I love hearing other hot-shotters experiences! I hot-shotted for four years and put on 400,000 miles. For 284 000 of those miles i ran a 2001 Ram 2500 non-HO Cummins/NV4500 5-speed manual. I got used to transmission failures every 75,000 miles. I didn't tow fast or heavy, 65+/-2 mph and an average trailer weight of 7000 pounds. I ran out of Elkhart, IN where most of the RV companies are, and about 12 dispatching companies. Around town my general impression was half the trucks were Dodges, and the rest equally split between Ford and GM. I ran the old Ram up to 577,000 miles and retired it. Then i got a 2008 Ram 3500 srw with the 350 hp 6.7/G56 6-speed manual. I ran that truck for 111,000 miles and didn't have any transmission problems, but had plenty of emissions system problems and a rear-end failure. During my main truck maintenance downtimes, I rented Fords from Enterprise, and they ran like freight trains, fast and reliable. I put 7000 miles on one in two weeks, and 10,000 miles on another in a month. In the end I had to get out of the business because I wasn't making enough money. But I have a lot of good memories of places I've been and things I've seen. All of the lower 48, and most of Canada.
I guess we just got lucky because we have 14 power strokes from 2017 to 2022 that's just the f250 and 350. We also have 7 f750 and now only 3 f650 . 2 of the 1tons have over 250k miles on them and besides the electric mirror s and one had an issue with the backup camera they have been good trucks . These are oil field trucks in Odessa Texas. We lease from flex fleet and we're fixing to get three Chevys and three dodges will make a video to let you know how they hold up
From your experience is there any loads that are weekend only say from Odessa to Houston or Corpus on Friday or Saturday and then back on Sunday? Or are most trips longer than that. Thanks
@@Matthew-xp6wy We don't haul freight. We are a B.O.P. service company and on average we travel 3 to 4 hrs 1 way and our trucks are maxed out on weight and some are over weight
@@thomas25082 Now that we've had Dodge s and Chevys I wouldn't buy a dodge to do oilfield work they are junk. The Fords pull the best but I like the Chevys to .
@@deronpickelsimer3500nothing rides or steers as good as a Chevy in the HD market, at least in my opinion. The Fords and Dodges do have higher tow ratings and solid front axles but for a pickup that isn’t towing a trailer everywhere it goes maxed out I’d rather have the GM product that rides nice and handles like a car. We have a 2017 GMC 3500 4x4 service truck at work with the Duramax that’s been deleted and has a “stock” tune that feels like around 400hp to the butt dyno and it’s been great. I’ve got my 94 3/4 ton with a 350 and a 96 K3500 with a 6.5 diesel and 5 speed and I love them to death.
Excellent, I love how Alex spoke on off duty time waiting for a load, it definitely impacts your drive time if you're up a while waiting. Most brokers/dispatchers don't want to hear that, when they have a set time their day ends and they get to go home everyday. Thays why I want to work for myself and not deal with the headache of dispatchers, I despise them because they are all the same in big companies and treat drivers like crap. I'm buying a semi truck first then eventually a hot shot truck, crazy these newer duallys are costing more than lightly used big rigs. I would recommend having Alex and Mr. TRUCK together for this 3 way conversation would be best.
I got my CDL in 9 days after being in pkg delivery at UPS for 13 years .On day four I was pulling doubles with my supervisor whom was a certified instructor. This Wednesday after having my CDL for ten years I'll have 34 years and am retiring as a team long haul driver in 2025 . We usually do 4k-6k miles a week but settled into a short run that's only 3500 miles a week. I may do my own thing and maintain my CDL as it's a valuable asset to retain.
I am re-watching this video and I have to say....so good....so good. I am glad you interviewed "Tow Piglet." A great conversation and Q&A; I learned a lot.
23:23 Andre, if you are only doing short trips, like 70 miles for your example, you do not need to keep a log if your within a 100 air mile radius of your office or operation. Look up the 100 Air Mile Exemption rules in the FMCSA guidelines.
@@TowPiglet it may be different in each state, i was a logistics coordinator for a company called ModSpace a few years ago and i covered the orders around the Los Angeles area and those drivers went by 150miles. pretty cool driving gig i have to say, single axle simi with a day cab and a truck bed in the back, those trucks had a six way hitch to hook up to 8x20 to 12x60 ft office trailers. then the drivers were sleeping in their own beds every night.
1968 Indochina we had M-51 5 ton (Cross Country) dump trucks. Rated 10 tons for highway. The frames started cracking, we welded plates over the cracks, they cracked at the same spot. I think it was the twisting of the frame going over uneven terrain with heavy loads. We didn't have scales, no idea how much weight we were loading. Put dirt in it until it spilled out. We also hauled wet concrete in them, same story. We cannabilized the parts and shipped them back to the USA.
For anyone just now seeing this. His concern with the CP4 fuel pumps in the 2019 & 2020 RAMs is no longer a concern, as they have been recalled, and are being replaced free of charge with the near bulletproof CP3 pumps. Just FYI
48re HD was actually a decent unit behind a HO 5.9 Issue was when people would get the regular 48re. Even then that could be built during a rebuild to a 48re HD and the main issue was some valve body 2nd gear shift when not lifting the throttle. The biggest issue with the ram transmissions is the weak torque converters they use. If you fry a TC Clutch your gonna ruin the pump, burn the fluid and lose gears now saying that a 68rfe is based on the 48re is slightly false. Its Rams transmission code 6 gears 8 torque rating Rear wheel Electronic control. It may have similarities but...
Great video!! Andre, I think you guys should have Alex on every year for this EXACT conversation. It is a way for us truck buyers to not only get a balance of new truck performance, like on the IKE that we have all come to love but then a second tangible measurement (like in this video) of ACTUAL hard use and what trucks are good and which ones are not... Or which configurations are not. On a side note, I sure hope to hear more about the new Ram transmission!! Tx guys!! Keep up the great work!
My '88 F-SuperDuty HotShot had a double sleeper and additional fuel tank and was rated for 33,000 pounds. Sold it with almost 900K miles on the 7.3 International, ZF 5-Speed and Dana 80 with 5.13 gears. Loved that truck!
Funny thing about dealerships techs, they could be a guy that just got there from jiffy lube, or Firestone or some other mom n pop shop. Going to a dealer may not get you a more experienced tech (I’ve worked for several dealerships and I prefer a small 10 bay or less shop personally. But a dealer tech won’t automatically know more than I will at this point in my career) going to dealer for anything more than warranty work is a waste of money
Exactly!!!! Dealerships can be “remove and replace” until they find the real problem, they don’t “fix” vehicles it seems. I do most of my own work and have a group of guys that I build classic vehicles with who combined have a lot of knowledge. One is a Toyota technician and he says the pressure is to get the vehicle in and out as fast as possible and he doesn’t have time to fix what is there in non-warranty cars and he feels bad doing the work they make him do on older vehicles. It is a very busy city dealership so some of this makes sense.
One of the reasons the I6 engine is so successful in class 8 trucks is the number of gears those trucks have. The narrow band of peak output needs a lot of close ratio gears to stay in the powerband
Yes. Many people don't understand that a V8 makes more torque and produces it at a lower rpm. In Europe the still use V8 engines. The penalty of a V8 is the increased weight. A V8 Mack is minimum 1,000 lbs heavier. Scania now has one off the lot, 770 hp and 2,730 lbs of torque.
There is really only one reason why the I6 is so successful in class 8 trucks. It's simple, reliable, and easy to work on. Everything is right there. They can use a grid heater rather than PITA glow plugs. Turbo placement and hot side is all easier. If they are still using the v8 in Europe thats likely because the cab overs are already complicated and whats a little more complication at that point. Engine powerband is something that can be engineered. It's been my own experience that the Cummins motors will lug and feel stronger as he said while doing so, but the truth is they can easily rev out as well. A 6 speed is perfectly fine, if your towing heavy you usually will be going slower, just like those big rigs with 11 to 18 gears.
