Ace of Base – Used Cop Cars

thedrive.com

Article thanks to Matthew Guy and thetruthaboutcars.com. Links provided:

Government surplus is a weird thing. Sometimes, the vehicles churned out of the federal machine are used up like old newspapers. Others have few (we’ve seen as low as 18) miles on their odometers. Pretending to even fathom the purchasing process is an exercise in futility.

But the Ace of Base shopper cares not one whit, as he or she is simply after one thing: the deal.Cop cars are, by nature, sparsely equipped versions of civilian units.

Generally clad in Oxford White, some low-mile Taurus Interceptors haven’t even had their interiors sullied by the bodily fluids of America’s Most Wanted. Good news (shades of James May) – it’s not a complete and barren wasteland inside the Interceptor. A single USB port resides across the cabin while a backup camera embedded in the rearview mirrors helps prevent drivers from reversing over peasants. Get one now before Ford exits the sedan game.

There are plenty of Crown Vic Interceptors to go around, too (our own Murilee enjoyed such an example in his California days). Many are under ten grand and most south of three. Included with many is an A-pillar-mounted spotlight perfect for blinding random winos, plus an honest-to-gawd column shifter like nature and Henry Ford intended. Interceptors tinted a natty shade of blue or brown allow drivers to indulge in gritty undercover detective fantasies. Caveat emptor: these are the type of used cop car most likely to wilt under the harsh inspection of a UV light. Wear gloves.

Dodge Chargers now abound on the used market, turfed from police fleets for whatever reason. Like its Taurus cohort, it is also less likely to have been used as a toilet by troublemakers than a Crown Vic. AutoTrader shows a 2016 AWD V8 example for just $22,488, which includes the enormous cop-Jumbotron in the centre stack (now we know the testing grounds for Ram’s new 12-inch unit) and, hey, is that a column shifter? Why, yes it is.

Don’t count out the Explorer, either, a model which is increasingly giving fits to freeway drivers across the nation. More likely than most to be deployed as a K9 unit (not unlike the Tahoe), check for doggie presents in the cargo area. A 2017 unit with dog-dish hubcaps and virtually no miles on the clock is advertised in the great state of Pennsylvania for a hair over 30 grand. It is, of course, four-wheel drive.

Speaking of the Tahoe, a good many of the PPV units advertised online in America are two-wheel drive units, save for the scattered 4×4 in northern climes. Most of them are sold fitted with enormous bull bars, perfect for occasions when you just need to arrive at a party like gangbusters. One thing’s for sure: filling up the mirror of a left lane lounger with all nine yards of a Tahoe PPV grille fitted with a bull bar will get them out of your way in a hurry. That alone is worth the mid-$20s price of admission.

Ace of Base contenders then? By this author’s measure, definitely the Tahoe (because Tahoe) and the Charger (that jumbo screen and column shifter). I’m not as sure about the others. I’ll leave it up to the B&B to argue their merits in the comments.

http://www.thetruthaboutcars.com/2018/05/ace-base-used-cop-cars/?utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=TheTruthAboutCars.com_new-content-unsold&utm_source=TheTruthAboutCars.com20180516

Canada’s Worst(?) Used Car Salesman Heads Back to the Slammer, Leaves Misery and At Least One Broken Home in His Wake

crazyegg.com

Article thanks to Steph Willems and thetruthaboutcars.com. Links provided:

April, 2018  We told you last year of the outrageous case of an Oshawa, Ontario used car salesman who bilked unwitting customers out of their hard-earned cash before being sentenced to a month in jail. Well, a second trial recently adjourned, and Ryen Maxwell of Countryside Motors now faces 180 days in the big house.

A repeat fraudster, this former salesman’s list of financial atrocities is a long one. In addition to causing fiscal hardship for numerous customers, Maxwell’s actions can be credited with causing, or at least contributing to, one woman becoming stranded in a rural snowbank and the breakup of another man’s marriage. Is it any wonder BHPH lots carry a stigma?

First off, let’s recap this shady salesman’s “professional” life. Buckle up for a used car buying nightmare.

Last December, Maxwell, whose registration was terminated in 2015, was sentenced to 30 days in jail after being found in violation of both the Consumer Protection Act (CPA) and the Motor Vehicle Dealers Act (MVDA). Maxwell had falsified employment information on a credit application for a “vulnerable consumer,” then sent it out to several lenders. The consumer then found themself on the hook for three vehicles.

