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tranten posted:Any Southern California drivers? Swift Office Employee Post Incoming: We've got a lot of work in the SoCal/SW region of the US. If you came on as company driver you might not get home time EVERY weekend but it certainly wouldn't be difficult for anyone to keep you bouncing around between California Nevada Arizona and New Mexico. If you want to be home every day though then I would suggest not working for us or leasing your own truck.
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May 11, 2014 20:16
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I was driving to South Carolina from New Jersey this weekend, and after staring at a ton of truck-butt, I wondered: Why do trucks & trailers still use drum brakes?
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May 11, 2014 21:44
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PainterofCrap posted:I was driving to South Carolina from New Jersey this weekend, and after staring at a ton of truck-butt, I wondered: Cost. Engine retarders and no fluid to boil mean major brake fade issues are nonexistant in all but the hairiest of mountain roads, and since 90% of foundations take the same drums/shoes, most shoes are relined and volume dictates price, poo poo costs basically nothing but labor to replace (parts on a standard assembly are under $200 per wheel end at retail pricing for drum, shoes and spring/roller kit, if you get the good brand-name stuff) Discs are starting to come into the fold, and as they become more popular they will be cheaper to maintain because there's fuckall for labor in a pad swap so they'll snowball that way pretty quickly in the next decade or two. But there's a lot of market inertia involved too since there are millions upon millions of vehicles with 3600A drums and Q+ shoes.
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May 11, 2014 22:15
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All of our newer Kenworth trucks and our trailers are equipped with air over disc. Only issue is the pods hang down pretty low into the mud. When our trucks get pulled by dozers I could see a potential for damage.
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May 11, 2014 22:42
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My wife and I are driving from sacramento to Portland 5x a week, entering our second month of it. Before we started all we heard from the terminal manager we transferred to was "oh yeah the team we had before you was routinely getting home on Saturday around 10am-12pm" which we didn't believe but thought maybe they do a swap later in the week. To no one's surprise, nope! Managed to get them to swap twice in two months. We actually can do it so we are getting to each yard by 11:30pm to 12:30am but it requires no delays anywhere. And speeding, did I mention speeding? Aside from mountains my cruise doesn't come off 63. E logs oddly enough help with this, as my wife got a level 1 inspection in cottonwood and the dot officer said "I see your on elogs, no need to look at that." Bright side I guess is that in 9th gear we don't have to use more then the Jakes when grossed out down any of the grades north or south. The scenery is also absolutely stunning.
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May 17, 2014 10:25
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New Kenworth is overweight on the steers with an empty trailer. 5th wheel hinge pin sitting centre between axles. What the gently caress.
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May 17, 2014 14:49
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jonathan posted:New Kenworth is overweight on the steers with an empty trailer. 5th wheel hinge pin sitting centre between axles. Too much poo poo hanging off the engine anymore. Remember when I picked up that brand new Volvo 670 with the piss-tank? Fucker was the same way.
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May 17, 2014 18:08
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InterceptorV8 posted:Too much poo poo hanging off the engine anymore. Remember when I picked up that brand new Volvo 670 with the piss-tank? Fucker was the same way. Please don't call them piss-tanks. It's a fun nickname but it also perpetuates a myth that causes stranded drivers to try a thing that doesn't work and also causes mechanics to have a really bad day. Also creates confusion with the (admittedly very rare) case that a truck has onboard actual black water storage. Turbo Fondant fucked around with this message at 19:03 on May 17, 2014 |
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May 17, 2014 19:00
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Tommychu posted:Please don't call them piss-tanks. It's a fun nickname but it also perpetuates a myth that causes stranded drivers to try a thing that doesn't work and also causes mechanics to have a really bad day. Also creates confusion with the (admittedly very rare) case that a truck has onboard actual black water storage. Does this not amuse you? Honestly I don't know why companies get all bent out of shape when it comes to guys having an extra gallon or two of DEF onboard.