@@CratersFreightersJax People have some misconceptions about all of this. I don't think people think about the fact that motor design is what actually determines torque values. Equally displacement and stroke-to-bore ratios i6 will probably produce more torque just because it will have a longer rod and stoke, but it's not because they naturally produce more torque. you could make a heavily undersquared v8 that makes more torque than a similair i6 that's more oversquared in comparison. It's literally all about engine design. An Inline 6 main benefits are just ease of maintenance and smoothness
I have Chevy, Ford and Ram all in the driveway at the same time. Our Rams hold up better than the Ford and Chevy for us. I was always a Ford man but I can't overlook the reliability of the Rams. One of our ford's was broke down a month ago so they used my Ram. Now I have another Ford in the shop and their using my Ram again. It's everyone's go to when they are working on their vehicle. Just my personal experience.
Just want to add a review of the 2021 GMC Sierra HD DRW. We are a hotshot team hauling cars and our truck has been back to the dealer 4 times for warranty work. First time was on June 6 for an exhaust leak at 43060 miles. The exhaust manifold gasket blew out. 2nd time on 6/22 at 43736 miles for no exhaust brake. 3rd time on 7/22 at 53249 miles for #5 fuel injector failure. 4th time on 8/17 at 60753 miles currently in the dealership for 2 injector failures #5 again and one other and a gear in rear making noises. Although we haul an enclosed trailer it is aluminum and never over weight. We run cdl and DOT numbers so we abide by the weight measures. This truck is headed for the lemon law. I would run away from gmc as they are going far downhill on quality. Our 2017 GMC was more reliable as we only had a couple of fuel injectors go out because of faulty wiring. We put on almost 300k on it before we sold it.
Here in Europe an heavy duty truck, but with less gizmos, could be a huge hit on the market, especially to Farmers and Campers, that need to tow plus 3 ton trailers. The thing we got more similar to a heavy duty truck, it's some cabover light trucks as the Mitsubishi Fuso or Iveco Daily, but with boring designs and no 4WD at an entry price level.
Consensus of guys who have to repair these engines the I6 Cummins wins easily. Plenty of room to get to components and rarely have to remove 5-10 items to "dig down" to where something lives. Also Ford still uses the problematic CP4 pump and Ram OBD is not locked down from reading codes.
They kinda have to to continue to get new vehicles from everyone I doubt Chevy would keep giving them trucks if they say chevys are garbage heavy duty trucks
@@VincentsCache no you can’t but you can’t say a company is crap and expect to receive their new cars all the time. That’s why anytime I hear them say “ that’s disappointing “ it means this is dog shit basicall
@@TheFortunateWaywardSonI know what you're saying and it's not like I think they are malicious in what they are doing I'm mainly focusing on how they say "unbiased reviews" in their tag line but clearly they are softening reviews. I understand why they do it, and I actually think it makes sense but I also feel like they go too far in that direction. Look at Doug D on here, he doesn't destroy cars but he does make a point to show negatives as negatives.
I have a 12’ ram 3500 68rfe. I have 180k of towing a heavy dump trailer with no issues at all. It runs at 135 degrees. Its all about the person behind the wheel
It's not the fuel it's the fact that in the internals in the CP4 it can create metal shavings and that can destroy the fuel injection system the only way to fix that is to do a CP3 conversion that's also the problem with the LML duramax '11-'16 and the early 6.7 powerstroke
Actually it’s all the 6.7s. They are still running cp4s on the 2020+ trucks. They are currently trying to solve the issue with better fuel filtration and adding factory lift pumps.
No it's 100 percent a fuel issue it's doesn't have the right lubrication for what the pump actually needs it causes its self to wear out faster and the fact it's only getting 1/3 of the fuel sent to it to make up for the lack of lubrication is why they are failing Ford is trying to figure out how to fix it because they built the motor around it unfortunately you can't do a cp3 pump conversion because it doesn't have the space cummins and duramax are the only ones who can convert them but they dumped the cp4s anyway in the newer models
@@nicmonson6466 ford has always had lift pumps, thats why cp4 failures are very uncommon, unless fuel contamination, 90 percent of cp4 failure is someone put def in the wrong tank
Not true. Fuel is the primary thing that lubricates the internals of these fuel pumps/systems. The more modern the system, the more insanely tight tolerances the system has to be lubricated. Fuel quality is absolutely critical in modern diesel engines regardless of the brand. Any water in the fuel is also a huge detriment as is also simply running out of fuel causing a 'dry' fuel system even for a very brief moment.
Some good information in this video, but also some bad information. Be sure to research your own stuff. Alex should have a CDL as it doesn't matter what you're actually hauling. What matters is the GCWR. If the gross combined weight rating is over 26,000 lbs (yes weight rating, not actual weight) then you need a CDL for commercial purposes.
I see more RAM trucks doing hotshot work in Texas than any other. I have a 2021 RAM 2500 Mega Cab and plan to get my CDL and do some hotshot work next year when I retire. I'm seeing drivers hauling cars more than anything else.
Love the real world feedback from a professional. It's cost of operations and downtime. These are things you can not test driving up and down a steep mountain road.
The HOS Reg's are a bit more complex than Alex explained here but he did well without confusing the issue for civilians, lol. It is actually possible to drive nearly 11 hrs with a half hour break after the initial 8, so 11 hrs takes 11.5 hrs on the clock, then take a 10 hr break after which one could resume driving allowing you to theoretically drive 13.5 hrs out of a 24 hr clock. Alternately one could eliminate the need for a 30 minute break by splitting the 10 hr required break into two segments where in the example above a driver could take a 2 hr break in lieu of the half hour break, and then resume driving, once they reach a total of 11 hrs combined time driving or 3 hrs after taking a 2 hr break in this example they would be required to take a minimum of 8 hrs rest break. After which the individual would now be able to resume driving for an additional 8 hrs before once again being required to stop for another break. The driving and rest periods basically leap frog each other until one changes the schedule by taking a longer break period or drives for a shorter period, which would reset the schedule accordingly. This would allow a driver to actually drive 14 hrs out of 24 in a given day and continue to do so until reaching the total of 70 hrs total accumulated which at this rate he would do so in less than 5 days, at which time a 34 hr consecutive break period would be required before they could once again drive.
Something you may want to look into, if you cross state lines then you fall into DOT territory. Legally you should register with DOT and stop at all safety inspection points. I also had to add a $1 million endorsement to my commercial policy and obtain an MC number to legally haul other people’s equipment.
This is a very deep rabbit hole to get into. Now, my understanding about the best configuration for heavy towing is the next: -Heavy towing truck (the actual weight of the truck itself). -Long wheelbase (if you can get your axles further appart, it is better) - Wide wheelbase (duallys are that wide for a reasson) -Big power (you always eqnt to be able to simply pull your load out of any situation and have it follow you instead of it controlling you). -Big brakes (even if your trailer has brakes suited for the load, your truck is the primary breaking force and you want those brakes to stop you and the load with or without trailer brakes). Now, I get the confort in the cab is a big deal, it helps you to have a better time while working and beats you up less than a crappy one. Same thing about sleeping in the back if needed. That said, the next place I would actually look into would be steering and suspension. If the truck handles the load amazingly well and doesn't have you fighting it on every turn, lane change or stop it aliviates stress and allows you to contoll it better on any situation instead of reacting to a bad setup that gives you trouble in normal circumstances. Lights would be an absolute upgrade for any work truck. You want bright lights to see the road in front of you at any time and light circumstance. I like redundancy, so I like to have the stock system upgraded and then an auxiliary system installed appart from the original. I have HID on my low beams, LED in my high beams and then I get pods for some more lows and pods or bars for some more highs. I will never get stranded in the middle of the road with no lights. That is my primary setup, ni matter if it is a van, HD truck, mid size or full size 1/2 ton. And I also like having bullbumpers in all the trucks. It provides safety on possible collision, improoves weight for handling, gives you an available towing spot to get pulled and also allows you to push things around if needed. About brands... cummins is the best engine out there, but the transmission ain't so good sadly. Chevy is more affordable, but it cuts expenses everywhere and it taxes you down the road with that. Ford... I really dont like Ford as a brand, probably for what I've seen in the past and how many bad vehicles they had (as well as their horrible transmissions from early 2000's). But I guess they ain't bad. I like base trim GMC or high trim chevy the most. Then RAM with the cummins and finally Ford, but only HD trucks with a diesel and 5.0L coyote f150 options.