It seems that was both a warmup, and a continuation of prior behavior. According to the Ontario Motor Vehicle Industry Council, the province’s vehicle sales regulator, Maxwell was first registered as a salesperson in 2004, and soon found himself serving 18 months of house arrest for his role in a 2005 insurance fraud case.

Between 2010 and 2013, Maxwell set up shop at Oshawa’s Westbridge Vehicle Sales and Leasing, a business later fined $9,000 for failing to ensure Maxwell didn’t violate the MVDA. From there, he moved to Countryside Motors, which in 2016 received a fine of $5,000 for breaching the same OMVIC code of ethics. Small potato fines, for sure. But this is where the action really ramps up.

On April 19th, following a week-long trail, OMVIC announced Maxwell will serve a 180-day sentence for 10 breaches of the Motor Vehicle Dealers Act and the Consumer Protection Act.

“Evidence presented to the court demonstrated that, among other things, Maxwell sold cars without disclosing accident histories, misled consumers about vehicle conditions, and was untruthful about financing terms,” OMVIC wrote.

Two individual cases stand out as examples of the real-life hardship people can find themselves in after encountering a salesman like Maxwell. Most buyers rely on the salesman to describe a vehicle’s capabilities, and most aren’t well versed in the act of purchasing a vehicle, used or otherwise.

One female customer arrived at Countryside Motors looking for an all-wheel-drive vehicle in which to perform her job as a home health worker, visiting residences in rural — and sometimes very snowy — areas outside of lakeside Oshawa. After her vehicle became stuck in a roadside snowbank, the buyer discovered her vehicle was front-wheel drive.

“The court heard that when the consumer confronted Maxwell about this misrepresentation, he scratched out “AWD” on the sales contract, telling the consumer there was nothing that could be done,” OMVIC reports.

According to the regulator, Maxwell blazed a trail of misery through the traditionally working class Oshawa:

Customers also told the court how they had been pressured by Maxwell into turning over thousands of dollars as deposits on vehicles they wished to purchase, with the money never actually being credited towards the sales. Others described being made by Maxwell to sign financing documents which they were not given an opportunity to read, only for those customers to learn much later that they were obligated to pay interest rates far higher than what they had initially been told. For some, the payments rapidly became unaffordable, with at least one of Maxwell’s customers tearfully recalling how his marriage broke up because of the financial stress.

Maxwell apparently showed no remorse throughout the trial, making “excuses” for his behavior at every turn. In handing down her sentence, Justice of the Peace Constance McIlwain told the defendant,“You deliberately betrayed the trust of the people who relied on you.”

It’s not the first time a predatory salesman exploited the confidence of his customers, nor will it be the last. Still, given the severity of Maxwell’s crimes, OMVIC’s prosecutor sought out a stiff punishment.

“The 180 day sentence handed down is significant and is one of the longest periods of incarceration ordered for a registrant, though there have been longer,” said Terry O’Keefe, OMVIC’s director of communications, in an email to TTAC.

He pointed out a 2012 case where a Belleville, Ontario salesman, Naheed Ali Ramji, sold a new Pontiac G5 to an elderly female customer who thought she was buying a car worth $18,825. Unbeknownst to the customer, the salesman inflated the sticker to $34,000. Factoring in the cost of borrowing, the elderly woman found herself on the hook for $43,000. The same salesman later told a customer they would have to pay him $5,000 cash to arrange the buyout of a lease. The dealer never received the money. For these crimes, Ramji served seven months.

“Sentences meted out to curbsiders have been even more significant, including a 450 day sentence,” O’Keefe said.

Each province in Canada has its own regulations for vehicle sales. While Ontario requires a country-wide criminal background check for prospective salespeople, as well as a check with other jurisdictions in which the applicant has done business, it pays to be on your toes. Ontario consumers can search for breaches of OMVIC’s code of ethics here, and charges and convictions here. Go into the dealer armed with car-buying knowledge, and take a good hard look at that paperwork.

The chances of meeting someone like Maxwell are not high, keep in mind. Of the 1.2 million vehicle transactions in Ontario last year, OMVIC received 1,213 formal consumer complaints. Still, customer beware.