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May 17, 2014 19:12
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Shadokin posted:My wife and I are driving from sacramento to Portland 5x a week, entering our second month of it. Before we started all we heard from the terminal manager we transferred to was "oh yeah the team we had before you was routinely getting home on Saturday around 10am-12pm" which we didn't believe but thought maybe they do a swap later in the week. Depends on how they are running you, but the company is most likely on the hook for any log speeding issues now. So you running straight up 5 or are you running the ridge and coming down....58?
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May 17, 2014 19:18
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Tommychu posted:Please don't call them piss-tanks. It's a fun nickname but it also perpetuates a myth that causes stranded drivers to try a thing that doesn't work and also causes mechanics to have a really bad day. Also creates confusion with the (admittedly very rare) case that a truck has onboard actual black water storage. Conversely please don't burden us with trucks that will poo poo themselves if they run out of a non-essential fluid. Or bring us the people who mandated that poo poo so we can pee on THEM.
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May 17, 2014 20:13
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It's all fun and games until you're personally the one who has to flush  a person's urine out of an emissions system.
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May 17, 2014 20:16
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InterceptorV8 posted:Too much poo poo hanging off the engine anymore. Remember when I picked up that brand new Volvo 670 with the piss-tank? Fucker was the same way. Yeah but what do I do with a truck that's overweight ? Also its weight restriction scale blitz right now. Sigh. I guess I'll just run with the 5th wheel slid all the way back.
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May 17, 2014 20:23
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Tommychu posted:It's all fun and games until you're personally the one who has to flush I really do feel sorry for you guys sometime. Some of the most hosed up poo poo people do to their rigs. Hell, working on a truck after it has come out of a large company shop has to be a joy as well. jonathan posted:Yeah but what do I do with a truck that's overweight ? Also its weight restriction scale blitz right now. Works wonders for that fuel mileage!
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May 17, 2014 21:16
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InterceptorV8 posted:Depends on how they are running you, but the company is most likely on the hook for any log speeding issues now. So you running straight up 5 or are you running the ridge and coming down....58? Straight up 5. We start Monday at 12pm, pick up last load to Portland Friday morning then when we get back is when we get back.
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May 17, 2014 21:56
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Javid posted:Conversely please don't burden us with trucks that will poo poo themselves if they run out of a non-essential fluid. Or bring us the people who mandated that poo poo so we can pee on THEM. Tell me about it. Moving to California and it's carb requirements Iis one of the large reasons we opted to stick with the company instead of buying a truck and moving into owner/op. Our company truck is a 2011 Peterbilt 389 and the emissions has l been changed twice now. For about a week it was throwing a dash code that was a cloud with exclamation point. Knew it was emissions related but was unable to find it In, any documentation or on internet. Then one day we used more def in 500 miles then the rest of the week combined so go figure. And no, the shop didn't know wtf either.
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May 17, 2014 22:06
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The last DEF truck I ran had a faulty derp tank gauge so it would randomly decide it was empty and shut you down in the middle of a shift. No override, just gently caress you and your wanting to get home on time. It didn't help that, of course, the company wouldn't fix it. (gently caress california)
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May 17, 2014 22:27
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Most trucks in europe have had DEF since 2008 or so. It's mostly trouble free now, but it's one of those things that when it does go wrong, it costs a gently caress ton to put right. Put diesel in the DEF tank? Replace all DEF components. Put DEF in diesel tank? Only 6 fuel injectors if you are lucky. The newest emission level has given us DEF + DPF + EGR for trucks, the exhaust is the size of 2 45 gallon drums.
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May 17, 2014 23:38
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warcake posted:Most trucks in europe have had DEF since 2008 or so. It's mostly trouble free now, but it's one of those things that when it does go wrong, it costs a gently caress ton to put right. Just wait till you blow an EGR cooler. You get the bonus of horrible mileage, AND rolling coal while plugging the DPF quickly.
