Finding the Right Cheap Moving Truck
Finding cheap box or straight trucks seems like a simple task, but many parameters need to be set in order to find exactly what you as a company wants. One of the things that need to be taken into consideration is what you expect your yearly mileage to be. A good way to get this information is to take how many moving trucks you have in your fleet and add up all their mileage, get this information for the year, then divide this by the number of moving trucks you have in your fleet. This will give you the average number of miles that have been put on your vehicles a year. Knowing this number will help you find a moving truck that will last more then a few years.
Prior to mid 2010, the market was booming with pre-owned moving trucks. Great places to find pre-owned trucks would be from moving truck rental places such as Enterprise, Ryder, Penske, Mover Supply House, etc…
Keep in mind that if a truck does not have the right specs, that you can lose efficiency. Some of the things that need to be looked for are dock high trucks, crate doors, side doors, granny cab, height of cab from floor to ceiling etc… Dock high trucks tend to be around 5 to 5 and a half feet from the ground, this can loose efficiency with being so high of the ground when using the ramp. Side doors need to be viewed from distance from the back, if the door is all the way near the rear of the truck, this can help efficiency for tight driveways that would require you to park on the street. A granny cab can help add extra space in the truck, typically a truck with a granny cab has a higher ceiling.
Research the truck online look for typical issues with the make and model of truck your are looking at and approximately at what point in the trucks life they happen or the number of problems will increase, consider talking to truck mechanics and getting their insights. From year to year quality brands and models of moving trucks change. It doesn’t matter which brand; International, Hino, Freight Liner, Ken Worth, Chevy, Ford, Mack, or Volve trucks, some models and years are awesome and last a lifetime and others seem like they are held together by duct tape with how frequent repair is needed. Typically around the 300,000 mile and 10 years old the truck probably is at the end of it’s life and typically time to off load. So factor this in. If you are just starting a moving business on a shoe string budget something high mileage might make sense to get you going with intentions to replace it in a year or two.
Be mindful of specs and reviews on a truck, and purchase accordingly. Following these steps can improve productivity and save you a few tears.
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