Tuffguy707

Actually with the bridge laws in Ohio you can haul more with a straight truck than a semi and they are easier to get around on sue of the small sites. That is pretty much all you see around here anymore is 7 axle trucks.

If you look closely you will see that KW's floor slopes up by the pedals which kill leg room. It also pushes the pedals up higher which makes it difficult for someone my size (6'7" )to have any leg room. With this being the case, KW is out for me. 

19 hours ago, kscarbel2 said:

Volvo Group only has one Mack brand plant in the US, that being Lehigh Valley Operations (previously called Macungie by the former Mack Trucks after its location), outside of Allentown. Is that the location you visited?

Yes, we stopped there on our way to a weekend trip to Philadelphia about 5 or so years ago. 

We also went to the Mack museum in Allentown.

Volvo or not I visited one of the Mack factories and I felt like I was walking through someones house. Why? Because everyone was like family who worked there. They where all happy, they took pride in what they where building ( it showed  as each truck went down the assembly line.. ). They looked out for each other, the trucks they where building, and the customers they where building the trucks for. They all even took the time to say hi to me, to briefly explain what each of their jobs where etc. I have been through GM factories and i know peole who worked there, I know people who worked for Chrysler and you do not see the pride a you do at Mack.  It was an experience I will never forget. I was very very impressed. I have always LOVED Macks and i always will but  if you are not a Mack fan just take a tour of one of their factories and by the time you leave you will be a fan.

Yes I did. These pics are of the truck after we repainted it in the mid 90's. 

3 hours ago, 1965 said:

Only main concern (for me) if I was buying would be resale value of the Mdrive; 

I've always thought if I bought a new 1 it would last me rest of my life; but don't think that way anymore with all this new stuff; think  if I was going to buy new I would have in my mind of trading it at the best recommended time; could buy a new year old 1 probably lot cheaper than ordering 1; there again don't know; but that way you could also try something & if didn't like it you would know when you trade 

Thats very true. I was thinning about asking a local company around here who runs all Macks and they have CHU tractors some with M-drives and others with 18 speeds if I could drive them or at least get their opinion on the setups they have. 

If they are pulling the M-drives why are they even buying the trucks with them ? Seems kind of stupid to me. 

I talked to my dealer friday and I asked him more about the M-drive and he told me he hasn't had any problems with them at all. He said he heard of one guy having computer issues which caused one to not shift properly but it was resolved quickly. He said he even has one guy who is pushing a million miles on one already without a problem.

I am really considering the M-drive.  I just can not make up my mind on the truck. 

50 minutes ago, Jarhead Enterprises said:

I personally handle 7 local fleet accounts - 5 (4 Mack, 1 Volvo) over the road and two vocational (Both Mack). WE have a great 30 year MACK salesman in Knoxville. He is old school and handles the majority of our Mack customers - together we would both help you if you want. 865-399-1679

Thank you. 

14 minutes ago, Jarhead Enterprises said:

If you go with a horsepower rating below 460hp you will save yourself a lot of money on purchased protection coverages regardless of engine manufacturers. I recommend the Mack Plan 2 Engine / Mack EATS Engine Exhaust After Treatment System Purchased Coverage Protection matched to the time/miles terms of your particular operations. If you want to build and order a custom truck and your sales guy can't or won't help you and go over the specifications line by line until you are happy and satisfied get another sales guy. It is a lot easier to fix problems and address concerns when they are on paper than once they become steel.

I personally am not a sales guy - I AM a truck guy, a Mack guy and a former fleet maintenance executive that sells trucks. My only goal with a customer is to listen to them, learn about what they want to do with the truck, understand their business and the environment the truck will be operating and then work with the customer to custom engineer and specify a unit that fits exactly what they want to do. You do this as a sales person and you will get repeat and referral business that makes both your customers and you successful. Guys in it for a quick sales don't last especially if you are selling Mack. 1 truck or 100 trucks - the process is the same.