As for Countryside Motors, neither the dealer nor its director, Theodoros (Ted)
Efstathiou, are allowed to trade in motor vehicle sales after failing to pay the fine levied last December.

http://www.thetruthaboutcars.com/2018/04/canadas-worst-used-car-salesman-heads-back-slammer-leaves-misery-least-one-broken-home-wake/?utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=TheTruthAboutCars.com_new-content-unsold&utm_source=TheTruthAboutCars.com20180420

Diesel F-150 Reaches 30 MPG Highway

autoweek.com

Article thanks to automotive-fleet.com. Links provided:

April, 2018  The 2018 Ford F-150 fitted with its first 3.0L Power Stroke diesel engine will deliver EPA-estimated ratings of 30 mpg on the highway, 22 mpg in the city, and 25 mpg combined, according to the automaker. These are the highest EPA-estimated ratings available in a full-size pickup truck.

These benchmark figures are the result of more than a decade of work developing a lightweight high-strength, military-grade, aluminum-alloy body, a 10-speed SelectShift transmission, and robust engine construction of aluminum and compacted graphite iron to deliver durability, reduced weight, and torque, according to Ford.

"Even a few years ago, customers wouldn’t have imagined an EPA-estimated rating of 30 mpg highway would be possible in a full-size pickup, but our team of crazy-smart engineers rose to the challenge," said Hau Thai-Tang, Ford's executive vice president of product development and purchasing.

In addition to its leading fuel economy ratings, the F-150 Power Stroke diesel will make 250 hp and 440 lb.-ft. of torque. The truck can tow up to 11,400 pounds and haul payload of 2,020 pounds for XL and XLT fleet applications, and 1,940 pounds for retail applications.

F-150 Power Stroke diesel shares its technology with F-Series Super Duty’s 6.7L Power Stroke. It will begin shipping to dealers in May.

https://www.automotive-fleet.com/287971/diesel-f-150-reaches-30-mpg-highway

28% of Drivers Call Car Data a Myth

researchgate.net

Article thanks to automotive-fleet.com. Links provided:

4/2/2018  Many drivers are unaware that their cars are capturing data and revealing everything from driving patterns to roads traveled to music selections, according to a new insurance-industry report. In fact, 28% of respondents said it was "a myth" that their car data was being collected, even though they did not give permission for it.

The new report from Esurance — "Fact or Fiction: Do you know what data your car is sharing about you?" — explores the topic of data privacy as it relates to new car technology. Through a series of consumer interviews, the company compiled driver beliefs about the subject and uncovered a good deal of confusion. To set the record straight, Esurance invited a panel of car technology experts to address key misunderstandings and concerns.

Privacy issues were a significant area of concern for survey respondents. Presently, there are no specific laws that govern the use of car data, so drivers may be forfeiting their privacy rights when they sign a contract on a new car.

Those surveyed cited apprehension about their data being sold to third parties, the ability of manufacturers to access any personal devices connected to Bluetooth, and how hard braking or speed data could affect insurance premiums.

The report also explores how data can be used to impact on road safety. While 45% of respondents said they do not believe connected cars will make roads better and safer, experts say it's a fact. After all, connected cars will soon communicate with roadside infrastructure, sending data about issues like potholes, weather and accidents, which will be relayed through in-car alerts.

The report notes that data collected from connected cars is far from trivial and could be worth $1.5 trillion a year by 2030.

Currently, the biggest hurdle in gathering data to improve roads and cars is bandwidth. But new technologies and vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) wireless communication in many new cars will allow cars to communicate with each other quickly and reliably. 

Ultimately, the data gathered and shared by connected cars will improve road safety, say experts. Creating smart infrastructure will bring the greatest benefits of connectivity. That includes digital road signs that adapt to changing traffic patterns and a new web of communication between cars on the road. But the first step is building infrastructure to transmit all the data. Later, it can be analyzed and used effectively to improve roads.

Read the full report here.

http://www.automotive-fleet.com/news/story/2018/04/connected-car-data-prompts-privacy-concerns.aspx?utm_source=email&utm_medium=enewsletter&utm_campaign=20180410-NL-AF-FleetSafety-BOBCD180404002&omdt=NL-AF-FleetSafety&omid=1000129208

The Tesla Semi Is Dead

tesla.com

Article thanks to John Engle and seekingalpha.com. Links provided:

5/8/2018

Summary

Tesla unveiled the prototype of its Semi to much fanfare in November 2017.

