Have been looking for a truck for several months. I found a 1999 FLC12064ST with a 60 series Detroit. One owner truck that looks like it was well taken care of. It has the Meritor ESS trans. It automaticly syncs the transmition so you can shift without the clutch. Was planning to take it to freightliner for an inspection and dyno. Is this someting to stay away from or is it something that you just have to get used to? From what i have read in the manual that i downloaded; you can turn the system off and yse the clutch.

As I recall, the ESS worked similar to Eaton's AutoSelect. In fact, Eaton successfully sued Meritor for patent infringement over the ESS.

But yes, if you want to drive it as an true manual, you can turn the system off and it will function as an ordinary 10 speed manual.