A WARNING FOR ALL NEW DRIVERS
 

i just wanted to warn anyone who is thinking about getting n2 truck driving STAY AWAY FROM C.R. ENGLAND!!!!
they will ruin your life
my girlfriend and I started driving for them and got n2 there lease program, with only 27,000 miles on our truck we found an exaust leak comming n2 the cab of the truck THIS IS VERY DANGEROUS WE ARE LUCKY WE WERE NOT KILLED, we told our driver manager we needed to get the truck in the shop right away it was not safe to drive.

5 min later he called my girlfriends cell phone and said
"this load cannot be late and there is no other teams in salt lake city,
your just going to have to roll the windows down and keep going, you can stop and get it fixed AFTER you deliver this load in MA."

well, there was no way in hell we were going to risk our life for a load of dunk'n donuts mini hashbrowns
so we put our truck in the shop anyway, 2days later we were told that we have been terminated from c.r england.
we started to send applications to some other companies and i was told by one of them that c.r. england was putting bad information about us on our DAC reports and we were going to have a very hard time finding another driving job.

so if your considering getting n2 the trucking industry make sure you research any company you thinking about joining look them up at
ripoffreport.com

there are some good companies out there, but england is not one of them

you are entitled by law to submit a rebuttal/ dispute the comments placed on
your DAC.

yes, carbon monoxide poisoning is a danger--I'd always advise buying a battery powered CO/smoke detector and having one in the cab of any truck I was planning on sleeping in.

a good pre-trip inspection--b4 you accepted that load--could have found it.
Usually it's leaking from one of the two- flex line-fittings. Can't imagine why,
you'd be setting so long (at a dealer?) for that fix. Usually only takes couple hours tops at TA, Petro to replace that....mostly just waiting to be NeXT.

also, a little research before you jumped into that lease and you'd KNOWN to stay away from them.

Oh no!!!
Not CRE!!!
You don't have to look very hard to be steered clear of them!
New drivers....study up, ask questions of the company you are planning to drive for!!!

Re: A WARNING FOR ALL NEW DRIVERS
 

I have to rant on this one.

It isn't CR Englands fault you had truck problems. You would have noticed this problem if you did a proper PTI. Your only job as a truck driver is to get freight from point A to point B on time. If you can't do that, yeah you should be fired.

As a truck driver you are the captain of your ship. Sometimes you have to be creative to keep moving. Find the leak and plug the hole. If you can't find the leak, crack the windows. You have a heater to keep warm.

I don't feel sorry for you. Sorry, just my opinion.

I agree with been, apart of being a truck driver is to make sure your equipment is SAFE to operate. You can overcome an exhaust leak by cracking the windows especially the sleeper windows and vents to allow fresh air into the cab! If they didn't want to fix the truck you should have told safety about it.

It's a common problem driving truck and it's a problem that an experienced driver knows how to avoid but deal with it when it happens. I've had worse problems, but I know it's not the company's fault and I don't blame them but I continued and got the loads delivered on time. Things happen and you have to deal with them.

When you think your having problems or having a bad day. Think about the driver's driving back in the 50's, 60's and 70's. No power steering. No A/C. No air-ride. Crap 2 lane roads. No big truck stops. Trucks with no power and transmission's with 2 sticks. Sleepers the size of coffins. Drivers today are a bunch of sissy's and will shut down for anything.

Yeah you do got a good point. It causes drivers today are spoiled with LUXURIES. Hell I can go without ac and heat no problem at all, I don't need those two items. The past few cars my mom has owned had no ac so I'm use to it. I know riding without air ride is rough especially in the passenger seat when it's not air ride and I rode in a 69 Mack R Series and a early 80's Mack Superliner and I enjoyed the ride better than I did of a new Mack Vision. Drivers were much more fatigued at the end of the day back in the 50's-70's cause driving a truck back then was physical labor. Driving a truck today doesn't require much physical labor cause of power steering, range/splitter controls, and autoshifts. I know I'm young but if I could go back to them days of trucking I would in a heartbeat because those were the best times to be a driver for alot of reasons. Honestly Ben in my generation it's much worse cause kids today are very spoiled cause they get everything they want. When they start driving they will complain cause their truck doesn't have a radio or cause they can't plug their ipod in. :roll: :roll: :roll: :roll:

Re: A WARNING FOR ALL NEW DRIVERS
 

:lol: :lol: :lol:

Re: A WARNING FOR ALL NEW DRIVERS
 

The only fitting comment I can make on your post is, what a jackass.

