often pushed to maximum maintenance intervals and is often passed from driver to driver during its lifetime on the road. This whole combination of circumstances makes a truck and its components survival a monumental task.


Now let’s look at a truck in the hands of an owner-operator driver. Typically, as the owner of a truck, he/she will usually take pride in this ownership. Maintenance intervals are not stretched to the limit. Basically, all areas of the truck are cared for to the highest degree and driven with care as this truck is the sole means of an owner operator’s business. An owner-operator will often opt for fancier options on their truck. Many of these extra items can be purchased on the initial order form to make a Freightliner as fancy and comfortable as any other truck on the road.


The statement “fleet truck” is the very reason why I’ve purchased and operated Freightliner trucks over the years. Any truck that can stand up to daily “fleet” demands can easily fit the requirements of an owner operator business operation with ease.






 

Comments (6)

Henry Albert

Henry Albert is the owner of Albert Transport, Inc., based in Statesville, NC. Before participating in the "Slice of Life" program, Albert drove a 2001 Freightliner Century Class S/Tâ„¢, and will use his Cascadia for general freight and a dry van trailer. Albert, who has been a trucker since 1983, was recognized by Overdrive as its 2007 Trucker of the Year.

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Fleet trucks might add to parts available.

October 01, 2013 18:26:12 PM

Our Cascadia costs us $0.21/mile less in maintenance and fuel than our 01 Classic.
We have had alot of maintenance in setting up this new truck since Jan this year but those are the numbers so far to date. Basically it pays for itself in savings.

October 01, 2013 8:22:07 AM

The second truck I drove for Milk-E-Way trucking was a used Freightliner COE that used to be a Weyerhaeuser "fleet" truck. That truck was very strong running and as comfortable as a COE truck can be. It never failed me!

The people that make comments like in your first paragraph are ignorant and have a chip on their shoulder. Re-education is what they need.

September 29, 2013 18:46:04 PM

As a rookie driver, the first truck I was put into by one of the "mega carriers" was a Freightliner Century. After the training phase, I was given a Freightliner Classic of my own and still remember the dependability and comfort of that truck. I have owned and driven other brands of trucks in the past and have found the parts, in comparison to Freightliner, hard to find in stock and more expensive when they were. Having a Freightliner not only means dependability when you are running, but also a network of readily available parts, if ever you are in need them!

September 29, 2013 8:41:50 AM

As an owner operator I struggle not to overmaintain my truck. My last truck called for an oil change every 45,000 miles and I did it every 20,000. Talking with the engineers-I found out that I was wasting money. Now-waiting 50,000 miles between oil changes seems like a long time-but I am getting them done on schedule now.

September 29, 2013 7:30:09 AM

When we first got into over the road trucking with a huge fleet the truck was a Freightliner. As you say the truck had been through many drivers in it's short life and was still dependable, rattle free, and comfortable. Some of the mega fleets are labeled training companies and that is exactly what those Freightliners go through the rookie driver learning how to drive a big rig.

September 28, 2013 16:25:48 PM