First of all I love you guys. I watch your channel because it does help me better understand the trucks and their capabilities before I buy. Now with all that said it's time for your show to start setting up these trucks with the same off road tires with like speaks so we can see who is best on road, mud, sand, rocks, gas mileage, tow and snow. I believe the only changes you would need to make are tires, close gearing and ride height. If you put ten to fifteen videos together showing these trucks in sand, mud, road, towing, rocks, milage and snow views like myself will be glued to your videos and most likely they will become most viewed... Thanks for reading and good luck guys... The Banks Family
I have to be honest. If someone offered me any one of the big three diesels I’d take it in a heartbeat. I own a Duramax. Been a great pickup. Plenty of room for what I need. A friend has a hotshot business and runs nothing but Cummins powered Rams. He loves them. Little to no problems. I had a powerstroke company pickup. Was a great pickup. Pulled with ease. I feel like this fella has a lot of experience and some of what he says is his opinion as he said. Entry level I guess isn’t what I get. Seats in mine are very comfortable and headlights are awesome. If I do buy anything new again I want to try a Ram as I have never driven or owned one. Personal conveyance on the ELD also if you run out of time but need to get somewhere safe. Split sleeper berth helps if you’re tired before 14 is up. Minimum 2 hours off.
33:30 he says it'll log that violation for ever and when audited you'll get a violation. DOT can only audit the past 6 months but all by audits they've only done the past two weeks. And the logging device used to point out your violations to the officer my updated logging device no longer does that. It's the responsibility of the officer to find the violations.
Andre: Great video, you guys always have great content. I have a CDL, but haven’t used it for 20+ years. I used to drive for Werner, Freightliner classic XL/ 53 ft box. We had Electronic logs back then, I think that Company pioneered the program, I used to do my logs on paper as a backup at end of each day, so I could plan, and know when I was out of time. (Also, at the end of each month, company sends a copy of your logs to your home. (Go to truck stop, or get an app, start logging your day, only time you are on the clock, off duty is your time, you are off, counts as sleeping. Try doing it for a month, but like Alex said, you’re not delivering anything. Or driving 11 hrs for 2 consecutive weeks, never run out of time. Hope this helps
Big ram fan here but all new gmc have led headlights. Chevy does not. Funny how epa cracking down on diesels being dirty but we put shitty fuel in them must be a dem thing
ATS Performance Diesel has a conversion kit for installing an Allison transmission on the Ram. Question - Please do a review on the company and the kit by ATS Performance. Thanks for the video with a pro hot shot driver. Really liked the hot shot videos by tow piglet video channel. Good show TFL. Real world information. What about the F-450 for commercial use? Also, cost and reliability for F-450 VS F-350
My dad and I have traveled a lot together in a 2020 denali drw and I can agree that the seats are a bit low but I also think the GMC would have better headlights in the base model.
Over 30 years OTR myself, Self employed as owner operator for 14+ yrs. The equipment you are driving my be a reason to have a Commercial license but there is no reason to Log your hours of driving unless you are being paid to transport and deliver cargo under a uniform bill of lading. Any and all driving, regardless of distance, can be done as a civilian driver without any regulation to your time in the saddle as it were so there are no laws that limit or restrict you as a driver unless you are hauling "For Hire". You can if you choose simply attach a "NOT FOR HIRE" sticker or magnet to your tow vehicle and run indefinitely. Hauling for hire is an entirely different discussion.
Great video ! Let me just say that if we had as many drivers as they claim they are short of, you'd never find a parking spot. Truck stops and rest areas are jammed full every night.
100,000 kms on my 68rfe 2017 3500.....if you are just towing a RV a not maxing out the towing or payload rating of the truck and aren't putting 100000 kms a year on it, the 68rfe will be fine. Enjoy the money you saved and spent on the RV instead of maybe going a little overkill on a HP and transmission package you may never need.
Not to argue with Alex, because he lives with his truck more than I do, but i recently did a 14 hour day towing my Heavy RV with my 2021 GMC Sierra 2500. Here are some things to consider. The seat does go up, I in know way feel I am sitting on the floor. Second, after 14 hours I did not feel fatigued, the seats may seem uncomfortable, but for some reason they feel good. Third, the cab size and the semi flat floor are huge in the 2021s. My 2 cents.
Just found this channel. I've been looking to start hot shot trucking since my current job is having issues with hours and pay. I don't have any commitments to anything or anyone except myself and I don't mind traveling the country since I've been always wanting to travel.
2012-2018 rams for hotshot or 2021+ or 2019-2020 and drive it till warranty is up then delete it and cp3 conversion. I am in the oilfield and we only buy ram Cummins the fords and gm’s have to many issues
Let’s here about high mileage I’ve got a ram with 600000 k and love it ,still in great shape I don’t wanna hear how great new truck are but how great older truck are
This video looks to be 2 or 3 years old but I'll still comment. I'm not a hotshot driver just a truck owner/user. I don't yow very often either but when I do it sometimes gets real heavy. I bought my 1997 f250 supercab in 2000 with about 84,000 miles on it. It's November 2024 I have 277,000 miles on it. The transmission went out around 220,000 miles in 2010 the truck set for 18 months before I could afford a new transmission. This was my everyday transportation until the transmission went out. I bought a Kia Sportage in 2010 and it became my every day car until the spring of 2023 when a girl made a left turn in front of me and totaled my Kia. My old truck is once again my every day vehicle. That 7.3 powerstroke just keeps going. Yes I had to replace the glow plug and injector wiring that runs inside the valve covers in 2022 and all of the glow plugs and injectors. I've been through 5 alternators, one water pump 2 vacuum pumps and one idler pulley. I need new door hinges on both doors now and the paint is peeling off. Not bad for a 27 year old truck. That heavy losd I sometimes pull. It a flatbed trailer on the ball hith with a large mini excavator on it. It's an old truck and these new ones pass me on the hills lime I'm standing still. I'm looking for a new one now I've looked at Ford F350. Chevy and GMC 3500 and just today looked at a Ram 3500. I'm planning on sticking to the single rear wheels as don't feel I need a dually that often (only when I haul that excavator). All these new trucks seem pretty good and dependable but I'm leery of the Duramax because it shears those pins on the crank and camshaft. I'll probably stick with the Ford, all my previous trucks have been Fords and I like the interior and electronics. It will be my everyday vehicle until I add a new SUV.
Fmcsa regulates CDL drivers. If you drive less than 150 air miles and do not cross a state line and return to the starting point, your good. Still have to stay within hours: 11 hours of drive time in a 14 hour span. There is an inclement weather exception that allows 13 hours drive time in a 16 hour period, but it has to be unforseen and only used once per reset period. That reset is 34 hours off. As long as you don't exceed 70 hours in a 8 day period or 60 hours in a 7 day period, you never have to reset. (you must declare one or the other and stick to it).
Very informative 👏 👌 👍, Thank you tow piglet for all the insights Given to make better decision on every day Driving (Hot Shoting) !! Keep giving us crucial information on which Dually is out performing each other for that year (Very Helpful)!!
That's valuable info on the as69 trans. I will look for this when I make my purchase. Until then.... I'll keep my 97 4x4 Dodge 5.9 Cummins /nv4500 5spd. Also The 727 tqflt was the best auto tranny Chrysler made. I know it's an old 3spd but looks like they could have built on that.
My dad bought nothing but GM cars before 1986. Then a couple of terrible vehicles he went Ford and never looked back. I remember him super angry at our new celebrity wagon went totally bad at about 10k. By 70k miles and six years it was completely done. The paint was terrible, the interior was falling apart. I do have fond memories his GMC Sierra that he sold to buy his first Peterbilt. He’s bought nothing but Nissans and Fords, which people told us that they suck, and they’ve been perfect. They haven’t been the best maintained, but they run great. I’ve owned Nissans, Fords, VWs, a Kia and a Honda. I do my own maintenance and I wouldn’t have a second thought buying another one. But I’m sure if I bought a modern GM car they would be great as well. I do like the Colorado… A lot.
FYI - You don’t have to open the hood to check which trans you have Ram HD Aisan 69 automatic trans trucks have a different rear dif covers,,,it’s finned aluminum VS steel.
I feel like the only way andre would need a log would be if they took a new 450 and a 3 car trailer with offroaders loaded up to moab. Or anything over 150 miles while towing 26k+
I know am late to comment on here but this guy is definitely a die hard Ford fan but poor Andre by reading his face expression he looked like he disagree. But we all have our own opinions.
