which engines?

pinnacle1

Seasoned Expediter
Just wondering which engines were the most reliable. Alot of the old truckers that work for us swear by the series 60, but the rest of the fleet manager world curses it. Just wanting to know which engine is the most reliable out of MB, detroit, CAT, cummins, etc.
 

riverrat2000

Seasoned Expediter
got have a c-10 cat and in a heavy "d" 28000 empty and am getting 10.o4 according to the computer at the moment I don't think that is to bad at all
 

redytrk

Veteran Expediter
Charter Member
You people are asking for trouble. My experience has been anytime I brag on an engine be it truck or car, DISASTER is just around the corner.

For me my MBE 900 just passed the 407,000 mark. Using little or no oil. Knocking on wood every start-up.

I have always traded before the 400K, but with the 7 Extra Grand the new engines cost,I have decided to keep the old girl.
 

ATeam

Senior Member
Retired Expediter
Asking which engine is better is like asking what star in the sky shines brighter. For every experienced driver that swears by a certain engine brand, you can find another that swears by a different one. Far more important than the kind of engine you buy is how you take care of it, or if used, how others took care of it before it became yours.
 

Caldonna

Expert Expediter
redytrk, how many miles you putting on the truck a year? I have the MBE900 and am worried about it lasting the life of the loan. We are working our finances to try and be able to pay off the truck early. Everytime I get the truck pm'd in a different place I ask the mechanics about life expectancy of the 900 and nearly all say 500k with regular maintenance should be no problem. Any sucess stories for the MBE900 out there? Any disasters? I seem to remember a thread quite a while back about the ERG and the 900.
 

pinnacle1

Seasoned Expediter
My main question was which engine could go the longest without any major failures, such as injector failures, or any realy severe electronic glitches putting the vehicle out of service for days, given that the service work was done at or before service intervals.
 

arkjarhead

Veteran Expediter
I've heard different ones say you don't know if you've got a detriot until you put 500,000 miles on it. I know one guy that has a little under 500k and is on his third detriot. This guy knows how to drive and take care of a truck so that's not the problem. The motor international has now they claim is a 2 million mile motor. My dad has that on his cat. if you have a class 8 straight truck chances are you will be able to go longer without any major malfunctions if the motor is taken care of properly. This is mainly due to the fact that you have a heavy duty truck hauling lightweight freight. just my 2 cents.
 

RichM

Veteran Expediter
Charter Member
I had a Cummins 8.3 C Series and it gave me excellent service. I put over 900K on it and other than 2 exhaust manifold bolts breaking the basic engine performed well. Like in any truck I went through 2 alternators ,2 water pumps a fuel pump under warranty but overall the Engine gave no trouble. I changed oil and filters about every 10,000 ,did not idle excessively and drove in what could be called conservative manner. To me fuel mileage and engine wear and tear was a lot more important then doing 75 mph for no reason.

There are many succssful expediters on this website such as Team Caffee that also watch their bottom line fuel and engine costs. I used to average 10.5 -11 MPG and still managed to make it on time. I didn't beat the truck nor did I baby it.. These days with fuel pushing $3.00 a gallon I wonder why folks are still winding it out and pushing the window to arrive at a delivery 3 hours early.
 

greg334

Veteran Expediter
Caldonna

OK I got to add this.

Each engine has its positives and negatives.

Each engine has its followers and detractors.

Each engine is designed and engineered to do a specific job.

Each engine is manufactured under specific conditions and standards.

Each Engine is made for one purpose, to produce power and power is stressful to the engine and its components.

If I get a Cummins ISC and put it in my Flxible MH and buy the engine that was next to it on the assembly line and put that into my FL70, each engine may act differently and one may have break down by having a bad lift pump, drop a valve or spin a bearing. It does not matter what I do; change the oil every 3000 miles, check the coolant every month, drive it under 40mph or tuck it in at night - it can break down because of the engine is made to produce power and that adds stress to the entire engine and it is just plain L U C K that you get one that is a lemon or one that will last for 1.5M miles.
 

Caldonna

Expert Expediter
Greg,
Thanks for the imput. I am not a great mechanic (or even average) but I have been around enough to know that sometimes you just get a P.O.S. (piece of s***)of anything that was built by men. The MBE may be a great engine overall but sometimes you just crap out at the engine table. All we can do is get as much info as possible to make the best choice possible and then roll the dice. Kind of like the human body, actually, now that I think about it. Except some people can drink a pint of liquor and smoke two packs a day and live into their 90's. Some people watch what they eat, exercise religiously and die of a brain hemmorhage at age 40. No guarantees on anything, at least with engines we can get a warranty!:)
 

gojack

Expert Expediter
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Also the easiest and cheapest to service.
 

Broompilot

Veteran Expediter
Size does matter:

From all the Engines I see at my Mechanics, Cummins give the least amount of $ in repairs. HANDS DOWN

Down side on a Cummins, your gona replace Injectors. In a million miles its gona be chaper than any other engine to operate and probably a million and half.

Cats, burn to much fuel but give ya the HP in exchange.

MB is just a Detroit, great Engines but when they go, they give no warning just better replace it before the block is broke so its to costly to guess.
 

kwexpress

Veteran Expediter
KW Express
o/o till i die

I aagree luck has a lot to do with it but I have 1.1 million on my detroit 60
 
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