I am worried about getting a underpowered truck as I have had 460's since 2000 in my Macks and even those at times border being underpowered but I feel some of that is due to gearing. I personally do not want anything under 460hp for what I plan on hauling and like I mentioned I want to have the right truck in case i step up my weights in the future so I do not have to buy another truck for the lowboy. Although that being said someday if I do decide to grow and perchance another truck for my business I can always bump the power up on that truck for the heavier loads and use this truck for the lighter loads. 

That is the problem with most salesman ( at least it seems around here) they only care about the sale. They do not know anything about what they are selling and they don't seem to cre about what the customer wants they just want to move trucks. It sounds like you should be a sales guy and if you where I would definitely consider buying from you as you seem to be knowledgeable with the trucks and you care about what people want. 

Thank you.

1 hour ago, david wild said:

I don't understand why people wanting to haul heavy weight want a truck that will do a 100 miles a hour. your either stupid or have never been to a truck wreck with a big load involved, when things go bad with a heavy load they go really bad, most states limit the speed OD loads can go, so why gear to go any faster, kinda like buying 55 ton trailers that will never see 55 tons legally. and if your hauling over your permitted weight than your no better than your local hood stealing hubcaps, your both breaking the law. And no we never haul above our permitted weight, hard to explain to somebody we killed their loved one so we could save a buck.

I don't want a tuck that will run 100 mph I want a truck that will run the speed limit empty which is 70 right now in Ohio. With a permit We are not legally allowed to run over 55mph which I rarely do. I might drift up to 60 down hill or if I see a open flat highway but for someone like myself who hauls heavy loads and who has seen what can see what can happen I think peole are nuts for going faster then that with 80k or more . I think the worse thing i have ever done illegally knowing what I was doing is I went off route a few months ago to avoid a construction area that my load would not have fit through. It was 12'6" wide and the road was 12 between the barriers. It didn't matter at i got pulled over and it cost me. 

1 minute ago, Dirtymilkman said:

Salesmen now just want to sell fleets of trucks. The cheapest package they can put together to get the sale. There's so many options on a truck these days. My last two I ordered, the salesman and I took two days and over 5 hours each day to go through everything. He's old school Mack, he sold Mack trucks to my dad, he eats, breathes, sleeps and shits Mack. He gives you his home number in case you have trouble on a weekend and he'll come in to get you parts or a truck. That's a dieing breed. 

Where is this at? This is how a salesman/dealership should be. It should always be there to take care of a customer no matter what the problem or question you might have. It is good to see you have a good one.

10 hours ago, Dirtymilkman said:

I have a 2015 Titan set up as a milk truck. I've always had CL's before this so I have experience with those too. I also have lighter ch's so I know how those are. Comparing a Titan to a set forward CH is apples to oranges. Titans are made for heavy, uneven ground, extreme conditions. Mine grosses 91,000 lbs and does tons of turning and going in and out of steep approaches. A CH is not made for that. As for pulling a lowboy, a set forward CH with 14,300 front and air ride would be perfect. Unless you're pulling in and out of a lot of pits or forests. My Titan was 9,000 dollars more than a granite spec'd the same except with an mp8. 

As for my Titan, I have 140,000 miles on it. I have had zero emissions issues, zero injector issues and no other issues. Only problem so far it was burning oil. Turns out when the Swedes assembled my engine, they lined all the piston ring grooves up. There was no begging to fix it or complaining, I told them what it was doing and they overhauled it from top to bottom. Even spun new bearings in. As for the turning radius, the titan turns WAY shorter than my CL's with a shorter wheelbase. It's a very nimble truck for its size.  Mine is mp10, Mack 18spd, Mack 3.73 rears.

I saw the parts in an m drive, they don't need to be triple countershaft, they're designed to be single countershaft, the bearings in them are huge. I wouldn't be afraid of one. 

Logtruckman makes a good point. The new era salesmen are worthless. 

Thank you. This is what I wanted to hear. For what I will be hauling I want a heavy enough truck that I am not dealing with issues due to the weight that will be behind it. Eventually I will move up in weight for what I haul but starting out, getting the permits in Ohio for over 125klbs is just to tough. I want a truck that when I do bump up the weights I haul will be able to handle it. 

