[firebird_1252]

i just spoke to the driver about 20 min ago. he said the truck runs super strong. BUT.. he said it has gauges that don't work, cruise control that don't work. he said that he brought it to peterbilt and they said it needs the harnesses. I'm still real interested in the truck but from experience am I opening a can of worms? am I buying a money pit? from my thought this is a job for peterbilt only correct me if I'm wrong.

[GMAN]

Well, it is their truck. They should know how to fix it. But, if you have a good mechanic he might be able to repair it for much less than Peterbilt. I try to stay away from the dealers as much as possible. Have you priced a wiring harness? Sometimes you can get a lemon. Several years ago there was an owner operator who bought a Peterbilt and had a lot of problems with the truck. They had it checked at Peterbilt several times and spent thousands to try to find the problem. They finally just sold the truck. I would be hesitant to buy a truck that had a lot of problems without some assurance that I could make the needed repairs without going broke. Electrical issues can be difficult to diagnose. From your description, the wiring harness does make sense. If not the wiring harness, I would be looking at the ECM. Both of those could cost quite a bit of money.

[firebird_1252]

I agree 100%. Now when I spoke to the driver he said a "box" needs to be replaced. I wrote that off as a harness. I spoke to someone else that has a Pete same issues. He said there is a box where all the guages plug into with a surge protector. I'm waiting to see if I got this work. As soon as I find out if I got it then I'll pull the trigger. Selling my freightliner is out of the question and I can't see why it should sit.

[Reddevil]

Buddy of mine owns 200+ Pete's different models and years. He had 3 that had those issues. All three turned out to be where someone had ran a screw into a wire. Now his 2000 EXHood had all kind of issues from day one. Pete had to tear it apart even taking the sleeper walls out to trace the bad wiring in it. Turned out to be someone at the plant had plugged in something under the dash that should have not been there. Plus the wires in the sleeper had gotten between supports and was shorting out.
As far as the hood, used to run NYC and all of the east Coast in a 280" long hood. Did not find a dock I could not get into. Had to work a little harder at some, but enjoyed the large car and just smiled as I did the job.
Pete

[danske]

I drove a 2001 379 with a 310" WB and it was tough at times to get around corners especially right turns. A couple times I had to have a forklift pickup the rearend of my empty trailer(48ft flatbed spread) to get it around a tight shipping yard. It looked great and it is setup was perfect for hauling 60ft rebar or floor joists, but I was hard on the right front outside trailer tire.

[wrongwayTommy]

if it was me I would pass on that truck
a buddy got one similier to it and his mpg is a little over 4

big cat motor,18 speed,runs like a monster but it costs the heck out of him

[firebird_1252]

Originally Posted by wrongwayTommy

if it was me I would pass on that truck
a buddy got one similier to it and his mpg is a little over 4

big cat motor,18 speed,runs like a monster but it costs the heck out of him

i hear that from a lot of people but never seen it. my dad has a pete 550 (might have a 625 file in it ) 13 speed, 3.70's and he gets 5.5 pulling a reefer. my buddy has a 550 3.36's cracking 6. what i learned about driving a cat is its how you drive it. holding it to the floor pulling a hill, shifting high slamming on it to pass someone will kill the milage.

[solo379]

Ain't that the truth! People blame the motor, for their lack of ability to drive it in a fuel efficient way.

[firebird_1252]

Originally Posted by solo379

Ain't that the truth! People blame the motor, for their lack of ability to drive it in a fuel efficient way.

in my columbia i get 6.5+ at 70mph.. with a cat.


anyway, today i drove the truck. drove great. trans shifts like butter. for some reason the truck seems.. small while driving it. AC works not ice cold but i was told to shut the heater valve off and its ice cold. as far as the electrical problems... the only thing i can find is that the fuel gauge don't work when the switch is in the middle. each tank sender works. put it on the scale 20800 with 3/4 tank of fuel.

now here is what i don't understand. truck had power i didn't jump on it just rolled into it a bit. smoked a bit no breaking up or anything but i'm thinking thats because its been sitting. now i've never drove a 6nz before. i have drove my dad's 3406e motor. if you tap the throttle instant response. this is like my MBN with no response. but i'm used to that.

i think it might need a steering box. but then again i don't know if its not used to it seems like it wonders a bit but i'm just hoping i'm not used to it.

thats the up date.

[solo379]

So? Did you...?