Re: A WARNING FOR ALL NEW DRIVERS
 

Kanajj, Think about this for a moment. They are team drivers, team drivers are used to keep the truck moving for long hauls and expedited freight.

Exhaust leak + moving truck = Your not going to die.

All they had to do was crack the windows and keep rolling. They took it to the shop but why didn't it get fixed so they could finish the run? Just like Double L said it takes longer to physically get the truck in the shop than it does to fix an exhaust leak.

They are only telling half of the story and you know it. Then they come here and trash CR England for dinging their DAC when they deserve it.

Re: A WARNING FOR ALL NEW DRIVERS
 

Not the company's fault that a specific truck had a mechanical problem. There is a set process to getting things fixed and as a team, the truck moving will practically eliminate the "hazard". This sounds like another feeble attempt to justify quitting the industry or the company.

Being late with Dunkin' Donuts...lucky they didn't get arrested. :?

Only 27k miles on the truck, so probably a good thing this driver was let go. Drivers like this you usually find going down the road with the right trailer door swinging in the breeze, and a shredded trailer tire wrapping a mud flap around the axle. :P :)

Ride with me after I've had a plate of beans :mrgreen:

Seriously though, a CO2 leak is very dangerous, but I agree, that now that you are aware of it, just keep fresh air in the cab, until you can make your drop. Being in the Salt Lake vicinity, you would be able to get a quick repair. I'm sure the dispatch will give you the time you need before you are scheduled for a backload.

Cowboy up. This is a baby size challenge. A Farmer/Driver would have tightened up the leaking connection himself, adjusted his Trailer brakes, shut the right rear door, and change his own flat, while his girlfriend opened a can of beans for him.

Since we're once again ragging on someone for something they thought was important to share, I thought I'd take the opportunity to point one thing out.

CO2 is Carbon Dioxide.
CO is Carbon Monoxide.

Only composition difference is one Oxygen molecule. However, that one molecule makes it an entirely different compound. A farmer/driver might not have known that, just like the OP may not have known how to do it himself.

:roll:
Thank you...I appreciate the correction.

Anytime you need a lesson in tongue and cheek humor, likewise, I'll be happy to straighten you out.

The OP doesn't need to make the repair himself. Especially on a Truck still under warranty.
But, he still over reacted, in my opinion...and that is my opinion...not yours...right?

I would fully agree that the OP did indeed overreact about an exhaust leak, at least judging by the tone of the post.
That should have been something that was caught with a proper PTI, I agree with that also.

Personally, I was a mechanic for 7 years prior to driving a truck (which I no longer do, but that is a story for another time) so I would have no problem fixing it to make it safe to drive as a "stop-gap" measure so that I could get it to a shop and repaired properly. As we all know, or should know, companies aren't really concerned with anything except for moving freight.

It doesn't surprise me that he was fired for delaying a load by 2 days. That is likely to happen pretty much anywhere with any trucking company.

My main point of contention is that some people on this site have a habit of being overly negative towards anyone who has a differing opinion on anything. OK, so maybe the guy did overreact, but that doesn't mean we have the right to bash him incessantly for something he thought was important enough to post on a message board.

Although, I do find it amusing that the last line in the OP's post about doing research is something he should have done long before signing on with CRE.

I didn't read it as it took him 2 days to repair, nor that he was 2 days late on his load. I read it as he found out 2 days later, they were fired. He must have been late for his appointment, and likely the load needed to be rescheduled, and often times this includes costs due to either a fine or fees to reschedule.

He was told this load had a "time is of the essence" status. They didn't tell him this on the spot. They checked the load status and got back to him, informing him, he needed to make his appointment. How many other drivers were now rescheduled, because his vendor was put off, on an already highly anticipated delivery. Also, the vendors customers may have been out of product, or dangerously close to that. This driver has no right to assume the value on someone else's loss, as insignificant. Companies loose accounts over things like this sometimes too.

