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31,780.9 hours/1,003,867.2 miles


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I MISS MY TRUCK!!!!!!

So this rental truck is basically a standard "fleet spec" glider kit freightshaker. 435 HP/1450 ft lbs 60 series Detroit, 10 speed Eaton Fuller transmission, and who knows what gearing in the rears. The thing is as gutless as a truck can get...but it still had me feeling like a damn rookie trying to leave the yard with it. The shifter is located damn near behind me...even with my hip would be a generous way to describe it's location. The "towards the dash" gears (R, 2, 4, 7, 9) are farther from the dash than my "away from the dash" (LL/L, 2L/2H, 4L/4H, 6L/6H, 8L/8H) gears would be found. I've driven SPORTS CARS with a shorter throw between the gears. I'm trying to bobtail out of the yard and I slip it from 1st to 2nd, 2nd to 3rd, and when I tried going from 3rd to 4th I ended up back in 2nd THREE TIMES before I finally got it to slide over to 4th. This thing changes entire gears with less movement than my truck takes just to find neutral! The fact that my arm is uncomfortably stretched BEHIND me to find the shifter doesn't help. Then, with 50+ fewer ponies under the hood and lacking 200+ ft. lbs of torque than I'm used to, this thing jus has no "go" to it. The low range is fine...slips easily from one gear to the next....but then you've really got to wind it out in each gear or else you're lugging in the next. A 13 speed would make this thing SO much more driveable. Then, it's governed to 64.3 mph.

The 1st day I had it (Thursday), I went to the Mack dealer to retrieve my loaded trailer and then went what SHOULD have been 45 minutes up the road to deliver. Took me an hour to get there. Another hour to make it back (which again, should have been a 45 minute trip) to drop & hook for my load delivering Friday. Already not looking forward to driving this POS.

So Friday rolls around and I decided to just run the big road. This gutless wonder doesn't get up to speed very well, so no telling HOW much time it'll add to the trip taking the 2-lanes the whole way. I was just making it to Effingham (usually anoug 2.25 to 2.5 hours) 3 hours into my day. Going that route, I can usually be at the receiver in 3.5 hours. Taking the 2 lanes, usually in 4.5 (no scales that way...and I HATE interstates). It took me 4.5 hours to get there ON THE INTERSTATE!!! Coming back, my backhaul loaded right there along the 2-lane route, and since I'm paying by the mile for rental, I decided to take the 2 lanes back home. Loaded 30 minutes from where I had delivered....and it was another 5 hours to make it home. I can usually run the 2-lanes BOTH WAYS and keep my drive time between 9 and 9.5 hours. I was right at the 11 hour limit running the big road up and the 2-lanes back. PATHETIC!!!

Then, the thing just felt mushy. No feel for the road at all. Soft, cushy springs and A LOT of body roll/sway. Sure, you don't feel every bump...but if you can't feel what the truck is doing on the road, it's impossible to react to what needs reacting to and correct what needs being corrected. It is SUPPOSED to be a truck...so it SHOULD ride like a truck. If I wanted to "float", I'd get a boat. When I'm in a truck, I want it to ride like a truck.

I don't see how guys can do that...run an under-powered truck that is cut back that far down the interstate every single day. Can't (or at least SHOULDN'T) pass because you don't have the pedal to get it done quickly without blocking things up for everybody else. I told the wife if I EVER start considering selling my truck and being a company driver in a fleet-spec truck to smack me upside the head with a large, heavy object to knock some sense into me. In all honesty, I'd rather change oil & tires at Walmart than be stuck in that miserable existance. At least I have getting my own truck back to look forward to. With 485 HP/1660 ft lbs combined with the 18 speed and 4.17 rears, there isn't much that truck of mine CAN'T handle. If they can get their hands on the XT data file for me, it'll be that much better.

Anyway, if Hell is anything like this, I don't wanna go there...so if you're wanting to find me tomorrow morning, I'll be at church making sure my eternity doesn't involve a fleet-spec'd freightliner. :blink:

  • Like 2
When approaching a 4-way stop, the vehicle with the biggest tires has the right of way!