OK guys so you did make one mistake in this video when you were talking about the transmission dipstick location. For everyone out there in video land on American vehicles ( this may not be true on European vehicles but it should be) The passenger side of your car or truck is the Right side. The driver side of your vehicle is the Left side. You always look at it as if you are sitting in it. This does not change just because you are standing at the front of your vehicle looking at it. This goes for cars, trucks, motorcycles, boats, airplanes, and helicopters, even trains. Now on a ship it's just a little different. The Keft side (standing on the deck looking toward the front of the ship is the Port side and the Right side is the Starboard side. Easy way to remember this is Port has 4 letters and so does the word Left.
There are all kinds of truck drivers. But Hot Shots are not Truckers, Truckers drive big trucks that have 18 or more wheels unless they are running super singles, but Truckers drive big trucks, there is a distinction .
Nope. If you look at the demographics on truck selection among hot shot drivers and companies, the ratios are pretty telling. By a very large margin, Fords dominates. Ram has a respectable showing and GM has a a very small showing. These buyers are buying based on what makes them money. So it’s not like they would shun GM trucks just because they are GM. Now I’m not going to get into why this is, because I do t know. I do know that numbers don’t lie. All that said, I would bet there a much more equal showing and ratio between GM, Ford, and Ram in the every day user space. There’s a lot to like about the GM HD trucks and when I was choosing my truck, the Sierra Denali was a very close second to the Superduty Lariat I ended up in.
@@VegasGuy1975 source for these statistics on “hot shot drivers and companies” that overwhelmingly buy fords with a respectable showing by ram and very small showing by GM?????? I’ll wait.
Here is what I learned as a dealer tech - how to get fast at the same job over and over and Microsoft solitaire. Anything else I learned in could of learned in a general shop and would of learned it faster. You go to the dealership because they are a one trick pony. Its a good trick after seeing the same Vehicles day-in-and-day-out non-stop you know what's wrong with them before they ever get in your Bay. And that's what you want if you have a brand new vehicle. Most of those guys in there are not going to know what's going on with your twenty-year-old car because they've ever worked on them or haven't worked on them in a decade.
Alex failed to mention that when you log commercial driving, you are also required to log any other work, as well, as "on-duty, not driving". For instance, if he was being paid for his appearance on TFL (or worked at McDonald's, or did a quick plumbing job for a neighbor who gave him "a little something for his time", it would be required by DOT that the entire time be showed "on duty". If not....big violation for falsification.
@@PhatsoJuggalo806 What does that even mean? People so overuse this "Karen" thing these days. He was educating people and I simply added a tidbit, so that one could avoid a violation.
Andre, we have not heard from you on the axle recall on the SRW F350 Diesel. Ram uses better axles on all its models than Ford. I had the 11.5 AAM REAR in my power wagon (2500). My F350 Tremor has the Dana M275 with 10.8 rear (The recall axle). The Ram 4500 & 5500 also use beefier axles. I checked them all this week. Ford is cutting corners and my next pickup will be a Ram HO Cummings with Aisin. I use SRW only and short bed pulling my RV (14,000 lbs.). You need to discuss axles on these trucks not just engines & transmissions.
Yes like how the ford uses a Dana 60 front axle with a 9 3/4 ring gear and 35 spline axle shafts where as ram uses a 9 1/4 aam with 33 spline shafts. Or on the f350-450 that uses a super 60 with a 10 inch ring gear where as ram still has the 3/4 ton 9 1/4 front in there dually. The f350 dually uses a m300 which is a 12 inch ring gear.
100 air miles, if your vehicle requires CDL B or higher. As soon as your trailer goes over 10,000 lbs, you're in CDL A territory. You have to log if you change your home base. The timesheet exemption he's talking about means you don't have to log if you fall in the 150/100 mile radius rule, and don't change your home base. Then you just need to show proof of hours on duty.
@@TheCurtisLogan I am in the real world and own a 2020 chevy 2500 duramax I ordered a 2022 ford f450 I just dont like when people are biased and fanboys
Just talked about this a day or two ago. My lil work daily is a 93 ranger. May I add it just hit 488,000 on the clock. When not working my baby is an all blacked out Cadillac Ats premium with performance pkg. Huge difference in lights, I mean a HUGE difference! Lol
#1, I thought the Cummins was the truck that didn't have any brake application going downhill. #2, the 6 speed has the same final gear ration and doesn't bounce back and forth between gears, #3, Ford still uses CP4. #4, 16-18 is THREE years Alex!
The answer is to get more truck than you will ever need so you never worry about overloading it or not having a big enough truck for the load. The problem is the 450 chassis cab and larger Fords and the 4500+ Ram and GM trucks are designed for payload more than towing and realistically the F450 pickup has the highest towing capacity of all the medium duty or HD trucks.
He isn’t even pushing his trucks. He is towing a total of trailer and the load of 16,000 lbs. the trucks can tow over 30,000 lbs. he is towing about 50% what it is rated for. But yes 450/550, 4500/5500 are built stronger for towing and payload.
@@davecarroll4086 Oh buddy Dave, you just inspired me to buy a new ford f750 power stroke to haul my 300 lbs. aluminum fishing boat and it might weight a little more on my way home after fishing for a 5 pounder bass 😉😀.
Great episode guys!
No 😂💀
I love hearing other hot-shotters experiences! I hot-shotted for four years and put on 400,000 miles. For 284 000 of those miles i ran a 2001 Ram 2500 non-HO Cummins/NV4500 5-speed manual. I got used to transmission failures every 75,000 miles. I didn't tow fast or heavy, 65+/-2 mph and an average trailer weight of 7000 pounds. I ran out of Elkhart, IN where most of the RV companies are, and about 12 dispatching companies. Around town my general impression was half the trucks were Dodges, and the rest equally split between Ford and GM. I ran the old Ram up to 577,000 miles and retired it. Then i got a 2008 Ram 3500 srw with the 350 hp 6.7/G56 6-speed manual. I ran that truck for 111,000 miles and didn't have any transmission problems, but had plenty of emissions system problems and a rear-end failure. During my main truck maintenance downtimes, I rented Fords from Enterprise, and they ran like freight trains, fast and reliable. I put 7000 miles on one in two weeks, and 10,000 miles on another in a month. In the end I had to get out of the business because I wasn't making enough money. But I have a lot of good memories of places I've been and things I've seen. All of the lower 48, and most of Canada.
So Alex is not afraid to speak the truth. Tell how you really feel! Good for you!
The beat can advice/knowledge you can get
I guess we just got lucky because we have 14 power strokes from 2017 to 2022 that's just the f250 and 350. We also have 7 f750 and now only 3 f650 . 2 of the 1tons have over 250k miles on them and besides the electric mirror s and one had an issue with the backup camera they have been good trucks . These are oil field trucks in Odessa Texas. We lease from flex fleet and we're fixing to get three Chevys and three dodges will make a video to let you know how they hold up
From your experience is there any loads that are weekend only say from Odessa to Houston or Corpus on Friday or Saturday and then back on Sunday? Or are most trips longer than that. Thanks
@Matthew 🫡 they all broke hmmm them chevys
@@Matthew-xp6wy
We don't haul freight. We are a B.O.P. service company and on average we travel 3 to 4 hrs 1 way and our trucks are maxed out on weight and some are over weight
@@thomas25082
Now that we've had Dodge s and Chevys I wouldn't buy a dodge to do oilfield work they are junk. The Fords pull the best but I like the Chevys to .
@@deronpickelsimer3500nothing rides or steers as good as a Chevy in the HD market, at least in my opinion. The Fords and Dodges do have higher tow ratings and solid front axles but for a pickup that isn’t towing a trailer everywhere it goes maxed out I’d rather have the GM product that rides nice and handles like a car. We have a 2017 GMC 3500 4x4 service truck at work with the Duramax that’s been deleted and has a “stock” tune that feels like around 400hp to the butt dyno and it’s been great. I’ve got my 94 3/4 ton with a 350 and a 96 K3500 with a 6.5 diesel and 5 speed and I love them to death.