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May 18, 2014 00:19
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warcake posted:Most trucks in europe have had DEF since 2008 or so. It's mostly trouble free now, but it's one of those things that when it does go wrong, it costs a gently caress ton to put right. There are so many plausible "mistakes" to make these days if a company decides to gently caress you over. I once got stranded on the I5 north of Portland because the previous driver of the temporary Western Star I was using decided to fill the fuel tanks with styrofoam coffee cups.
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May 18, 2014 00:34
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InterceptorV8 posted:Just wait till you blow an EGR cooler. You get the bonus of horrible mileage, AND rolling coal while plugging the DPF quickly. Plus scr, and nox sensors. Our Pete has had nox sensors replaced twice, scr 1x, egr 3x, dpf taken off and cleaned twice, two tows because def stopped working and engine derated. One time with a full tank of def after 70 miles it threw a code saying it had no def. Pretty sure our clutch brake is going out as well, we are off a few days next week and will see what's up with it. If I didn't know better I would honestly think the drivers were trying to break the truck if I were the mechanic. I hate the emissions crap on trucks and that every other year newer rules get signed into law. Probably an old, tired discussion in this thread by now. I haven't gone thru it yet.
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May 18, 2014 01:23
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jonathan posted:There are so many plausible "mistakes" to make these days if a company decides to gently caress you over. I once got stranded on the I5 north of Portland because the previous driver of the temporary Western Star I was using decided to fill the fuel tanks with styrofoam coffee cups. Is this some "I brought it back with the tanks all topped up" scam or what's going on here
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May 18, 2014 01:29
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Snowdens Secret posted:Is this some "I brought it back with the tanks all topped up" scam or what's going on here
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May 18, 2014 01:33
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Snowdens Secret posted:Is this some "I brought it back with the tanks all topped up" scam or what's going on here The guy was doing Langley BC to Portland runs bringing back Shell Motor oil in Bulk. It was a flat rate deal and when they started enforcing hours of service via GPS E-Logs, his daytrip turned into a 2 day trip. All of the sudden $300 flat rate for a 2 day trip wasn't worth it. He asked for a readjustment in pay, they said no, and when the company sold itself to Trimac tanklines, he wasn't rehired at Trimac because of his complaints. So he took some stacks of styrofoam cups from the coffee room, jammed them into the fuel tanks, and went home. So they asked me if I could pick up a load of motor oil, I made it down fine, on the way back I reset my hours, I slept with the truck turned off, around midnight I get up, try to fire up the truck and it wont start. I check the fuel filter and it's not getting a prime. I check the fuel tank, there is fuel, but it's also full of all this styrofoam poo poo in there.
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May 18, 2014 02:02
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If I recall correctly and I may not, styrofoam in gas turns into a goop that's too thick for the fuel pumps. There are a thousand creative places for things to go in a truck that end up being the next guy's problem to one extent or another, most of which are less obviously sabotage than that.
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May 18, 2014 02:07
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Javid posted:If I recall correctly and I may not, styrofoam in gas turns into a goop that's too thick for the fuel pumps. in gasolene yes. Thats a way to make homebrew napalm. In diesel it didn't seem to dissolve, or atleast didn't desolve very quickly.I wasn't down for very long, I got towed to a freightliner dealership, they drained the tanks and flushed them and had me up and running in 8 hours or so.
