Profile For J D.

Thanks for the information everyone. Have a good one. Stay safe otr gentlemen!

Not saying one is better, everything has its place. I want the skill. Funny you bring up dail up, I worked in cable. It’s a reason why dail up is still around and used on alarm systems, old people’s life monitors, every major business etc..

How on earth is he suppose to give you “supporting details” Bruce? And if you reread his comments he said local. Which the percentage of local companies having manual trucks is probably higher than the percentage of otr companies having manuals.

I don’t know a percentage but majority of the local companies where I’m at have manuals in their fleet. I’m not overthinking anything

I have more appliances that those listed and never had an APU, so scratch that idea.

As for manual vs automated, 95% of the large carriers (500 or more trucks) operate auto transmission, so what does this tell you?

You're overthinking things with your research. Pick a large carrier that trains, and jump in with both feet. Stop placing the cart before the horse.

JD, where are you located? Yemen? How did you get the notion that most companies in your specific area run manuals? That’s hard for me to believe until you provide supporting details.

Bird one, the ability to drive a manual is a nice skill but no longer a requirement to be a driver. If a new driver was stuck in concrete on that issue it would be like believing that a dial up phone was better than a cell phone.

I’m going to be honest Chris I completely ignored swift simply because of the negative things you hear about them. Dumb on my part because I know someone else’s experience and outlook can never be the same as mine. Plus when people decide to leave they’ll usually remember the negative first. I will definitely look into contacting a recruiter at swift. Thank you!

Take a look at the company reviews here or look at hiremaster.com. Alltruckingjobs.com (I think) the company profiles will have the info you need. For example as per this website Swift has standard transmissions and Apu's. Although they are ridiculed on many forums, youtube channels etc, they are still going strong. If I were to enter the business again, Swifty would be in my top 5 with company sponsored training. USA Truck has Standards and Apu's.

Yes my plan is to go otr for 3 years straight running hard. According to my research and calculations even if I only make the rookie average during that 3 years I’ll have enough saved for what I need. I’m not even expecting to enjoy being a truck driver, BUT if I do I will go local after that. That’s my main reasoning for manual. Also as I stated earlier why would I jump into anything and limit myself? Also every used kenworth or Peter built I looked up was a 10 speed.

I don’t know a percentage but majority of the local companies where I’m at have manuals in their fleet. I’m not overthinking anything

I have more appliances that those listed and never had an APU, so scratch that idea.

As for manual vs automated, 95% of the large carriers (500 or more trucks) operate auto transmission, so what does this tell you?

You're overthinking things with your research. Pick a large carrier that trains, and jump in with both feet. Stop placing the cart before the horse.

JD, there's a distinction that getting lost in your comments. You asked about OTR & manuals but referenced *local* as your source for companies that have lots of manuals. Most local companies do have manuals but they don't run OTR. Pick up and delivery mostly. As mentioned earlier, most large OTR companies, that offer paid training, have converted their fleets to autoshift.

I don’t know a percentage but majority of the local companies where I’m at have manuals in their fleet. I’m not overthinking anything

I have more appliances that those listed and never had an APU, so scratch that idea.

As for manual vs automated, 95% of the large carriers (500 or more trucks) operate auto transmission, so what does this tell you?

You're overthinking things with your research. Pick a large carrier that trains, and jump in with both feet. Stop placing the cart before the horse.

Ahh.. Thanks for clearing that up Mikey B.

The vast majority of the appliances you've mentioned run on 110v electricity. You will need a power inverter for that, not an APU. The APU/EPU is to run air conditioning and sometime heat, not the 110v accessories you want to use as without the inverter you have no electric power only 12v dc power. Often there is a diesel powered bunk heater for heat so the APU is basically for A/C. The power inverter converts DC power into AC so all your toys can be used. I think you are confusing the two.

Hello everyone. I’ve been searching for the past few weeks and want to get my cdl and go otr. The main issue I’m running into is my wants. Are there any carriers that have manual transmissions and apus? I want to drive manual because 1) that’s what I’ve always driven in my pov 2) I think starting on an automatic is “hustling backwards” and I don’t want to limit myself in anything I do. My reasoning for wanting an apu is I plan on staying otr for 3 years straight with my only break being paid vacation. I want to live as comfortable as possible. Ideally I want a fridge, that I won’t have to unplug, I can keep stocked with fresh food and produce. I also want to to run things like tv, electric pressure cooker, coffee pot, hot plate, and maybe waffle maker. From what I gathered it seems an apu is the only way this is possible as most companies have a no idle policy.