Honestly best interview in your channel ever. It’s great to hear what it takes to succeed
Excellent, I love how Alex spoke on off duty time waiting for a load, it definitely impacts your drive time if you're up a while waiting. Most brokers/dispatchers don't want to hear that, when they have a set time their day ends and they get to go home everyday. Thays why I want to work for myself and not deal with the headache of dispatchers, I despise them because they are all the same in big companies and treat drivers like crap. I'm buying a semi truck first then eventually a hot shot truck, crazy these newer duallys are costing more than lightly used big rigs. I would recommend having Alex and Mr. TRUCK together for this 3 way conversation would be best.
I got my CDL in 9 days after being in pkg delivery at UPS for 13 years .On day four I was pulling doubles with my supervisor whom was a certified instructor. This Wednesday after having my CDL for ten years I'll have 34 years and am retiring as a team long haul driver in 2025 . We usually do 4k-6k miles a week but settled into a short run that's only 3500 miles a week. I may do my own thing and maintain my CDL as it's a valuable asset to retain.
I am re-watching this video and I have to say....so good....so good. I am glad you interviewed "Tow Piglet." A great conversation and Q&A; I learned a lot.
23:23 Andre, if you are only doing short trips, like 70 miles for your example, you do not need to keep a log if your within a 100 air mile radius of your office or operation. Look up the 100 Air Mile Exemption rules in the FMCSA guidelines.
This is true.
I thought it’s 150 air mile radius
@@TowPiglet it may be different in each state, i was a logistics coordinator for a company called ModSpace a few years ago and i covered the orders around the Los Angeles area and those drivers went by 150miles. pretty cool driving gig i have to say, single axle simi with a day cab and a truck bed in the back, those trucks had a six way hitch to hook up to 8x20 to 12x60 ft office trailers. then the drivers were sleeping in their own beds every night.
But you do have to show a time card and a pre and post trip. If your over 10 k with a commercial plate.
Andre you are one of the most humble solid guys on the internet! Great interview!
1968 Indochina we had M-51 5 ton (Cross Country) dump trucks. Rated 10 tons for highway. The frames started cracking, we welded plates over the cracks, they cracked at the same spot. I think it was the twisting of the frame going over uneven terrain with heavy loads. We didn't have scales, no idea how much weight we were loading. Put dirt in it until it spilled out. We also hauled wet concrete in them, same story. We cannabilized the parts and shipped them back to the USA.
Great Stuff! I have a 2017 Ram HO AS69 towing 16K# and it has been amazing. Thanks for sharing your experiences.
2022 Ford F350 drw. 175,000 miles no issues.
Previous truck, 2019 ram 3500 drw 68rfe trans. 310000 miles no issues.
Just ordered 2023 ram 3500 drw.
For anyone just now seeing this. His concern with the CP4 fuel pumps in the 2019 & 2020 RAMs is no longer a concern, as they have been recalled, and are being replaced free of charge with the near bulletproof CP3 pumps. Just FYI
48re HD was actually a decent unit behind a HO 5.9 Issue was when people would get the regular 48re. Even then that could be built during a rebuild to a 48re HD and the main issue was some valve body 2nd gear shift when not lifting the throttle. The biggest issue with the ram transmissions is the weak torque converters they use. If you fry a TC Clutch your gonna ruin the pump, burn the fluid and lose gears
now saying that a 68rfe is based on the 48re is slightly false. Its Rams transmission code 6 gears 8 torque rating Rear wheel Electronic control. It may have similarities but...
Great video!! Andre, I think you guys should have Alex on every year for this EXACT conversation. It is a way for us truck buyers to not only get a balance of new truck performance, like on the IKE that we have all come to love but then a second tangible measurement (like in this video) of ACTUAL hard use and what trucks are good and which ones are not... Or which configurations are not. On a side note, I sure hope to hear more about the new Ram transmission!! Tx guys!! Keep up the great work!
Once a year ?!?! At least Four times a year would be way better !!
Thank God someone finally mentions CP4 on TFL
My '88 F-SuperDuty HotShot had a double sleeper and additional fuel tank and was rated for 33,000 pounds. Sold it with almost 900K miles on the 7.3 International, ZF 5-Speed and Dana 80 with 5.13 gears. Loved that truck!
At 65 mph the ol' girls was singing with those 5.13s. I'm convinced the 7.3L loved 2300+ rpms. Most people lug the 7.3L and it's meant to run
@@VARITHMS Exactly, it ran best at higher rpms and yes, 65 was about our top speed unless we were drafting! Fun stuff.
😆
Dang an old idi, how many times did you replace the fuel lines?
@@nativeoutdoors1780 Don't recall ever doing that. I do remember head gaskets once and an injector pump or two. Long time ago.
Owning a GMC 3500 I agree the work package is complete garbage. You have to go with the SLE trim as a minimum.
Funny thing about dealerships techs, they could be a guy that just got there from jiffy lube, or Firestone or some other mom n pop shop. Going to a dealer may not get you a more experienced tech (I’ve worked for several dealerships and I prefer a small 10 bay or less shop personally. But a dealer tech won’t automatically know more than I will at this point in my career) going to dealer for anything more than warranty work is a waste of money
Exactly!!!! Dealerships can be “remove and replace” until they find the real problem, they don’t “fix” vehicles it seems. I do most of my own work and have a group of guys that I build classic vehicles with who combined have a lot of knowledge. One is a Toyota technician and he says the pressure is to get the vehicle in and out as fast as possible and he doesn’t have time to fix what is there in non-warranty cars and he feels bad doing the work they make him do on older vehicles. It is a very busy city dealership so some of this makes sense.
the fords used the cp4 fuel pump, but he criticize the ram for having the cp4. plus ram recall the 19-20 and replace cp4 with cp3
One of the reasons the I6 engine is so successful in class 8 trucks is the number of gears those trucks have. The narrow band of peak output needs a lot of close ratio gears to stay in the powerband
Yes. Many people don't understand that a V8 makes more torque and produces it at a lower rpm. In Europe the still use V8 engines. The penalty of a V8 is the increased weight. A V8 Mack is minimum 1,000 lbs heavier. Scania now has one off the lot, 770 hp and 2,730 lbs of torque.
There is really only one reason why the I6 is so successful in class 8 trucks. It's simple, reliable, and easy to work on. Everything is right there. They can use a grid heater rather than PITA glow plugs. Turbo placement and hot side is all easier. If they are still using the v8 in Europe thats likely because the cab overs are already complicated and whats a little more complication at that point. Engine powerband is something that can be engineered. It's been my own experience that the Cummins motors will lug and feel stronger as he said while doing so, but the truth is they can easily rev out as well. A 6 speed is perfectly fine, if your towing heavy you usually will be going slower, just like those big rigs with 11 to 18 gears.
An i6 produces more torque down low than a v8. What are you people reading.
@@CratersFreightersJax People have some misconceptions about all of this. I don't think people think about the fact that motor design is what actually determines torque values. Equally displacement and stroke-to-bore ratios i6 will probably produce more torque just because it will have a longer rod and stoke, but it's not because they naturally produce more torque. you could make a heavily undersquared v8 that makes more torque than a similair i6 that's more oversquared in comparison. It's literally all about engine design. An Inline 6 main benefits are just ease of maintenance and smoothness
I have Chevy, Ford and Ram all in the driveway at the same time. Our Rams hold up better than the Ford and Chevy for us. I was always a Ford man but I can't overlook the reliability of the Rams. One of our ford's was broke down a month ago so they used my Ram. Now I have another Ford in the shop and their using my Ram again. It's everyone's go to when they are working on their vehicle. Just my personal experience.
Just want to add a review of the 2021 GMC Sierra HD DRW. We are a hotshot team hauling cars and our truck has been back to the dealer 4 times for warranty work. First time was on June 6 for an exhaust leak at 43060 miles. The exhaust manifold gasket blew out. 2nd time on 6/22 at 43736 miles for no exhaust brake. 3rd time on 7/22 at 53249 miles for #5 fuel injector failure. 4th time on 8/17 at 60753 miles currently in the dealership for 2 injector failures #5 again and one other and a gear in rear making noises. Although we haul an enclosed trailer it is aluminum and never over weight. We run cdl and DOT numbers so we abide by the weight measures. This truck is headed for the lemon law. I would run away from gmc as they are going far downhill on quality. Our 2017 GMC was more reliable as we only had a couple of fuel injectors go out because of faulty wiring. We put on almost 300k on it before we sold it.