His mechanical trouble was not enough, to warrant his insubordinate decision.

Another thing I failed to read in this thread, is CAD members being overly negative. We do tend to call things as we see it. It's not sometimes pretty.

Re: A WARNING FOR ALL NEW DRIVERS
 

Ditto on Jackass statement ....


If I was only a few miles from the shipper fine ,but if I was 10 hours or more then I'd be looking for repairs before delivery ...If you choose to drive in 20 degree weather for 10 hours with your windows open that's your call , And I'm sure the company is noting it on your record ,and currently making your key to the executive washroom for you humble sacrafice to the freight ... :wink:

Like somebody said before, the driver in this lease is the Captain of his ship. If he decides it is UNSAFE to drive then it IS. Its not up to the dispatcher to decide over this case. CRE should be sued depending WHAT kind of information they put in their record. If some of you guys could have fixed it yourself, good for you. Many of the guys bashing them now I guess we can thank for all the nice rules TODAY which make our driving down the road much harder. No sleep, brakes not working and other problems? I can wait it out, right? After I took my truck to the shop where the wipers were almost not working in a snowstorm I got told from one of the older drivers: I drove 200 miles in a snowstorm without wipers and made my delivery. LUCKY YOU! And he was proud of his stupid success. It worked out for him but if he would have killed somebody he would still do his time. So if the driver decides he dont feel safe to drive then he DONT. And there should be no reason to put something on somebodys record for this. There are already enough big companies who complain they cant get drivers but on the other hand if somebody leaves them because of bad equipment or pay why dont we just ruin his record quick so he cant drive for the competition? just my opinion.

AMEN !

Should I apologize for my deadpan humor?
This apparently is too offensive, and people are taking this joking as serious bashing.

I mention, I do not believe this driver needs to make this repair. This Truck would be under warranty, if it only has 27,000 miles on it. I wouldn't fix this myself. You are paying big bucks to keep driving, not wrench.

My guess.. this is a minor leak, being new parts...not some holes in the pipe belching fumes up through open floorboards. I also read this was a team Truck. That means it's going 55 mph most of the time. When you have to stop for fuel, bathroom, or whatever...shut it off...DUH!?

Most of the exhaust when the Truck is going 55 mph, will be following the wind direction under the Truck. A new Truck most likely has electric windows, cabin vents that operate, and a heater that will melt plastic. I think keeping fresh air in the cab is really no big deal, just crack the windows a little. This all seems blown out of proportion.

I think the OP opened himself up for opinions, by over exaggeration to begin with. I do agree it is a serious problem, that should be fixed soon as possible. Good thing they did find the problem. Most likely while the Truck was sitting being loaded and idling.
Hard to detect an exhaust leak unless you do a pretrip each day. Being a Team truck, this thing is most likely rolling most of the time...and the exhaust never gets a chance to say hello.

The comment about Captain of the ship and all...I also agree with that. If you want to dump your appointment, and get the repair, so be it.
Did he call CRE back and argued his case, and made the company aware he was getting the repair, and that is final? Since he was fired...may I assume he didn't do that?

May I assume further, and say I bet he not only didn't say squat to dispatch, but he probably never called his customer, and said, I can't make my appointment? Why else would they fire him? If he made his case as Captain of this ship, and declared this to be a life threatening situation…I have to wonder.

I don't really know, and none of us can answer that either. I do not know the facts. He could very well be a victim of the mismanagement. Or, he is not telling us what really happened.

I made some dumb humor, and may have misunderstood my share, but this continuing drama seems to be no joke.
How has this escalated into, no sleep, no brakes, some idiots like me destroying the whole Industry, and tall tales of Billy Big Rigger driving through a snow storm blind and could have killed someone?

Sounds like how this thread started. Two Bit Drama.

Hey ROADHOG, I didnt go after you with my post. Its just the amount of people who put the driver at blame so quick. And you KNOW these guys who want to deliver a load at ANY COST (and any risk). Its one thing to be handy and fix something temporarily. Its another to drive and put yourself or others in danger and HOPE it will work out. I have seen and heard it too often. If the driver overreacted and panicked, thats one thing. To ruin somebodys record is another thing. That is was had me mad, not somebodys humor.