Successive press events and public test drives built the perception that the Semi would enter production in the near term; numerous large companies made preorders.

Yet, during the Q1 2018 earnings call, the Semi received no mention except in response to questions; CEO Elon Musk essentially admitted the project had been put on hold.

Lack of capital to build a manufacturing plant and apparent technological challenges have raised eyebrows since the unveiling; the financing situation has only gotten worse since then.

It appears increasingly certain that the Tesla Semi will never see commercial production.

Six months ago, the Tesla (TSLA) buzz was all about the Semi. This electric truck, which CEO Elon Musk unveiled to much fanfare in November 2017, was supposed to be a mind-blowing “beast.” Indeed, Musk promised that the Semi would redefine the trucking industry.

The glitzy reveal event had the desired effect, boosting Tesla’s share price and providing a welcome distraction from the painfully slow production ramp of the mass-market Model 3 sedan. Musk promised to begin production in 2019, a pledge that was swiftly followed by a raft of announcements from numerous big companies that had placed orders.

The Tesla Semi was lauded as a massively valuable game-changer by the company’s various boosters. With hundreds of preorders on the books, as well as promises that the Semi would be more cost-effective than current big rigs, it looked like Tesla might have a big winner on its hands.

Thus, it should perhaps come as a surprise that the Tesla Semi received no mention whatsoever in the company’s Q1 2018 update letter. Why would this potentially revolutionary vehicle get no love at all?

Wheels Come Off The Semi Project

The answer was provided during the Q&A portion of the Q1 earnings call. Here is an enlightening exchange between CNBC’s Phil LeBeau and Musk:

Phil LeBeau - CNBC LLC

With the Tesla Semi, how many reservations do you guys now have approximately? And where are you in the process as far as the development and the rollout of the first model in terms of timeline, when you guys expect that to happen, et cetera?

Elon Reeve Musk - Tesla, Inc.

I actually don't know how many reservations we have for the Semi. About 2,000? Okay. I mean, we haven't really tried to sell the Semi. It's not like there's like an ongoing sales effort, so sales – orders for Semi are like opportunistic, really companies approaching us. Yeah, it's not something we really think about much.

 This is a fascinating acknowledgment from an individual who mere months ago had been planning to disrupt the massive trucking industry, and to start doing so in 2019. Yet, for some reason, the Semi is “not something we really think about much.”

Here’s the rub: If the Semi looked like it could claim a significant market, then Tesla would be moving forward with it. That would not necessarily require massive capital outlays toward building a production facility – not at first, anyway. But one would expect the company to at least tout the market opportunity and continue to promise that development would be coming soon. Instead, investors have been left with a rather peculiar silence.

Musk tried to brush off the mere 2,000 or so preorders as unimportant, since Tesla has not been advertising the Semi at all. Yet that is a tiny number of orders, especially considering the hundreds of orders that went on the books in the first couple of months after the unveiling. Evidently, orders have stalled out. This will be unsurprising to anyone who has studied the trucking industry in more than cursory detail. When we discussed the prospects of the Tesla Semi back in January, we pointed out the real reasons companies were ordering Teslas, and why the mass demand Tesla predicted would never materialize:

Early preorders by big-name companies can give the impression that the Tesla Semi will be in hot demand. PepsiCo, Anheuser-Busch, Sysco, and UPS have collectively placed orders for 315, with numerous other companies placing orders as well. With only a single bespoke-built model to judge from, those orders sound like a big vote of confidence and a sign of demand waiting to be tapped. But is it really?

Big rig trucking is an extremely conservative business, and understandably so. These are vehicles that need to travel tremendous distances reliably, and for many years. Repairs have to be simple and easy, with easily navigable maintenance and fueling infrastructure. The preference for simplicity is a major reason diesel is the fuel of choice for Semi truck engines. They are simpler and less prone to fault than are gasoline engines. An EV Semi presents far more serious problems than a gasoline engine…

The hundreds of preorders, which represent an experimental dipping of toes into the EV trucking waters, are likely never going to go much further than experimentation. In fact, some of the preorders may well have been made simply to bask in Tesla’s reflected PR glow. There can be no doubt that the companies that have made preorders have won a fair amount of press attention and been lauded for their forward-thinking attitudes. Many of them may not expect to ever see a Tesla Semi delivered to them; the preorder expense for most of them is probably worth the good publicity. However, even that cost is not likely to be permanent, since Tesla has promised to refund deposits.

