I realize that most of the trucks at Ruan Truck Sales (based out of Des Moines, IA) are of the high mileage variety (700K+). Was wondering if anyone has dealt with them.

Looking at a couple of International 9400's they have. Will pull ECM report on them and Ruan has maintenance records. Plan on bringing along one of the best mechanics I know (promised him $25/hr from the time I pick him up to the time we get home and will buy lunch at a sit down restaurant).

Any experiences with them and equipment they sell would be greatly appreciated!

 

I have had excellent service out of my 9400. If you find one you like, you can take the serial number off of the engine and call a engine distributor or dealer. They can tell you anything that has been done on the engine. All they need do is plug in the serial number. It is a good idea to take a good mechanic with you. Good luck.

 

Thanks, Gman. I have been in a couple of 9400's in the past and really liked them for their durability and ease to work on. Not the beauty at the ball, but excellent trucks. Was bringing along a good mechanic and wanting to take it to a Cummins shop as well. Will take your advice and have the serial number off the engine ran up and see what comes out on the computer.

Looked like a good starter truck to get the ball rolling. Been driving for about 2 decades and getting the o/o bug. Not for just to get my name on the door and have a batch of chicken lights, but as a strictly business move. Been running spreadsheets for over a year now and, even with the economic downturn, am getting ready for the dip into the pool. Sometimes, just as in stock investing, the ideal time to jump in is when everyone else is jumping out. Only time will tell.

 

That's called Contrarian Investing, as against the "Herd Mentality". The former has held me in good stead more often than I can count, when it came to stock-picking.

When I studied Economics ( a long, long time ago ), I read that quite a few big companies actually invest in more facilities / infrastructure when the economy is soft, primarily due to lower costs. By the time capacity is in place, the economy usually starts recovering, which means that these companies would now be perfectly positioned to utilise the new capacity, sell more, and get better prices ; whereas their competitors would start expanding capacity when the economy is strong, leading to much higher costs.

Sounds like the same principle would hold true in trucking. When there's a shake-out in the market, the supply of trucks would outpace demand amongst potential truck-buyers, leading to lower prices.

Just thinking aloud.

 

Like most things in life, it's all about timing. If you don't get stuck with an underperforming asset for too long, you may have a good investment. However when business picks up these companies first have to recover their losses. Depending how long they were in a loss position determines how good /bad the investment was. Ah! Timing, if we all had a crystal ball

 

Very true !! One needs to have very deep pockets and the ability to hold on to an under-performing asset. But I guess, as per their calculations, the costs of carrying an underperforming asset would be less than the costs of acquiring that asset and having it fully operational in a hot economy.

Having said that, it also probably depends upon what sector of the economy one operates in. Wonder if it would hold true in trucking !!

 

The key is in having the available cash to weather the storm. Things may seem bleak to some, but there is always light at the end of the tunnel. If you can keep your debt low and cash in your pocket, you should be able to do all right.

 

Sounds like a fantastic idea, he'll be able to look for things you've never even heard of!

For example, I know on Volvos generally it's hard to grease the cross shaft nipples, and they're easily missed. This causes the cross shaft to wear, and engage crooked!