How much do they typically cost to purchase and Install? What kind of maintenance is needed/costs? Do they work as good as advertised or are they finicky at times like the ParkSmarts?

 

uho, is someone thinking about buying a truck?

 

Only very slightly! I'm thinking more along the lines of why some companies have them fleet wide while others are JUST starting to trial them on a few trucks. They all run to the Northeast where an APU is a must have on trucks. You know, looking for a reason besides the company just doesn't care about the drivers.

On the ownership side, too much of a headache with everything one needs to do. I started looking up the IFTA and base plate stuff.........yeah that made my never ending headache worse. All the extra paperwork one has to do when fueling up.........I don't mind my hitting the fuel tab on the HOS screen and going on my way! I really appreciate how simple that is.

 

all i can say is these things...

many years ago, like back in the late 1970's, i was thinking of buying a truck. i was actually looking for ""plain jane" trucks, you know, not all chromed out, as i (to this day) see no rhyme nor reason to have all that glitter, well anyways, i was pricing out what was known then as "pony pacs" and gensets.

back then, they cost a mere $2,000 to $3,000 installed!!

i made the fatal mistake to sit at the counter of the truck stops. so i got to talking to a few guys, whether they were o/o's of not, i can't say. nearly each one said, "why you wanna buy something like that, they ain't that good, or they don't make sense"

to this day, i wonder how many of THOSE guys woke up to the fact, that APU's (as they are now called) have actual value and are actually NEEDED these days, for the various reasons.

i would be thinking out loud, if i said that mega-fleets buy so many at regular price, maybe get discounts for x number of units? then of course, they have thieir own shops, so installation would be (i'd guess) cheaper than the dealer that sells them?

i think the "average costs" these days with purchase/installation would be right around the $10,000 mark, give or take a grand, either way?

 

Well GA, back then 2-3K was like 6-7k today.

I've heard figures all over on the amount but from folks who don't have one or are even interested in them. Schneider is just now trialing APUs but only on something like 6 trucks in 6 different regions around the US. Why not just start outfitting every new truck you purchase with an APU? Does the initial extra cost not justify it? I mean they prefer us to not idle but if it's 100 outside they understand it..........your burning around 10-15 gallons of fuel every 10 hour break whereas an APU burns what, maybe 2 gallons? That's a cost savings that pays for the unit the first year and then some............

 

i think it was (at least) once said, the average return on investment of and APU was like 5-6 years in fuel saving dollars?

maybe it's shorter now. to me, makes perfect sense to have them, as we both know the number one cost running the trucks is fuel. they add those doo-dads windage tabs all over the trailer, cab etc, they put on hub caps, they buy aero trucks, but idle the engines......??????

oh well.

 

I had a truck with an APU and didn't like it at all. It seemed to be noisy and I never got used to it. My situations a bit different than most as except for my half hour break I very rarely sleep in my truck. The best power unit that I had was a battery powered unit for AC. It worked well for the hours that I sleep 4AM-. Where it fell short was on the odd hot day that I spent all day in the truck. It had the additional benefit that I could turn it on and leave coming back 10hrs later to a fairly cool truck with NO fuel usage.
My new truck has a newer version of Opti-idle that ends up with the engine running almost contently (boy that's efficient!)
I've thought about buying a truck but then remember some of the headaches of owning your own business and those crazy thoughts quickly fade, I have absolutely no desire to do that again and if you do I wish you well!

 

Of course I'm assuming my paid for itself in a year comment on a cost of around 6k for the unit and installation and fuel costing $3 a gallon. Another question is the shelf life, how long can an APU last before replacement?

Those hub caps are a joke, a d@m joke! They save an average of .04 gallons per tank of fuel. Doing the math, they save about $12 a year in fuel per truck.........big picture, 6000 trucks, that's a savings of $72k. Is it really worth it? To Schneider it is on the big picture. I'm glad we aren't Prime though, those guys got to put wings out on the backdoor, can't go over 58mph........but they get an APU and a very nice non-aerodynamic push bar on the front bumper which robs mpg!

 

That sounds similar to what we have called ParkSmarts. Gives heat or AC, works off the battery. Does great if the batteries are in good shape! Or if you don't have a cooler plugged in and running during your 10. I ended up getting a timer for my cooler, so it cycles on and off like a refrigerator to help extend how long the unit runs before the battery cuts to self preservation mode. Once it goes into that mode, everything cuts off and you have to idle the truck for a few hours.

 

The APU was quiet compared to the TK. I never noticed the APU that much, especially parked with other reefers.

...now I am an insomniac. I have scars to prove it.