 The dearth of orders admitted to by Musk on the latest earnings call bears out our original reservations about the project. It now seems evident that Tesla has abandoned the Semi project – or at least put it way back on the backburner.

That conclusion is borne out by more than just the anemic preorders and the company’s caginess. Tesla’s capital expenditure plans also support the conclusion. Specifically, the company announced it was cutting capex projections for 2018, from $3.4 billion to less than $3 billion. Apparently, the company has "significantly cut back on its capex projections by focusing on the critical near-term needs."

In other words, it is cutting costs and pushing back growth projects to conserve cash during the still agonizingly slow Model 3 ramp. With Tesla’s net working capital deficit having reached a record level, the urge to pull back from expensive adventures makes sense from a financial perspective. But it takes the sheen off of the story of endless growth that Tesla has relied upon to justify its massive market capitalization.

Investor’s Eye View

Taking all this information together, we can conclude that the Tesla Semi project has been stalled, if not canceled entirely. The cost of building and equipping a manufacturing facility could easily exceed $1 billion, and this would be necessary if the Semi was ever going to leave the prototype stage. Certainly, there is no room at the Fremont facility, as Musk also pointed out on the latest earnings call. The company already has to build or buy a facility to produce the promised Model Y, which Musk admits will not be happening until 2020. The promise of 2019 production always looked fanciful. Now, it has been abandoned in all but name.

Worse still for Tesla is the fact that its corporate clients do not have the seemingly infinite patience of its retail flock. With no sign of production happening, and no timeline for even starting on the horizon, many preorders will likely be canceled, which will require the return of millions of dollars Tesla can ill afford to lose in its current straitened state.

There is also the looming specter of competition, including Thor Trucking, which intends to launch its own all-electric big rig in 2019, ahead of Tesla’s original promised launch date. Nikola Motor Company, another EV startup, is also swiftly developing its own electric semi, and is suing Tesla for $2 billion on design patent violation grounds for good measure.

The most likely result will be that the Tesla Semi never sees the light of day. That is probably good for Tesla’s cash position, since building a facility would likely end up an expensive albatross, but it will come at the cost of a decent slice of the Tesla growth story.

Disclosure: I am/we are short TSLA.

I wrote this article myself, and it expresses my own opinions. I am not receiving compensation for it (other than from Seeking Alpha). I have no business relationship with any company whose stock is mentioned in this article.

https://seekingalpha.com/article/4172159-tesla-semi-dead

The British Car Market Is Flushing Itself Down the Loo; Industry to Follow?

telegraph.co.uk

Article thanks to Matt Posky and thetruthaboutcars.com. Links provided:

After four years of consecutive growth, the United Kingdom’s automotive market has tanked for 12 months straight. The culprit is, of course, dwindling diesel sales.

Thanks to European governments latching onto the fuel as the cleaner alternative to “petrol” throughout the 1990s (subsequently incentivizing the fuel as a way to meet aggressive CO2-reduction targets), diesel-powered autos accounted for roughly half of all new auto sales between 2009 and 2017 . But diesel is now “evil” and everyone in Europe has started avoiding it.

In March, diesel sales declined by 37.2 percent — leaving the once dominant fuel with just 32 percent of the new car market. Unsurprising, as the new trend in Europe is the widespread (future) banning of the fuel in city centers. April’s sales are expected to be even lower, as the British government’s new taxes on diesel vehicles come into effect. Those fees and a weakened pound, which practically everyone has attributed to Brexit, forced new car sales in the UK down by 16 percent. 

While February fared slightly worse, seeing a 17 percent decline, the general consensus was that March would perform much better. However, that was not to be the case. It’s not just the country’s market that’s taking a beating, either. Production matched the sales shortfall in the same month — down 17 points. In fact, the U.K.’s auto production volume has shrunk for almost eight months now. The Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) cited British year-to-date production for the home market as down by almost 12 percent through February.