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May 18, 2014 02:14
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jonathan posted:There are so many plausible "mistakes" to make these days if a company decides to gently caress you over. I once got stranded on the I5 north of Portland because the previous driver of the temporary Western Star I was using decided to fill the fuel tanks with styrofoam coffee cups. Tell me about it. A truck came in friday with a blown wheel bearing, except it had completely ruined the hub, caliper and axle casing as well. Now the truck is under contract maintenance with us so you'd think it would all be covered, but the contract guy had me pull the codes and it had a mechanical ABS fault on that wheel the day before so now the customer has to pay for it. They'll get out of paying for anything if they can, most truck drivers I know would get it checked out next time they stopped or whatever. Shadokin posted:Plus scr, and nox sensors. Our Pete has had nox sensors replaced twice, scr 1x, egr 3x, dpf taken off and cleaned twice, two tows because def stopped working and engine derated. One time with a full tank of def after 70 miles it threw a code saying it had no def. Pretty sure our clutch brake is going out as well, we are off a few days next week and will see what's up with it. warcake fucked around with this message at 02:39 on May 18, 2014 |
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May 18, 2014 02:35
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warcake posted:
That is one of the problems with the newer trucks, the amount of sensors that can stop working, never throw a code, but cause something completely else to stop working or stop working correctly is insane. I think every shop needs to start hiring electrical engineers to start going over this type of problem. I would take a 99 to 03 engine any day of the week over owning one of these new trucks. I don't know how the truck can even be profitable for our company to own, the maitenence has to be high enough at this post to suck the profits out of three other trucks.
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May 18, 2014 03:14
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Shadokin posted:Tell me about it. Moving to California and it's carb requirements Iis one of the large reasons we opted to stick with the company instead of buying a truck and moving into owner/op. Is it a cummins with the old DPF emissions system? Sounds like the burn-off warning light.
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May 18, 2014 08:12
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InterceptorV8 posted:Just wait till you blow an EGR cooler. You get the bonus of horrible mileage, AND rolling coal while plugging the DPF quickly. Our 2012-2013 Prostars with the Maxxforce engine seem to blow EGR coolers like mad. They've become such an issue with stranding drivers in the middle of nowhere that we're trading them all already. We usually don't trade till 450k, so looking at roughly half that mileage with the Prostars.
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May 18, 2014 13:38
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angryhampster posted:Our 2012-2013 Prostars with the Maxxforce engine seem to blow EGR coolers like mad. They've become such an issue with stranding drivers in the middle of nowhere that we're trading them all already. We usually don't trade till 450k, so looking at roughly half that mileage with the Prostars. Wait, they still haven't figured out how to make an EGR cooler last, even after the VT fiasco? gently caress me, I'm glad those things aren't selling well around here. Shadokin posted:the amount of sensors that can stop working, never throw a code, but cause something completely else to stop working or stop working correctly is insane. Engines and emissions poo poo honestly isn't even that bad once you get into an AutoShift (the F is optional in its name and is frequently dropped by anyone who's worked on one). Literally 95% of the trucks that get towed to my shop are Autoshit issues. Not only are they inherently a bad idea (basically a robot sitting on top of an otherwise ordinary RTLO-box), the implementation is the most claptrap garbage I've ever seen from Eaton. The ECUs and diagnostic software seem to have been programmed by someone who only made it about halfway through Java for Dummies- the diagnostics give you (vague) trouble codes and very little else (actual sensor readouts? forced servo/solenoid operation? HAH you don't need any of that, just start throwing sensors and servos at it til the code goes away you pussy), and the ECUs frequently get themselves into poo poo-flinging competitions with the engine ECU. Any issue with the Eaton ECU causes the engine to not start. Oh and there's two plugs on said ECU with nothing but color coding (black and dark grey or navy blue, depending on revision) to keep you from plugging them in backwards, and good luck actually seeing the cunts while you're pulling off the circus-grade contortionism it takes to plug them in. If they go in backwards the ECU is fried every time and the X/Y servo has about a 50/50 shot at surviving. If you don't want to shift gears get a loving Allison. I've seen people spend what a whole Allison is worth just trying to keep an autoshift on the road. Turbo Fondant fucked around with this message at 16:08 on May 18, 2014 |
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May 18, 2014 16:06
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Rudager posted:Is it a cummins with the old DPF emissions system? Sounds like the burn-off warning light. Yeah. Cummins isx, believe 2010 revision. It's not high exhaust temp, low def, regeneration active, or oh god you need to regen light. Truck pulled like poo poo up the different grades and was fine on straights. Thought the def may have been vapor locked but I put 4 gallons in and no change. Was two days later of no def use that it suddenly started using a ton of def. Before coming here we were doing around 6200 miles a week and would fill up def tank 1.5 times a week. Out here we are filling it every other day now. The most amusing thing about auto shifts to me is that for years the engine eery and manufacturers were saying that the system would always choose the most optimum to switch gears. People are now finding that's not actually true and leaving it in manual you actually end up coming out ahead so what the hell is even the point?