Is that the 2500hd or 2500hd
Here in Europe an heavy duty truck, but with less gizmos, could be a huge hit on the market, especially to Farmers and Campers, that need to tow plus 3 ton trailers. The thing we got more similar to a heavy duty truck, it's some cabover light trucks as the Mitsubishi Fuso or Iveco Daily, but with boring designs and no 4WD at an entry price level.
Consensus of guys who have to repair these engines the I6 Cummins wins easily. Plenty of room to get to components and rarely have to remove 5-10 items to "dig down" to where something lives. Also Ford still uses the problematic CP4 pump and Ram OBD is not locked down from reading codes.
Ford has used the CP4 for like ten years, CP4 failures are very rare on Ford trucks.
@@michaelchristopher8266 lol
CP4 was a problem in the LML Duramax but never heard of pump problems on the Powerstroke.
@@sokodad I have 2 friends, 2016 powerstroke and a 2019 powerstroke, both had CP4 failures, it’s an $8k-$10k fix at the dealer.
@@stgibson2810 what did they fill up their tanks with def? 🤣🤦♂️
This episode was so good. I like that he took a couple hot takes I wish the rest of TFL guys would be a little less middle of the road on everything.
They kinda have to to continue to get new vehicles from everyone I doubt Chevy would keep giving them trucks if they say chevys are garbage heavy duty trucks
@@TheFortunateWaywardSon yeah but then can you really be unbiased if you're inflating reviews in hopes to get vehicles?
@@VincentsCache no you can’t but you can’t say a company is crap and expect to receive their new cars all the time. That’s why anytime I hear them say “ that’s disappointing “ it means this is dog shit basicall
They also have to receive all the new trucks to do their job so it’s a weird spot
@@TheFortunateWaywardSonI know what you're saying and it's not like I think they are malicious in what they are doing I'm mainly focusing on how they say "unbiased reviews" in their tag line but clearly they are softening reviews. I understand why they do it, and I actually think it makes sense but I also feel like they go too far in that direction. Look at Doug D on here, he doesn't destroy cars but he does make a point to show negatives as negatives.
I have a 12’ ram 3500 68rfe. I have 180k of towing a heavy dump trailer with no issues at all. It runs at 135 degrees. Its all about the person behind the wheel
It's not the fuel it's the fact that in the internals in the CP4 it can create metal shavings and that can destroy the fuel injection system the only way to fix that is to do a CP3 conversion that's also the problem with the LML duramax '11-'16 and the early 6.7 powerstroke
Actually it’s all the 6.7s. They are still running cp4s on the 2020+ trucks. They are currently trying to solve the issue with better fuel filtration and adding factory lift pumps.
No it's 100 percent a fuel issue it's doesn't have the right lubrication for what the pump actually needs it causes its self to wear out faster and the fact it's only getting 1/3 of the fuel sent to it to make up for the lack of lubrication is why they are failing Ford is trying to figure out how to fix it because they built the motor around it unfortunately you can't do a cp3 pump conversion because it doesn't have the space cummins and duramax are the only ones who can convert them but they dumped the cp4s anyway in the newer models
@@nicmonson6466 ford has always had lift pumps, thats why cp4 failures are very uncommon, unless fuel contamination, 90 percent of cp4 failure is someone put def in the wrong tank
Not true. Fuel is the primary thing that lubricates the internals of these fuel pumps/systems. The more modern the system, the more insanely tight tolerances the system has to be lubricated. Fuel quality is absolutely critical in modern diesel engines regardless of the brand. Any water in the fuel is also a huge detriment as is also simply running out of fuel causing a 'dry' fuel system even for a very brief moment.
Some good information in this video, but also some bad information. Be sure to research your own stuff. Alex should have a CDL as it doesn't matter what you're actually hauling. What matters is the GCWR. If the gross combined weight rating is over 26,000 lbs (yes weight rating, not actual weight) then you need a CDL for commercial purposes.
I love how enthusiastic this guy is about trucks. He knows his shit
Very cool episode guys 👍🏼
I see more RAM trucks doing hotshot work in Texas than any other. I have a 2021 RAM 2500 Mega Cab and plan to get my CDL and do some hotshot work next year when I retire. I'm seeing drivers hauling cars more than anything else.
How has your 21’ been?
Love the real world feedback from a professional. It's cost of operations and downtime. These are things you can not test driving up and down a steep mountain road.
I love Tow Piglet's honesty. Good chat!
Had a 2019 RAM 3500 dually, NO major issues to 300,000 miles. EGR system plugged up, engine and transmission flawless!
The HOS Reg's are a bit more complex than Alex explained here but he did well without confusing the issue for civilians, lol. It is actually possible to drive nearly 11 hrs with a half hour break after the initial 8, so 11 hrs takes 11.5 hrs on the clock, then take a 10 hr break after which one could resume driving allowing you to theoretically drive 13.5 hrs out of a 24 hr clock. Alternately one could eliminate the need for a 30 minute break by splitting the 10 hr required break into two segments where in the example above a driver could take a 2 hr break in lieu of the half hour break, and then resume driving, once they reach a total of 11 hrs combined time driving or 3 hrs after taking a 2 hr break in this example they would be required to take a minimum of 8 hrs rest break. After which the individual would now be able to resume driving for an additional 8 hrs before once again being required to stop for another break. The driving and rest periods basically leap frog each other until one changes the schedule by taking a longer break period or drives for a shorter period, which would reset the schedule accordingly. This would allow a driver to actually drive 14 hrs out of 24 in a given day and continue to do so until reaching the total of 70 hrs total accumulated which at this rate he would do so in less than 5 days, at which time a 34 hr consecutive break period would be required before they could once again drive.
Something you may want to look into, if you cross state lines then you fall into DOT territory. Legally you should register with DOT and stop at all safety inspection points. I also had to add a $1 million endorsement to my commercial policy and obtain an MC number to legally haul other people’s equipment.
This is a very deep rabbit hole to get into. Now, my understanding about the best configuration for heavy towing is the next:
-Heavy towing truck (the actual weight of the truck itself).
-Long wheelbase (if you can get your axles further appart, it is better)
- Wide wheelbase (duallys are that wide for a reasson)
-Big power (you always eqnt to be able to simply pull your load out of any situation and have it follow you instead of it controlling you).
-Big brakes (even if your trailer has brakes suited for the load, your truck is the primary breaking force and you want those brakes to stop you and the load with or without trailer brakes).
Now, I get the confort in the cab is a big deal, it helps you to have a better time while working and beats you up less than a crappy one. Same thing about sleeping in the back if needed. That said, the next place I would actually look into would be steering and suspension. If the truck handles the load amazingly well and doesn't have you fighting it on every turn, lane change or stop it aliviates stress and allows you to contoll it better on any situation instead of reacting to a bad setup that gives you trouble in normal circumstances.
Lights would be an absolute upgrade for any work truck. You want bright lights to see the road in front of you at any time and light circumstance. I like redundancy, so I like to have the stock system upgraded and then an auxiliary system installed appart from the original. I have HID on my low beams, LED in my high beams and then I get pods for some more lows and pods or bars for some more highs. I will never get stranded in the middle of the road with no lights.
That is my primary setup, ni matter if it is a van, HD truck, mid size or full size 1/2 ton. And I also like having bullbumpers in all the trucks. It provides safety on possible collision, improoves weight for handling, gives you an available towing spot to get pulled and also allows you to push things around if needed.
About brands... cummins is the best engine out there, but the transmission ain't so good sadly. Chevy is more affordable, but it cuts expenses everywhere and it taxes you down the road with that. Ford... I really dont like Ford as a brand, probably for what I've seen in the past and how many bad vehicles they had (as well as their horrible transmissions from early 2000's). But I guess they ain't bad.
I like base trim GMC or high trim chevy the most. Then RAM with the cummins and finally Ford, but only HD trucks with a diesel and 5.0L coyote f150 options.
First of all I love you guys. I watch your channel because it does help me better understand the trucks and their capabilities before I buy. Now with all that said it's time for your show to start setting up these trucks with the same off road tires with like speaks so we can see who is best on road, mud, sand, rocks, gas mileage, tow and snow. I believe the only changes you would need to make are tires, close gearing and ride height. If you put ten to fifteen videos together showing these trucks in sand, mud, road, towing, rocks, milage and snow views like myself will be glued to your videos and most likely they will become most viewed... Thanks for reading and good luck guys... The Banks Family
You are right about Tacoma’s, seat on the floor. All models should have the best headlights possible.
