My New Tractor

[RockyMtnProDriver]

I will be ordering my new tractor in September and want to start to spec it out. Here is a list of what I am thinking about. I would love your comments about how it will be equiped, both positive and negative.

I am not really interested in "Buy a Pete, or Kenworths rule" kind of thing. I am going to buy the tractor and the power train the way it is. How I am specing it are the comments I am interested in.

The unit will be used to haul a 48 ft step deck from Alberta to the USA all the way from Louisiana to Calirornia. I will be reseting my log book in all the states and Alberta when neccesary, so I need an APU, and not battery operated as they run out of juice at 12 hours.

2011 International LoneStar

244 inch wheelbase
Air front suspension

475 HP Maxxforce engine (not negotiable, as the Cummins is no longer available in Canada)

18 speed Fuller Auto shift ( I might go with a 13 speed auto shift if it is lighter)
3.25 rears
22.5 inch low resistance tires (good years or Michelins)
(that should give me 66 MPH at 1300 rpm in 8th OD)
The truck will be run with the cruise control on the Interstates at 65 mph

APU fuel and electric ( not sure which Brand yet)

There we go, it is a start.

Thanks for the help.

[classictruckman]

475 HP Maxxforce engine (not negotiable, as the Cummins is no longer available in Canada)

Hold on, we can no longer buy a CAT, now we can't buy a Cummins either?

[RockyMtnProDriver]

What the dealer has told me is that the only way to get an International of kind with an ISX is to get one that is already built. He said that the new 15 ltr engine from International, the one based on the Cat 15 ltr block, will be available next year.

[Mackman]

Have you look at Macks?? I dunno if you have alot of dealer support up in Canada. I know the CHN613 is used alot for flatbed truckin. Maybe give it a look. 2007 MACK CHN613 RAWHIDE Conventional Truck w/ Sleeper For Sale At TruckPaper.com Thats just one to give you an idea. The mack motor now is more or less a volvo.

BTW why an auto shift??

[RockyMtnProDriver]

The International dealer in my home town is a good friend of mine, and has supported my Driving School for years. And I like farming equipment. Especially now that they have a truck that looks 70 years old to go along with the ride. ; )

[Aufgeblassen]

You SHOULD be reseting (sic) your hour at HOME, not on the road!!! That's a really dumb idea!

[RockyMtnProDriver]

Home can be a 5,000 mile rounder for me. It can be tough to get that done in the hours.

[Aufgeblassen]

Simple solution: Tell them you refuse to go that far!

[RockyMtnProDriver]

Simple solution. Stop bothering me.

[Maniac]

based on the Cat 15 ltr block,

When I saw it I thought the whole thing looked like a C-15, or real close to it

[RockyMtnProDriver]

When I saw it I thought the whole thing looked like a C-15, or real close to it

The 13 ltr engine is designed by MAN of Germany.

Nice thing about the Maxxforce engine is that it is 400 lbs lighter than the ISX. That is almost the weight of the APU.

I have to keep my tractor weight down to about 22,000 lbs ( wet ). With a 9,500 lb trailer, that gives me about 48,500 for payload, and most of the shippers are asking for 47,000 so I can have a bit of breathing room.

With my current tractor and trailer I was 79,500 lbs the last time I brought up a load of drill pipe.

[VPIDarkAngel]

The unit will be used to haul a 48 ft step deck from Alberta to the USA all the way from Louisiana to Calirornia. I will be reseting my log book in all the states and Alberta when neccesary, so I need an APU, and not battery operated as they run out of juice at 12 hours.
APU fuel and electric ( not sure which Brand yet)

There we go, it is a start.

Thanks for the help.

Be careful with that in California. They won't let you run that APU engine for more than five minutes now. Sadly, this is why all of Werner's new trucks are being equipped with ClimaCab's rather than TriPac's.

[RockyMtnProDriver]

Did not know that. Is there a website that will say what can, and cannot, be done in California?

[terrylamar]

If it is California, you can't do it! Except smoke dope. They have roadside despensers now. If you tell DOT the TriPac is to keep your stash cool, you can probably idle all you want, you may have to share, though!

[flood]

if your looing for an apu that you can run in cal have you checked this one out..? Propane Auxiliary Power Unit for Trucks - What are the Benefits?

[RockyMtnProDriver]

I looked at them. they look good, I am just not sure that they heat the engine coolant to assist in cold weather starts. That is important to me as I will be laying over in Edmonton Alberta and it can get to -40 here in the dead of winter.

I emailed the manufacuterer for more info and will post it once they get back to me.