I am leaning toward the CHU but the Titan is not out of the question yet. I have time so I am not in a big hurry to make a decision. I just wish I could find a salesman who knew more than me. Neither of my dealers have a clue and I am starting to get frustrated. I may travel over to PA. and talk to one of their dealers as I have heard good things about a couple of the dealers over there. 

I am going new because I want to get everything I want. Plus I want the warranty. 

54 minutes ago, 1965 said:

This is what I was talking about with my suggestion; of best warranty money can buy & trading before it runs out if feasible; if you don't know anything about these newer trucks I have another suggestion; you better read up on this forum some more!!

No I understand what you are saying. Yeah Trading before the warranty runs out is probably a good idea. 

Ok I have another question if you guys don't mind me picking your brains a little more. How is the emissions garbage on the newer Macks? I know International has had a lot of issues with theirs and the first thing i do with my Cummins powered Rams is delete everything. have there been a lot of issues with Macks, Is there a way to delete Macks? ( I know its illegal but I'd rather deal with that then deal with what an EGR does to an engine.

After watching the videos ( thank you ) I might reconsider the M- Drive. I really just need to test drive one to get a feel for it and make my decision from there.

Thank you everyone for your replies

I 70- 71- and 90 are as flat as they come. Take state route 250 past cadiz or jump on rt 43 from canton and take it south to stubenville. These are the routes most of the heavy haul trucks have to take to get to sites. Leave bridgeport and head north on 250 and you will not see a flat mile of road let alone one straight enough to see anything coming the other direction. 

I am sorry I am not trying to argue but a lot of people who just pass through ohio only see the interstates. They do not see where we have to take these lowboys. I would love to avoid 250 for example but I do not have a choice if that is where the machine has to go that I am hauling. 

Oh and it will have plenty of chrome. I want it to shine. I am a little OCD about keeping things clean and shiny.

Well in southern Ohio where a lot of the work is it is not very flat, in fact some routes can get pretty scetchy, ( steep grades 90 degree turns at the bottom of the grades, etc. I don't know where people get that  Ohio is flat. 

I am not sure I will like not being able to control my gears. I have always driven manual trucks wether it be dump trucks or lowboys. I too am old school and I think I will stick with either the 13 or 18 speed trans. 

Question though about the Mdrive, Is the only way to manually shift it from the pad all the way to the far right on the dash or is it like the Allison 12 speeds where they have paddle shifters on the wheel? I would think reaching across the dash would become a danger. 

I guess my biggest concern is the turning radius of the Titan. I mean the added hp would be nice if I ever decide to step up my weights over 125k lbs but I need to be able to get into construction sites and many can be tight , plus some city streets where the sites are located can also be difficult to navigate with a truck that turns like a battleship. 

I am pretty sure I am leaning toward a CHU rawhide edition 13-18 speed with e the MP-8 505. I can always buy another truck down the road for the heavier hauls. It is my plan to grow eventually anyhow and a Titan would be a good second truck.

1 minute ago, mackdaddytruckfixer said:

I would go for the CHU Rawhide it is a truck you can take care of and keep for many many years. 

I am leaning this way. 

7 minutes ago, mackdaddytruckfixer said:

I didn't know that. Is the Vision still the cx ?? I know the Rawhide flat front CH looking truck is badass hahahaha. They need to stop changing their stuff. 

It is no longer called Vision as they changed it to Pinnacle. The Rawhide is available in the CHU Pinnacle or axle forward, CV Granite , Or the Titan TD713. Yes the Vision/Pinnacle is still the CX. the Flat front is the CHU axle forward Pinnacle.

23 minutes ago, mackdaddytruckfixer said:

If you are looking at newer Macks I would go for the CHN with the 505hp mp8 with a 13 speed. 

Oh the CHN is now the CHU. I do not know why they changed it.

Well I am still able to get the maxitorque transmissions as of last week when i was talking with my dealer. Hopefully it is still available as i am not sure i want a automatic. 

Whats your opinions on the M- Drive???