TRUCK STUFF
A newsletter from Lee T. Wittmann/T Q M Company

November 2004

Truck Stuff is an e-mail newsletter published with the intent of creating a dialog between friends and associates of the transportation and affiliated industries. The first issue was published in 1999. The opinions and content are the sole responsibility of the writer.

YESTERDAY'S TRUCKS TODAY

STRICK CAB UNDER I found it! See story to right.

3-2002 Freightliner Columbia tractors

Detroit, Super ten, single bunk 400,000 to 430,000 miles Southeast $35,500

1998 Trailking low boy trailer, Jeep & Stinger $120,000

1994 Trailking low boy trailer, Jeep & Stinger $90,000

6 1999 Freightliner FLD12064T with 70" condo,, aluminum wheels, CAT 3406, 10 speed Located in the northeast $16,500

2001 & 2002 VOLVO VNL64T 660, N 14, Super ten, single bunk, 400,000 to 430,000 miles, located in the southeast $37,500 - 2001

$38,500 - 2002

And now the rest of the story

In the June issue of “Truck Stuff” I shared a picture of a unique Strick Cab Under tractor. All I knew about this truck was that I serviced it several times in Connecticut and many years later found it parked in Edison, NJ.

Bill Koelewyn now fills us in on the rest of the story. “Strick built 2 cab under prototypes in the late 70’s. …The length laws were more restrictive at that time. Companies shipping lightweight, high cube loads such as aluminum cans were pressing for increased productivity. Both of the cab under vehicles ran up significant mileage while leased to several transportation companies. One was sold to a company in Germany that placed the truck in service to transport plateglass. The unit had a full width cab and dual steer axles. The unit (pictured here) is now owned by one of the original engineers, now retired, who helped develop the prototype.

The industry ultimately benefited from the Cab Under as it dramatically illustrated the need for increased load capacity per truck & driver. This was just one of the many elements in opening the subject of transportation productivity. In time, length and width laws were changed benefiting shippers and ultimately consumers. Just calculate how many more trucks would be on the road today if trailer lengths had been held at 45’ and how much more serious the current driver shortage would be.”

Bill works for the Strick Corp. Strick manufactures aluminum van trailers in Monroe Indiana and its affiliate, Cheetah Chassis, is the largest producer of Container Chassis in the USA. Bill can be reached at bkoelewyn@diamatrix.net. THANKS BILL

GOD Quits

Trucks with the trailer size letters “G.O.D.” have been a common sight on the roads of the Northeast. “G.O.D.” (Guaranteed Overnight Delivery) is the most recent LTL (Less Than Truckload) carrier to go out of business in the Northeast. Many industry experts believe the closure of this 285-truck fleet, to be the start of a new round of consolidation in the LTL sector.

Wear out your tires and increase your mileage

The rolling resistance of tires robs fuel mileage and the amount of that loss is based on the design and composition. The more the tire wears, and the less the tread depth, the better the fuel mileage. Bridgestone/Firestone states that at 30% tread depth wear there is a 2% fuel savings; at 50% wear it is 6% saving and at 80% wear the saving increase to 6.6%. However running bald tires is highly discouraged.

Hummer – let's see you beat this!

You may think the Hummer is as big as they get, but now International Truck and Engine Corp. introduces The CXT – the biggest pick up in production. It can haul three times the load of traditional pick up trucks, is powered by a DT466 diesel engine, has a crew cab, is a 4x4 and has a tilt bed. I understand the price is in the six digits.

Lee T. Wittmann/T Q M Company
104 Rainbow's End
Beech Mountain, NC 28604
Phone: 828.387.3505
Fax: 828.387.3506
E-mail: lwittmann@skybest.com