I have to be honest. If someone offered me any one of the big three diesels I’d take it in a heartbeat. I own a Duramax. Been a great pickup. Plenty of room for what I need. A friend has a hotshot business and runs nothing but Cummins powered Rams. He loves them. Little to no problems. I had a powerstroke company pickup. Was a great pickup. Pulled with ease. I feel like this fella has a lot of experience and some of what he says is his opinion as he said. Entry level I guess isn’t what I get. Seats in mine are very comfortable and headlights are awesome. If I do buy anything new again I want to try a Ram as I have never driven or owned one. Personal conveyance on the ELD also if you run out of time but need to get somewhere safe. Split sleeper berth helps if you’re tired before 14 is up. Minimum 2 hours off.
Ram’s diesel engine supplier just got in trouble for emissions issues.
33:30 he says it'll log that violation for ever and when audited you'll get a violation. DOT can only audit the past 6 months but all by audits they've only done the past two weeks. And the logging device used to point out your violations to the officer my updated logging device no longer does that. It's the responsibility of the officer to find the violations.
Andre:
Great video, you guys always have great content.
I have a CDL, but haven’t used it for 20+ years.
I used to drive for Werner, Freightliner classic XL/ 53 ft box.
We had Electronic logs back then, I think that Company pioneered the program, I used to do my logs on paper as a backup at end of each day, so I could plan, and know when I was out of time.
(Also, at the end of each month, company sends a copy of your logs to your home.
(Go to truck stop, or get an app, start logging your day, only time you are on the clock, off duty is your time, you are off, counts as sleeping.
Try doing it for a month, but like Alex said, you’re not delivering anything. Or driving 11 hrs for 2 consecutive weeks, never run out of time.
Hope this helps
Yep, saw same thing with GM 1/2 ton. I got tall kids. We sat in the back, with the front seats all the way back. Didn't even take it out on the road.
Big ram fan here but all new gmc have led headlights. Chevy does not. Funny how epa cracking down on diesels being dirty but we put shitty fuel in them must be a dem thing
ATS Performance Diesel has a conversion kit for installing an Allison transmission on the Ram. Question - Please do a review on the company and the kit by ATS Performance. Thanks for the video with a pro hot shot driver. Really liked the hot shot videos by tow piglet video channel. Good show TFL. Real world information. What about the F-450 for commercial use? Also, cost and reliability for F-450 VS F-350
Great Job Guys, I really appreciate everyone’s perspectives. Thank you
My dad and I have traveled a lot together in a 2020 denali drw and I can agree that the seats are a bit low but I also think the GMC would have better headlights in the base model.
Over 30 years OTR myself, Self employed as owner operator for 14+ yrs. The equipment you are driving my be a reason to have a Commercial license but there is no reason to Log your hours of driving unless you are being paid to transport and deliver cargo under a uniform bill of lading. Any and all driving, regardless of distance, can be done as a civilian driver without any regulation to your time in the saddle as it were so there are no laws that limit or restrict you as a driver unless you are hauling "For Hire". You can if you choose simply attach a "NOT FOR HIRE" sticker or magnet to your tow vehicle and run indefinitely. Hauling for hire is an entirely different discussion.
Great video ! Let me just say that if we had as many drivers as they claim they are short of, you'd never find a parking spot. Truck stops and rest areas are jammed full every night.
Great honest video!
100,000 kms on my 68rfe 2017 3500.....if you are just towing a RV a not maxing out the towing or payload rating of the truck and aren't putting 100000 kms a year on it, the 68rfe will be fine. Enjoy the money you saved and spent on the RV instead of maybe going a little overkill on a HP and transmission package you may never need.
Not hard to put on 100k a year bud. The ram made 68rfe is compete trash
Andre is the version of Anthony from LTT. Super nerdy who gets down to the details of things, which in this version are trucks! 👍🏾
Not to argue with Alex, because he lives with his truck more than I do, but i recently did a 14 hour day towing my Heavy RV with my 2021 GMC Sierra 2500. Here are some things to consider. The seat does go up, I in know way feel I am sitting on the floor. Second, after 14 hours I did not feel fatigued, the seats may seem uncomfortable, but for some reason they feel good. Third, the cab size and the semi flat floor are huge in the 2021s. My 2 cents.
Andre looked a little uneasy at some of the candid statements made by Alex. Glad Alex spoke openly. That’s why he was asked to be on the show.
Just found this channel. I've been looking to start hot shot trucking since my current job is having issues with hours and pay. I don't have any commitments to anything or anyone except myself and I don't mind traveling the country since I've been always wanting to travel.
2012-2018 rams for hotshot or 2021+ or 2019-2020 and drive it till warranty is up then delete it and cp3 conversion. I am in the oilfield and we only buy ram Cummins the fords and gm’s have to many issues
This guy is amazing. Very interesting to hear. And have a lot of talk! Great episode...still 😜
Ford has my respect for not putting obd2 lock and my money
I appreciate your honesty on these trucks.
I wasn’t aware that Cummins had the CP4 on the 19-20 models. All the 6.7 Power Strokes have CP4.
One of the best videos I've watched on any UA-cam channel.
You're better off not to use ATS Diesel to convert a Ram to an Allison transmission program. Use DESTROKED.
Let’s here about high mileage I’ve got a ram with 600000 k and love it ,still in great shape I don’t wanna hear how great new truck are but how great older truck are
This video looks to be 2 or 3 years old but I'll still comment. I'm not a hotshot driver just a truck owner/user. I don't yow very often either but when I do it sometimes gets real heavy. I bought my 1997 f250 supercab in 2000 with about 84,000 miles on it. It's November 2024 I have 277,000 miles on it. The transmission went out around 220,000 miles in 2010 the truck set for 18 months before I could afford a new transmission. This was my everyday transportation until the transmission went out. I bought a Kia Sportage in 2010 and it became my every day car until the spring of 2023 when a girl made a left turn in front of me and totaled my Kia. My old truck is once again my every day vehicle. That 7.3 powerstroke just keeps going. Yes I had to replace the glow plug and injector wiring that runs inside the valve covers in 2022 and all of the glow plugs and injectors. I've been through 5 alternators, one water pump 2 vacuum pumps and one idler pulley. I need new door hinges on both doors now and the paint is peeling off. Not bad for a 27 year old truck. That heavy losd I sometimes pull. It a flatbed trailer on the ball hith with a large mini excavator on it. It's an old truck and these new ones pass me on the hills lime I'm standing still. I'm looking for a new one now I've looked at Ford F350. Chevy and GMC 3500 and just today looked at a Ram 3500. I'm planning on sticking to the single rear wheels as don't feel I need a dually that often (only when I haul that excavator). All these new trucks seem pretty good and dependable but I'm leery of the Duramax because it shears those pins on the crank and camshaft. I'll probably stick with the Ford, all my previous trucks have been Fords and I like the interior and electronics. It will be my everyday vehicle until I add a new SUV.
Fmcsa regulates CDL drivers. If you drive less than 150 air miles and do not cross a state line and return to the starting point, your good. Still have to stay within hours: 11 hours of drive time in a 14 hour span. There is an inclement weather exception that allows 13 hours drive time in a 16 hour period, but it has to be unforseen and only used once per reset period. That reset is 34 hours off. As long as you don't exceed 70 hours in a 8 day period or 60 hours in a 7 day period, you never have to reset. (you must declare one or the other and stick to it).
Very informative 👏 👌 👍,
Thank you tow piglet for all the insights
Given to make better decision on every day
Driving (Hot Shoting) !!
Keep giving us crucial information on which
Dually is out performing each other for that year (Very Helpful)!!
That's valuable info on the as69 trans.
I will look for this when I make my purchase.
Until then.... I'll keep my 97 4x4 Dodge 5.9 Cummins /nv4500 5spd.
Also The 727 tqflt was the best auto tranny Chrysler made.
I know it's an old 3spd but looks like they could have built on that.