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May 18, 2014 17:51
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In europe, especially with volvos, its rare you'll find anything but their own version of that style of gearbox, called the I-shift. We rarely have problems with them, drivers love them, they are easy to repair, clutch lasts over 500,000km usually. Theres no synchros to wear out, and every sensor can be gotten to without removing the box. Only problem is when you leave it in "A" and let the air run down with the engine off you can't start it till someone blows the air up. and the newer ones have GPS in them which learns the gradients of hills to get better fuel economy and crazy poo poo like that.
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May 18, 2014 18:29
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Good christ new trucks sound awful. Are old engines exempt? Like could you buy a 1990s engine, rebuild it, and throw it in the truck and not have to worry about it?
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May 18, 2014 22:13
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Isn't that sort of what a glider kit is?
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May 18, 2014 22:18
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Hey, this is kind of an odd question that I'm ill equipped to describe. We have air kills on our trucks, which trip at 2500 rpm, which it kills the engine. Now when you go down the hill, the engine does the braking for you, which it drives the rpm's up. When the rmp starts to redline at 2000, I apply the brakes, lower it, watch it rise, lower it, etc. Now do I have to break, or would the engine just max out at 2000 and stay there? I've never wanted to experiment because of potentially tripping the air kill.
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May 18, 2014 22:51
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The engine will rev up to whatever you force it to rev up to, around 3k valves will meet pistons. Around 3500 it will build an inspection window in the block. The engine kill won't stop the driveline from running the engine up to whatever it wants to.
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May 18, 2014 22:59
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Mmmm, good to know I was right not to fool around with it lol. That's interesting to know that 3k is when real poo poo happens.
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May 18, 2014 23:01
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Street Horrrsing posted:Mmmm, good to know I was right not to fool around with it lol. That's interesting to know that 3k is when real poo poo happens. it's 3k give or take. A larger or older engine will grenade sooner. My engine computer had 14 seconds logged at 2800rpm, but i'm an idiot who does dumb stuff sometimes.
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May 18, 2014 23:30
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Street Horrrsing posted:Hey, this is kind of an odd question that I'm ill equipped to describe. I've dealt with very heavy loads and very steep hills for many years, with engine brakes that work very well (dangerously well in the cold) to ones that might as well not even exist. Engine brakes work best in the upper teens, it has to do with volumetric efficiency versus compression ratio. If I were to teach drivers how to go down hills (which I don't), I would teach them to pick a gear, and apply around 7psi of application pressure, which is around the same as putting your tow down on an egg without breaking it. If 7psi or less with the engine fan on, and the engine brake on can keep you from accelerating on the steepest part of the hill under ideal conditions (above freezing, dry pavement with good visibility) then you entered the hill at the correct speed and chose the correct gear. Most driving schools teach 10psi as a max sustained application. Another thing to note, I believe that applying brakes, then letting off, then applying brakes to keep your speed in check is worse (as in more heat) than constant application at a lesser pressure. It was an idea given to me by the airbrake class instructor years ago who was a grumpy old angry mechanic who had to come in and teach the class because the normal instructor booked for the day was sick. So, if you know your truck, and know the hill, and know there isn't any danger of having an emergency stop part way down, follow the above rule (if you want). If you don't know the hill or your truck very well, reduce your speed before the hill, and coast back up to speed if you want to. If you have other trucks behind you, throw your flashers on so they know you're heavy. Disk brakes do a better job of cooling so you might be able to get away with a bit more heat than drums.
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May 19, 2014 01:11
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