With environmental pressures and consumer confusion on the rise throughout Europe, it’s unlikely to see diesel cars making a comeback. Politicians are extremely focused on air quality issues and have taken to vilifying diesel — the same fuel governments unilaterally endorsed a decade earlier. Consumers are now worried about diesel bans and how strict emissions regulations might affect their next purchase. There are even proposals that the European government should employ a federal vehicle scrapping scheme to get diesels off the road and encourage the public to buy new vehicles.

“The decline in demand for diesel cars continues to be of concern and the latest tax changes announced by the government do nothing to encourage consumers to exchange their older diesel vehicles for new lower emission models,” Mike Hawes, chief executive of the SMMT told the Financial Times this week. “All technologies, regardless of fuel type, have a role to play in helping improve air quality whilst meeting our climate change targets, so government must do more to encourage consumers to buy new vehicles rather than hang onto their older, more polluting vehicles.”

Hold on there, Mike. Unless someone is buying a vehicle that gets vastly superior gas mileage (or sources its electric energy from renewable resources), it’s usually better for the environment to hold onto that beater. We know the SMMT is honor-bound to promote new car purchases, but let’s at least get the facts straight.

http://www.thetruthaboutcars.com/2018/04/the-british-car-market-in-toilet/?utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=TheTruthAboutCars.com_new-content-unsold&utm_source=TheTruthAboutCars.com20180406

What Drivers Need to Know About Taking Care of Truck Tires

part380.com

Article thanks to Jim Park and truckinginfo.com. Links provided:

Getting drivers to inspect and care for their tires might seem like pushing a rope up a hill, but even if only a few get involved, it can save some serious dough.

March, 2018  Round and black. Sometimes that’s the extent of what drivers know — or want to know — about tires. Unfortunately, drivers need to know more about their tires, and they really need to be proactive when it comes to inspecting and maintaining them. But it’s never easy convincing drivers to get up close and personal with those round black things.

An 18-wheel pressure check can easily eat up half an hour; more if the tires need to be topped up. With mandatory electronic logs now putting even more pressure on their time, drivers are even less likely give up driving time to a probably unpaid task. It may help to remind them that investing 30 minutes once a week to closely inspect their tires could help prevent an on-road failure that could cost them several hours of downtime… but probably not.

Getting a little cooperation from drivers might be achieved by providing a lesson in how tires work and some of the perils of poor maintenance.

“It’s one thing to tell a driver that if they do this or don’t do that, something unpleasant might happen,” says Joe Puff, vice president of truck technology and maintenance at Downers Grove, Illinois-based NationaLease. “But when they can understand the consequences of their actions, or inactions, they might be more predisposed to look after those assets. Or at least not intentionally do anything that might compromise tire life or safety.”

For example, Puff says drivers should be taught the dangers of reinflating a tire that has been run 20% or more under-inflated.

“We remind them all the time to check their inflation pressure, but we send a possibly conflicting message to those that do it regularly if they aren’t made aware of the dangers of under-inflated tires,” he says.

The problem here is the potential for a zipper rupture, caused by metal fatigue in the sidewall from excessive flexing while running under load. If the driver simply re-inflates a tire found in a low-pressure condition, he or she risks personal injury or a blowout on the road.

“If a tire is run 20% low, casing degradation is a real risk,” cautions Puff. “It’s going to fail at some point. It should be pulled from service. In these cases, drivers really need to alert a supervisor to the problem rather than just topping up the pressure and moving on.”

Teaching drivers about inflation

Tire inflation pressure is a big issue, of course, and once again there are no easy solutions to getting drivers to check it. While it might be useful to know a tire isn’t nearly completely flat, there’s little use in encouraging them to thump or kick their tires on a walk-around. For several years now, the Tire Retread Information Bureau and the Tire Industry Association have sponsored a Guess the Pressure contest at various truck shows, and famously, no driver has ever guessed the pressure within 5 psi over or under the actual inflated pressure.

Mike Elliott, safety and maintenance director at Nashville, Tennessee-based MS Logistics, makes a bit of a joke about checking inflation pressure during his orientation sessions. He presents the drivers with a tuning fork, saying it’s a new way of checking oil level in the engine. He tells them they no longer need to pull the dipstick.

