My first three months

[bigjoep89]

Concrete truck driver 15 years
Concrete sales mgr, 13 years.
Expediter Newbie.

OK it is time to share my first three months experience.

I bought my D unit truck at Fyda. Since May of this year I have replaced two carrier bearings a compressor fitting a radio a a/c clutch a air solenoid to engin fan and a fuse to sleeper bunk. These repairs have put me out of service about 10 days and have not been a help for me to get a good start. Oh yea I still have to get the truck to the shop to get front bumper replaced due to the fact that the chrome is peeling off.
When I would take the truck to Fyda for repair all I would get is lip service. Example I was in the area and went in to tell them about the engin fan was not shutting off and was told they did not have time to look at it but as long as it was not overheating it would be OK. I told them about my radio cd player not working and was told they would have to take the radio out and next time I was in the area I could come back in and they would install the repaired radio.
Well I got back home to Kansas City and went to Kansas City Freight Liner and they treated me like I had bought a hundred trucks from them. I was told to make a list of everything wrong with the truck and they would fix them. I made the list left the truck at their shop and two days later my truck list was done including a new radio.
Now for the good things. The company I leased on with has been very good to work with. Very organized my pay has been prompt and the people are very helpful. I really think they are just as concerned about our business as we are. This meaning always willing to assist us.
About people I have met out on the road. We have met a lot of really good people on the road. One couple and you know who you are has been a God sent for us. This couple has helped us get started in the business with solid advice from day one and is always willing to answer any of our questions. I can’t thank you two enough and may God bless you.
Overall We are glad we went into this business, it is fun and challenging.

 

[Glen Rice]

When buying a truck whether new or used the problems you had can happen. There are no gurantees on equipment. Just like a light bulb being defective when you first buy it, so goes your truck experience. I always recommend getting a mechanical evaluation and even then there are no gurantees. I hope you are trouble free for the remainder of the year! You deserve a string of good luck after a bit of bad! A bad piece of equipment can send you to the poor house fast, so don't scrimp on maintenance! It's hard to dig into your pockets for routine service when you are just getting by. But do it, no matter what! Service the heck out of your truck and do thorough inspections daily to find those little problems before they get to costly. Good luck, and be safe!

 

[TJ959]

There sure seems to be a lot of difference between dealers of any make. Every time I get my ancient FL70 worked on at my local Freight liner dealer I feel like I've been had. Then I had an emergency repair done at the Freightliner dealer in Texarcana TX and they treated me well, charged me a fair price, and got me on my way. I uess it's like anything else. Ya gotta take the good with the bad............Hope things get better for you as time goes by. Good luck and be safe out there.

 

[ATeam]

Congratulations on gutting it through your truck challenges and sticking with the business. It's nice to hear you're pleased with your career-change decision.

 

[Broompilot]

Best Dealerships I have dealth with: and I have a KW

Freightliner outside of St. Louis just East of their wonderfull people did not charge me a dime for $500 worth of work because they were an hour late on their promised time.

KW dealer I purchased from, always what they quoted no surprises Ft. Wayne Truck Center

KW dealer Topeka KS no charge for parts or labor not warranty covered.

The terrible List.

Cummins Dealer in Columbus Ohio I got the manager so pissed off I was praying (hit me). Long story 2 dealers and they were not willing to investigate I continued to aggrivate manager until he blew a gasket and I just laughed in front of an audiance and told him gotcha at least I got my $100 worth in entertainment not in what you charged me for. He was not to happy and was stuck with a lobby full of customers who agreed with me it should have been warranty work. Good times.....