[GMAN]

It seems to me as though California has declared war on the trucking industry. We were initially told that we could not idle our trucks. Then we were told that we could spend $8,000 on an apu and stay comfortable. They then said that apu's would need to have some sort of retrofit to be legal in the state. If true, now we are told that after spending $8,000 on an apu we still may not be able to be comfortable. I think that it is time to declare war on California. Since they apparently don't want trucks in the state, I suggest we all oblige them by not driving in their state. They will need to find another way to get their produce and other products to market. Perhaps China and other exporters should find other ports outside of California to send their products. And I am sure that they don't need anything from other parts of the country. If they are so adamant about not having trucks in California I say we should comply. Let them live in their insanity. They make all these laws on pseudo science and expect everyone to go along with their program. I may just take them off my cab card next year. I wonder if they will miss all those fuel taxes and sales taxes they collect from truckers who travel the state? We not only purchase fuel, but groceries, tires and food. I am sure they won't miss a few hundred thousand trucks entering the state. It is time to boycott California.

[firebird_1252]

It seems to me as though California has declared war on the trucking industry. We were initially told that we could not idle our trucks. Then we were told that we could spend $8,000 on an apu and stay comfortable. They then said that apu's would need to have some sort of retrofit to be legal in the state. If true, now we are told that after spending $8,000 on an apu we still may not be able to be comfortable. I think that it is time to declare war on California. Since they apparently don't want trucks in the state, I suggest we all oblige them by not driving in their state. They will need to find another way to get their produce and other products to market. Perhaps China and other exporters should find other ports outside of California to send their products. And I am sure that they don't need anything from other parts of the country. If they are so adamant about not having trucks in California I say we should comply. Let them live in their insanity. They make all these laws on pseudo science and expect everyone to go along with their program. I may just take them off my cab card next year. I wonder if they will miss all those fuel taxes and sales taxes they collect from truckers who travel the state? We not only purchase fuel, but groceries, tires and food. I am sure they won't miss a few hundred thousand trucks entering the state. It is time to boycott California.

gman funny you say that. a few months ago my dad was looking in to getting a glider from fritzgerald. he wanted to put his 3406b and put it in a coranado.. anyway.. they told me they can do it and will do it if we want (amazing price too around 79k) BUT california is going to try to outlaw any mechanical on road diesel motor. being my dad does not run out there its no big deal but NY seems to follow california. i personally think its bs.

anyway, to the OP. i picked up a new transtar from ryder for my company about a month ago. it has a maxxforce 11. all i can say is if the 15 is like the 11 its the quietest motor i've ever been around. i never pulled a load with it but some drivers say it has great lowend torque and pretty good on fuel.

i also saw a international with some kind of built in APU.

[RockyMtnProDriver]

I have done a bit more research and have found that Carrier makes an APU that is CARB compliant. It heats, keeps the engine coolant warm, air conditions, produces 110 volts for use and it has outboard power unit, so you can plug it into 110 volts and and run the entire thing off of electricity if you have a plug available.

California is such a big market and such a large economy they can dictate what happens in the rest of North America. I remember back in the day when they passed a headlight on law for Motorcycles. Every bike manufacturer in the world made all of there bikes with it like that, no matter where they where sold simply becuse it was cheeper to build the bikes that way, instead of having two different specs.

I have often said that what California does, Canada does about 20 years later.

GMAN, for every trucker that would not go into California, 20 willl. It is the nature of the beast.

[RockyMtnProDriver]

anyway, to the OP. i picked up a new transtar from ryder for my company about a month ago. it has a maxxforce 11. all i can say is if the 15 is like the 11 its the quietest motor i've ever been around. i never pulled a load with it but some drivers say it has great lowend torque and pretty good on fuel.

I was talking to a guy at a Texas pipe plant who had a ProStar with the Maxxforce engine, and he said the same thing. Very quiet and he was getting around 7 to 8 mpg if he ran it at 65 mph. His motor blew up at about 10,000 miles but it was warranty. His did not come with a jake and that was pretty much his only complaint.

I like the look of the engines operating range.

With an 18 speed Autoshift here are the numbers I come up with

8th OD = 1300 rpm at 66 mph.

8th Direct = 1500 rpm at 65 mph

8th Drirect = 1400 rpm at 60 mph

That puts the truck into the operating range very well.

As it makes peak tourqe from 1000 to 1300 and does not drop off significantly until 1500 rpm and Maximum HP is 1800 rpm before it drops off. that is very broad operating range. It should pull down nicley on the hills and pass nicley on the flats.

With the 18 speed, it will only be half a gear away from where I want to be most of the time.

Why an AutoShift?

Because no one can drive as well as a computer can when it comes to consistent shifts. Every time a person misses a shift and has to hunt for the correct RPM to get it into gear, you burn fuel unnecisarily. Also, witht the cruise control on, you can downshift a half gear with a push of the button and no foot or peddle movement.

Also, like I said, the gloss went off the manual transmissiion about 2,000,000 miles ago.

I have even installed am Autoshift on my motorcycle. Clutch is only used to start and stop the bike. Everything else is done either with a button or by using the computer.

And here come the comments, "Well, it aint Trucking or biking" I have been driving trucks for 32 years and motorcycles for 44 years. I know what they are and the length of my penis has nothing to do with a clutching action.