“I tell them to strike the engine block with the tuning fork, and if it sounds right, the oil level is fine,” he says. “I get some odd looks, and then I announce it’s just the same as when you hit your tires with a thumper — and just about as useful. If nothing else, it’s a good way to open the discussion on tire inflation.”

Elliott runs a lot of retreads, and some drivers have strong opinions on retreads, many of them inaccurate. He tries to deal with all that up front, and then has regular meetings where the subject comes up repeatedly.

“I show them the DOT studies on tire debris and remind them that half the tires studied back then were not retreads,” Elliott says. “From there we get into a discussion on the importance of inflation pressure and its effect on tires, both new and retreads. Then I tell them that all I expect them to do is check the pressure regularly and top it up when necessary. I finish by reminding them that downtime hurts them, too. If they are stuck on the side of the road for several hours waiting for tire service because they didn’t check their tires, they have nobody but themselves to blame in most cases.”

Kevin Tomlinson, director of maintenance at Milan, Ohio’s South Shore Transportation, has added automatic tire inflation systems to his trailing equipment and tire pressure monitoring systems to some of his power units. But he still relies on drivers to visually inspect the tires whenever they get out of the truck.

“It’s funny, we hardly ever have problems with steer tires or wide-base tires,” he says. “Needless to say, when we bring the trucks in for service we check all the tires and tread depth and inspect for issues. The best we can do is encourage the driver to keep an eye on their tires and hope it becomes a habit. Once they realize that vigilance will keep them on the road longer without problems, the better we’ll all be.”

http://www.truckinginfo.com/channel/drivers/article/story/2018/03/should-drivers-know-more-about-maintaining-truck-tires.aspx?utm_source=email&utm_medium=enewsletter&utm_campaign=20180331-NL-HDT-TopNews-BOBCD180325006&omdt=NL-HDT-TopNews&omid=1000129208

Hurry up and wait – a trucker’s worst nightmare

freightwaves.com

Article thanks to Dean Croke and freightwaves.com. Links provided:

March 30, 2018  One thing that hasn’t changed (yet) with the ELD mandate is the way drivers get treated at shippers and receivers. The old adage of “hurry up and wait” has never been more apt, especially in the over-the-road truckload sector. There’s nothing more demoralizing for a driver who’s doing the right thing by being on time for an appointment to load or unload, only to be told, “we’re not ready for you yet, but we’ll let you know as soon as we are.”

If shippers and receivers understood the risk and personal sacrifice truckers take to hold up their end of the bargain, things would be different…very different. The reality is that many shippers and receivers simply don't care and are all too happy to treat truckers like second-class citizens.

Truckers are beginning to have their say now that the ELD mandate has forced them to record unloading and loading on line 4 of their log, i.e. on-duty non-driving. And, even though they’re not driving but resting in their cab, the burdensome and punitive 14-hour clock keeps ticking, reducing their opportunity to work and earn a living.

Truckers across the country, including long-haul owner-operator Laird Fuller, tell FreightWaves, “Shippers and receivers don't have to work for free, why should we”?

In the last few days, Laird, like many truckers, reached his tipping point and is demanding the industry stand up for what he calls an abusive system where “shippers and receivers set our appointment times and it’s on them to be ready when we get there.”

Laird’s frustration reached a boiling point after waiting to load over the weekend. His widely circulated video told an all-too familiar story. “I’ve been here 10 hours and might be halfway loaded, they knew I was coming and when I got here they said the product wasn’t ready, and when the product arrived they said it wasn’t authorized to be loaded into my trailer.” For Laird Fuller, the opportunity cost of this most recent delay is around $1,200 – that’s the amount of revenue he’d generate in his $200,000 rig if he was running miles and not sitting on a dock trying hard to control his anger and frustration.

Laird believes that shippers and receivers, “should be given 1 hour to load or unload his trailer, anything after an hour past the appointment time they set, they should be held accountable and required to pay detention time.” Fuller is both an owner-operator and strong advocate for the trucking industry and is encouraging other drivers to speak with one voice on this subject, and it’s not just a matter of turning down a load because those actions will work against you.

“Reputation is everything and if you choose to drop a load on a customer it will count against you, and the more you do it the harder it will be to book loads. For us small guys at the end of the day, all we have is our name and our word, and if you choose to run your name into the ground you’ll eventually end up sitting at home scratching your head trying to figure out why you can’t book a load,” Fuller said.

