IN THE NEWS


Just keep it clean please....

Golden Jubilee
Golden Jubilee

Posts: 1437

Joined: Fri Nov 30, 2012 6:32 am

Location: Minnesota

Post Mon Oct 19, 2020 8:51 am

IN THE NEWS

Golden Jubilee
Golden Jubilee

Posts: 5170

Joined: Thu Nov 29, 2012 9:28 pm

Location: Lyman, IA

Post Mon Oct 19, 2020 9:20 am

Re: IN THE NEWS

As much as I like and am proud of my IHC's from the late 80's, the truck company today is a far cry from what it was then. Jack Hebe destroyed Freightliner by trying to make them the cheapest truck on the market, when they finely got rid of him, IHC hired him to do the same at Navistar. Until the 90's both companies built tough, no frills trucks that served the corporate fleet and OO market. They never had the "flash" of Pete, KW, Marmon, but were were known as a step ahead of Ford, GMC and White. Ford was the best of the "big three" in heavy trucks, with the possible exception of the aborted Big Horn Dodge, which never got a chance.
Today's trucks are all plastic and wire, I doubt you'll see any on the road earning their keep, 18 years on, never mind 30-40 years like the trucks of the 80's and early 90's.
Fleets buy or lease trucks to be replaced every 3-5 years when depreciated on the tax ledger. Gone are the days when some fleets were on the road for decades. CF, Roadway, Sweetheart bakeries, among many kept and recycled their fleet with glider kits, for years. Now YRC leases all their equipment, and most other big "flags" are gone.
I pity the younger operator who has to plunk down $180K on a new tractor with the expectation that they will be able keep it for 10, 20 or 30 years, making it a good investment.
If new trucks only last or are feasible to keep running for 5, 8 or 10 years, the value in used market drops precipitously. It is why the older Cabovers are showing up restored on the road, where a few years ago they were all but gone. Have a late 70's or 80's conventional in fair to good shape, and you are sitting on gold!
By the late 70's components (trans, axles etc) where advanced enough and comforts like A/C and air ride suspension where common enough to make these years still viable today.

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