I may give this damn thing back to them after the 1 week the insurance is paying for just to preserve my sanity...depends upon if my truck is in the shop yet and wha tthe progniosis is. If I can give them their truck back next Friday and only miss 2-3 days of work, so be it. If it'll be another 2 weeks, I'm not sure what I'll do..but if I keep driving this thing for too long, I'll end up in the loony bin. :tease:

When approaching a 4-way stop, the vehicle with the biggest tires has the right of way!

HOPEFULLY this is the only hole punched. I ought to be able to weld a patch onto that while they are working on the internals...IF they ever get it into their shop. Deer season. Mechanics on vacation. Wonderful timing on my truck's part.

When approaching a 4-way stop, the vehicle with the biggest tires has the right of way!

Rowdy your truck looks like it should be parked next Yardos Haun, then you could compare oil loss! At least it poked a hole in the pan and not in the block! as for the freight shaker, well we have all drove them and that's what makes us grateful for what we own! hang in there, you will be staring at a dogs ass in a little while.

It hasn't made its way into the shop yet for a tear-down...and until it does, I'm still only HOPING there isn't anything else tore up. I'm going to be extremely lucky if patching the oil pan is the only thing needed beyond what would have otherwise been replaced during the overhaul.

As for the rental truck, I may give it back at the end of the week. It's kinda slow right now, and paying the daily rental just doesn't make sense. I can afford it for a week, because the insurance reimburses it. Beyond that, though, it's got to earn its keep...and if things don't pick up, it's looking like I'd just be breaking even with it if not for breakdown insurance covering the rental expense for the first week. If I'm only going to break even, I may as well not be wasting my time....got that Suburban to finish up along with plenty of other projects that I have all of the necessary parts & pieces just haven't had the time to work on...and my time would be better spent getting some of that stuff done as opposed to riding around in an underpowered, slow truck breaking even.

When approaching a 4-way stop, the vehicle with the biggest tires has the right of way!

But the $$$$ question is....what punched the hole in the oil pan?. Was it punched from the inside out (by internal part) or did you hit something on the road? Keep us posted.

Ken

PRR Country and Charter member of the "Mack Pack"

So that new Freightshaker is like driving a B model? LOL!!! Ya get there....but just not in a real big hurry.

Though my buddy was busting my chops the other week. Coming home from the last race I had a car giving me fits(was not going to let me finish passing) and I had to "wind'r out" a bit. I reached over and put the third stick in double boogie OD, gave her a Hail Mary and held on. Apparently I was doing north of 80 mph before I lifted and moved over in front of the car(per my buddy who was following me). Helps when it is level ground. Even a .00001% grade knocks the wind out of it.

Breaking even? Sounds like a better deal then most truck drivers I hear talk............. ;)

  • Like 2

IMG-20180116-202556-655.jpg

Larry

1959 B61 Liv'n Large......................

Charter member of the "MACK PACK"

 

Well, just got word that #4 cylinder came apart in spectacular fashion...piston sitting sideways in the cylinder, sleeve shattered, and the hole in the pan was likely shrapnel from the sleeve exploding. Block is junk, so I'm getting a ReMack engine...but without a core it adds around $4K to the cost. Anybody happen to have an E7 block laying around in the way that would work for a core for an '01? Came off the line June of 2000 if that matters...

I'll get pics tomorrow.

When approaching a 4-way stop, the vehicle with the biggest tires has the right of way!

I feel for ya Rowdy. The real question is how does that just happen? I don't think e7 pistons just break like that. Most people get an overhaul done because rings are shot and whatnot and losing oil. Sounds like something happened and caused a huge surge of oil pressure or something. I would be curious to know what can even cuase this. Hmmmmmmmmmm Keep us posted.

Slow and Steady Wins the Race!

Apparently it needs to be a complete motor that can be turned. If all I can wrangle up is a block, they can use my heads and loosely throw together the internals to make it pass. I'll have 30 days from when the new motor arrives (or perhaps is ordered...not sure) to have the core returned, so I've got a LITTLE time to try to come up with something. E7-460 is what was in there...so it would have to be a similar block.

When approaching a 4-way stop, the vehicle with the biggest tires has the right of way!
  • 4 weeks later...

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