Anyone that has done some reasearch knows that going with CR England on their lease program, especially as a new driver, is a set-up for failure. It helps to do some homework.

Well now..... let's look at some FACTS!

The O.P. in his original post said this:

Let's see..... that's Salt Lake City to MASSACHUSSETTS with an exhaust leak, which NONE of you can say wouldn't get WORSE!

I drive team, and I smoke so I have my windows open all the time, and "I" have smelled carbon monoxide in MY cab lately.... and I know it's getting bad when I start getting drowsy! :shock:

Now, let's see how many of you Billy Big Riggers would drive a truck with a NOTICABLE exhaust leak from Salt Lake City to Massachusetts!

First of all, per the regs.... it is illegal for a carrier to force a driver to drive a truck that can't pass a pre-trip, or has an unsafe condition, ONE SINGLE MILE!

Second, an exhaust leak will NOT always be noticed during a pretrip unless it is visible, audible or noticable from OUTSIDE the cab during said inspection.

Also, unless the leak is in the exhaust PIPE leading to the muffler, it is highly unlikely that the wind will "blow it all away." What if it is in the manifold area, and is coming right up through the shifter pocket?

Now, I don't know if this driver did a thorough pretrip or not, or whether he communicated well with his dispatcher..... but it seems he HAD an exhaust leak, and he was told to "git er done" for about 2500 miles, with NO shutoff time, or get screwed!

The FMSCA regulations make NO distinction between the illegality of a driver exceeding his HOS and a carrier insisting that he DOES! Nor does it dinstinguish between a driver operating unsafe equipment and a carrier who insists he does!

What part of this is FUNNY to some of you? :shock:


How is driving with a killer carbon monoxide leak (even if partially diluted by fresh air) any safer than driving under the influence of only a FEW beers? Or driving a few hours over the HOS limit, who cares if you're a bit drowsy??

All I can say is I hope SOME of you are in front of this NEWBIE when he comes barrelling down the hill on your six, and has what YOU think is a "negligible" exhaust leak! :shock: :roll:

Oh, but don't worry..... he'll have his windows cracked a bit! Cuz he GOT that "good advice" right here on CAD!! :roll:

Amen! Roadhog. Amen! To many of this well I would have fixed it myself Ive been a diesel manic for 19o years shit. Not all of us have that luxury. We all know CR England is horrible so why defend them!!!!!!!!!?????????

I think you meant to give Golfhobo props ...

small point here:
Co- carbon monoxide--is ordorless--that's why it kills you in your sleep.
yes--the exhaust smoke will choke you-but the part that kills has no ordor.
please get a co detector for your truck.

no, I wouldn't drive from Salt lake to Ma- until I found the leak-and get it fixed--but yes, if it's so bad you can't stand to drive/live in the rig---it's bad enough you can easy find-during PTI---9times out of ten---it's burnt through one of the flex fitting.
now the poster didn't say if they 1st noticed the exhaust before they got loaded/dispatched or in route. But in any case, a couple hours in a TA could have fixed it. A simple fix.----
but the other posters are also correct---roll the windows down-fresh air and driver would be fine------except his team mate(wife) or anyone else trying to sleep would be choking on smoke back in the bunk 24-7.

Well... :? THAT explains a lot !

Continually inhaling diesel exhaust... affects the Social Centers of the brain. :?

(according to the Arkham Institute's study on Abbynormal Behavior)
They also concluded further findings of advanced paranoia,
clouded with visions of grandeur. :?

Wow, some of you were real quick to lay blame on the drivers! Nobody, that I saw, ask the follow up question! What was the determined source of the leak?

I have had a truck with less than 20,000 miles on it, en-route, after a thorough PTI, have the exhaust slip joint come completely off, just behind the turbo. Myself, being mechanically inclined was able to make the repair roadside and continue. Once reported to the company, they checked the other 20 new trucks, same as mine, and found all of them to be loose.