My dad bought nothing but GM cars before 1986. Then a couple of terrible vehicles he went Ford and never looked back. I remember him super angry at our new celebrity wagon went totally bad at about 10k. By 70k miles and six years it was completely done. The paint was terrible, the interior was falling apart. I do have fond memories his GMC Sierra that he sold to buy his first Peterbilt. He’s bought nothing but Nissans and Fords, which people told us that they suck, and they’ve been perfect. They haven’t been the best maintained, but they run great. I’ve owned Nissans, Fords, VWs, a Kia and a Honda. I do my own maintenance and I wouldn’t have a second thought buying another one. But I’m sure if I bought a modern GM car they would be great as well. I do like the Colorado… A lot.
Great show. I will very rarely watch a video this long, but I watched the whole thing and didn't get bored. Very solid information here.
FYI - You don’t have to open the hood to check which trans you have Ram HD Aisan 69 automatic trans trucks have a different rear dif covers,,,it’s finned aluminum VS steel.
TOW PIGLET IZ GREAT GUYZ N CHANNEL..ROCK ON ALWAZE...
I like when folks I subscribe to collaborate. Great show.
Best video ever! I loved it! Great info! I also watch tow piglet!
I feel like the only way andre would need a log would be if they took a new 450 and a 3 car trailer with offroaders loaded up to moab. Or anything over 150 miles while towing 26k+
Best interview
I like this guy
I know am late to comment on here but this guy is definitely a die hard Ford fan but poor Andre by reading his face expression he looked like he disagree. But we all have our own opinions.
Alex seems like a really nice guy
OK guys so you did make one mistake in this video when you were talking about the transmission dipstick location. For everyone out there in video land on American vehicles ( this may not be true on European vehicles but it should be) The passenger side of your car or truck is the Right side. The driver side of your vehicle is the Left side. You always look at it as if you are sitting in it. This does not change just because you are standing at the front of your vehicle looking at it. This goes for cars, trucks, motorcycles, boats, airplanes, and helicopters, even trains. Now on a ship it's just a little different. The Keft side (standing on the deck looking toward the front of the ship is the Port side and the Right side is the Starboard side. Easy way to remember this is Port has 4 letters and so does the word Left.
There are all kinds of truck drivers. But Hot Shots are not Truckers, Truckers drive big trucks that have 18 or more wheels unless they are running super singles, but Truckers drive big trucks, there is a distinction .
Andre, i would still check with DOT,about your specific situation, about your requirements,for UA-cam videos.
Now this is the kind of info we are looking for. Nice interview! I’m
5:35 "I don't have any GM experience." "I wouldn't recommend a GM."........ummm, anyone see the problem here?
Nope. If you look at the demographics on truck selection among hot shot drivers and companies, the ratios are pretty telling. By a very large margin, Fords dominates. Ram has a respectable showing and GM has a a very small showing.
These buyers are buying based on what makes them money. So it’s not like they would shun GM trucks just because they are GM.
Now I’m not going to get into why this is, because I do t know. I do know that numbers don’t lie.
All that said, I would bet there a much more equal showing and ratio between GM, Ford, and Ram in the every day user space. There’s a lot to like about the GM HD trucks and when I was choosing my truck, the Sierra Denali was a very close second to the Superduty Lariat I ended up in.
@@VegasGuy1975 source for these statistics on “hot shot drivers and companies” that overwhelmingly buy fords with a respectable showing by ram and very small showing by GM?????? I’ll wait.
Here is what I learned as a dealer tech - how to get fast at the same job over and over and Microsoft solitaire. Anything else I learned in could of learned in a general shop and would of learned it faster. You go to the dealership because they are a one trick pony. Its a good trick after seeing the same Vehicles day-in-and-day-out non-stop you know what's wrong with them before they ever get in your Bay. And that's what you want if you have a brand new vehicle. Most of those guys in there are not going to know what's going on with your twenty-year-old car because they've ever worked on them or haven't worked on them in a decade.
Circuit design
Alex failed to mention that when you log commercial driving, you are also required to log any other work, as well, as "on-duty, not driving". For instance, if he was being paid for his appearance on TFL (or worked at McDonald's, or did a quick plumbing job for a neighbor who gave him "a little something for his time", it would be required by DOT that the entire time be showed "on duty". If not....big violation for falsification.
so be a karen about it?
@@PhatsoJuggalo806 What does that even mean? People so overuse this "Karen" thing these days. He was educating people and I simply added a tidbit, so that one could avoid a violation.
Great having Alex!
Should definitely invite PD Diesel. That guy in my opinion has ALOT of experience with the “big 3” manufacturers in 1 ton+ pick up trucks
And Paul works on his trucks he’s got in his fleet
Amazing video! Thanks for the good info!
Nice job. Love the insight from someone who uses and abuses them with hard work.
Good talk! Imagine these 2 and Mr. Truck on an Ike run!
Good interview, I subscribe to both channels. A great follow on to this would be to get Paul from PD Diesel Power to do a Pt II with you!!
I got a 68rfe and haven't had a issue maintenance goes along way with with them
🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣
Andre, we have not heard from you on the axle recall on the SRW F350 Diesel. Ram uses better axles on all its models than Ford. I had the 11.5 AAM REAR in my power wagon (2500). My F350 Tremor has the Dana M275 with 10.8 rear (The recall axle). The Ram 4500 & 5500 also use beefier axles. I checked them all this week. Ford is cutting corners and my next pickup will be a Ram HO Cummings with Aisin. I use SRW only and short bed pulling my RV (14,000 lbs.). You need to discuss axles on these trucks not just engines & transmissions.
Yes like how the ford uses a Dana 60 front axle with a 9 3/4 ring gear and 35 spline axle shafts where as ram uses a 9 1/4 aam with 33 spline shafts. Or on the f350-450 that uses a super 60 with a 10 inch ring gear where as ram still has the 3/4 ton 9 1/4 front in there dually. The f350 dually uses a m300 which is a 12 inch ring gear.
100 air miles, if your vehicle requires CDL B or higher. As soon as your trailer goes over 10,000 lbs, you're in CDL A territory.
You have to log if you change your home base.
The timesheet exemption he's talking about means you don't have to log if you fall in the 150/100 mile radius rule, and don't change your home base. Then you just need to show proof of hours on duty.
Chevy guys heads explode in this lol. And I drive a gmc
That dude is a ford fan boy and has no seat time in a chevy
@@mattd19902010 calling people names is useless. Put down the keyboard and get into the real world. Posts like this are just petty and unnecessary
@@TheCurtisLogan I am in the real world and own a 2020 chevy 2500 duramax I ordered a 2022 ford f450 I just dont like when people are biased and fanboys
Funny how spoiled people are nowadays with LEDs. Try driving a truck in the rain on dark backroads in 1989.
Just talked about this a day or two ago. My lil work daily is a 93 ranger. May I add it just hit 488,000 on the clock. When not working my baby is an all blacked out Cadillac Ats premium with performance pkg. Huge difference in lights, I mean a HUGE difference! Lol
My 2016 GMC savanna still has headlights from 1989 so yeah, I do everyday 🤣
#1, I thought the Cummins was the truck that didn't have any brake application going downhill. #2, the 6 speed has the same final gear ration and doesn't bounce back and forth between gears, #3, Ford still uses CP4. #4, 16-18 is THREE years Alex!
I'd take bad seats in a Chevy over a 6k warranty to keep a Ford running for 200k any day.
GM will let you down with electrics or cooling system guaranteed.
The answer is to get more truck than you will ever need so you never worry about overloading it or not having a big enough truck for the load. The problem is the 450 chassis cab and larger Fords and the 4500+ Ram and GM trucks are designed for payload more than towing and realistically the F450 pickup has the highest towing capacity of all the medium duty or HD trucks.
Merica!!!!!
He isn’t even pushing his trucks. He is towing a total of trailer and the load of 16,000 lbs. the trucks can tow over 30,000 lbs. he is towing about 50% what it is rated for. But yes 450/550, 4500/5500 are built stronger for towing and payload.
That's why I just ordered a 350 dually to haul my jet ski lol
@@davecarroll4086 Oh buddy Dave, you just inspired me to buy a new ford f750 power stroke to haul my 300 lbs. aluminum fishing boat and it might weight a little more on my way home after fishing for a 5 pounder bass 😉😀.