FreightWaves spoke to other drivers for this story and all declined to go on record for fear of retribution at the shippers and receivers they work out of – a classic catch-22 situation. Speak up and at best get delayed even more, or at worst get banned from the site completely. Staying silent is not much better and in the end, most feel it’s a no-win situation.

The following is a sample of driver responses and in the interest of working with shippers and receivers to find a workable solution, FreightWaves has elected not to name names.

• “It once took 2 days to load frozen chickens at a plant in Arkansas.”
• “It took 14 hours to pick up a load of underwear. My appointment to load was at 3 p.m. so I arrived an hour early to make sure I was ready. At 5 a.m. the next day I finally signed the paperwork.”
• “Your timing is perfect….I’ve literally just sat in Greeley, CO, for 6.5 hours for 10 pallets of  lamb.”
• “I’m in Oklahoma City and even though it only took 2 hours to unload today, it took 7 hours to get onto a dock.”
• “I got to an appointment today at 3:30 p.m. to unload. Says 4 p.m. on the rate con and the shipper said it wasn’t until 5 p.m. The broker tried arguing with me and I told him regardless he’s paying me detention, or his load won’t get delivered.”
•  “There’s a cold store in Richland, WA, that punishes late drivers. They don’t care the reason why, but if you’re more than 30 minutes late it’s a $100 fine and up to 24-hour load time. I once had to wait 18 hours to load then another 3 hours for a rework after they tried to send me away weighing 82k. Will never go back.”
• “At a chicken farm in Summit, MS, I spent over 24 hours getting the run around and they would pound on the side of the truck to wake you up. I had to move doors more than once, and in the end, they loaded meat at a random empty dock they had all along.”
• “This bakery plant I’m at right now - just passed 14 hours since I’ve checked in. I got a door but that was after me going to two other doors. I’m in Indianapolis and supposed to be in Groveland, FL, tomorrow. Gonna be a fun time.”
• “I was an hour late for a pickup and ended up sitting at the dock for 30 hours not making a dime. This is one of the reasons I stopped driving, much happier now.”

So, what about solutions?

There’s an old saying that you’ll catch more flies with honey than vinegar. If shippers and receivers began to realize that truckers aren’t an interruption to their supply chain, but a critical link in it, their productivity will increase, and overall transport costs will decrease.

After all, the cost of excessive trucker detention when absorbed by truckers like Laird Fuller, ultimately end up in the very rates shippers are charged to haul their freight in the first place.

The lack of transparency between shipper, receiver and trucker has changed forever with the advent of electronic logging devices. Data is king and for the first time every trucker has ELD data at their disposal that can quantify the opportunity costs of loading dock inefficiency.

The ELD mandate will ultimately force shippers and receivers hands – get trucks on and off docks quicker or be prepared to pay detention verified by electronic log data which records truck activity down to the minute.

Freight-booking company Convoy has built a web-based solution to the detention problem where shippers can book and truckers can accept loads via a mobile application. What’s unique about Convoy is that drivers who are in the Convoy network get paid for detention regardless of whether or not the shipper pays detention. Convoy will pay the driver $40 per hour for detention following 2 hours of free time.

 Convoy research has found 1 in 8 shipments incurs detention costing shippers nearly $8 billion per year in detention fees. According to DAT, nearly 63% of drivers spend more than 3 hours at the shipper’s dock each time they’re loaded or unloaded. All that time adds up to more than 4 billion hours that truck drivers spend waiting at facilities each year.

Just this week Texas Rep. (R) Brian Babin introduced a bill in the House with the support of OOIDA Acting President Todd Spencer. It’s called “The Responsible and Effective Standards for Truckers (REST) Act” requiring the Department of Transportation to update hours-of-service regulations to allow a rest break once per 14-hour duty period for up to 3 consecutive hours as long as the driver is off-duty, effectively pausing the 14-clock.

The most important question truckers need to ask

Other truckers we spoke to think the solution is much simpler and it involves asking brokers or driver-managers just one question before accepting a load:

• Is detention being paid on this load and at what point does it kick in?

The Convoy solution automatically answers this question and as of this week DAT is reporting the van load-to-truck ratio is at 6.9 loads per truck, so it would seem truckers are finally in the driving seat.

Time will tell.

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