One mistake the drivers did make, was not having the FM/dispatcher send the proceed regardless message by QC. With just a phone call, they have nothing legally to fall back on, except their word. And possibly the repair invoice from the shop showing the vehicle was unsafe to drive.

Equipment does fail en-route, not everything will be found by a typical pre-trip, and there is not one of you, that do a proper pre-trip everyday. Not one!

According to FMCSA regulations, the driver is ultimately responsible for deciding whether or not their unit is safe to drive. If it is not, the driver has every right to PARK it! Heck, if it had been me, and my dispatched told me to run it regardless, I would have found the first weight station and requested a full level 1 on the unit, pointing out the defect, then showing the inspecting officers the QC message, telling me to run with it. Then, challenge the company to put some BS on my DAC! That would trigger a full inspection of the companies records, they do not want that!

Also, CRE is crooked! This has been highly documented not just on this forum, but numerous lawsuits, and a pending class action suit against them. Their practices are immoral, and everyone should steer clear, especially the lease-purchase program. There are a couple of good companies out there that have decent Lease-purchase plans, that do care about the safety of their drivers.


Nobody in SLC to take the load, what a crock! CRE has lots of drivers in that region, everyday. They could have put it on a SOLO and re-powered along the way. When I was with Stevens, Solo's would pick up a load, and run as far as they could, with a team, or another solo waiting to re-power it. FM's and Dispatchers always have options on critical loads.

Now, as far as the team drivers, maybe, just maybe there were underlying circumstances, such as prior missed deliveries, or other issues. One cannot assume that, from one short post. Not all the facts were available. But again, for the ones that slammed these two, right off the back, knowing CRE is crooked, were just down right wrong!

Have a nice day!

Headborg said:

Yes, of course you're right... and I knew that. I just sometimes use the terms interchangeably when referring to exhaust. However, I SHOULD have said that I smell exhaust fumes in my truck at times.

Funny thing is, I can't find a leak, and so I'm not sure if it's just fumes trapped by an inversion layer over a major city I'm passing through. Especially since I DON'T actually smell it all the time.

Never thought about getting a CO detector! That's a great idea.

CO exposure can be very insidious. The text below is from the Georgia State Health Board.

""CO poisoning can be acute, occurring over minutes to a few hours, or it can consist of repeated exposures over brief periods. It can occur over many days, weeks, or months and involve relatively low CO concentrations in air. The health effects are obvious with acute, high level exposure, but may be misdiagnosed after long-term, lower level exposure.The most common symptoms after exposure to high levels of CO include headaches, vomiting, nausea, dizziness, and drowsiness. These symptoms have been referred to as CO Poisoning Syndrome and were thought to disappear quickly after exposure ceases.
However, recent studies indicate that these symptoms and many other serious and persistent health effects may continue, even after the CO source is removed. Serious and persistent health effects from CO exposure may include.
???? heart and brain damage
???? learning and memory impairments
???? emotional and personality effects
???? sensory and motor disorders"""

In other words, long term exposure to low-levels of CO is very dangerous to one's health.
If there is the slightest suspicion of CO exposure. Get it checked out!

if you smell exhaust while driving--you got the leak for sure--and you're getting CO with the exhaust....if you're parked--it might be the truck next to you or even the reefer exhaust from your reefer---they used to have
trucks with "grass burner" exhaust ---it was a real pain to park next to one of them.

Battery powered--smoke/CO combination detector-----Trucks also have been known to catch fire you're parked sleeping. These days, companies have become CHEAP---no Bunk escape hatch--only way out is over the fuel tanks.

Leave the "I did's" and Can do's" @ the flying J driver's lounge for some other idiot to get a kick out of; and leave the driving to the professionals. A 69 R model over a mack vision??? Of course you know what you're talking about... They didn't have computers or the internet in the 50's either, why dont you start there.

Please enlighten me on what he should "plug the hole" with??? If they could even touch the portion of the exhaust that was bad. Have you tried doing exhaust work on a hot truck...probably not. The hobo is the only one on here who knows what they're talking about. But I'll rely on the rest of you for entertainment next time I'm at the J :idea: The only thing I could ding the O.P for is working for CRE in the first place.