Please Allow Me To Get Something Off My Mind...

OS, We love it that you have the cojones to put it like it is.. TruckingTruth in action.

My applause to you, Sir.

I look at it this way. The reason you guys are hard on folks about lease is the overwhelming reality of failure. Yes, that shiny, pretty new truck is very appealing and the gross numbers really make it seem like a sure win. To run a truck as a lease or O/O takes a great understanding of how to run a business, something most people lack. It also helps to have some knowledge of mechanics to save a bit of money at times too but that's a completely different topic. For a person who understands business and taxes, it can be lucrative but as has been brought up several times, most can't handle it and wind up seriously in debt.

I can relate to this through my experience of buying a restaurant. I had a couple years of business in college, and am a well liked person in my area. The first few weeks I was ecstatic with the money I was bringing in, that is until my accountant went over the monthly report with me. Over 3 grand in the hole my first month. I owned that restaurant for exactly one year before I went bankrupt. So, it looks good on paper, (as the former owners books made it appear), but it t'aint always easy for sure.

Well, if it makes any statistical point, I'd share that I've been driving now since April last year. I am sitting in my forth assigned truck due to break downs. First truck quit 3 times over the same injector problems (severe loss of power). Second truck I broke a U-Joint climbing a grade to a Flying J (exit 146 off I-79) with a full load (total weight was 79840 lbs). Third truck quit on me with some ECC and ECU error codes (computer kept shutting engine off). Now in my fourth assigned truck and doing OK so far (had it all of about 4 days now).

Point is, THERE IS NO WAY, I'd buy one of these pieces of junk, with as much problems as I've seen from them so far.

The cost of sending out 3 wreckers to rescue me has to be quite expensive.

Oh yea, and just for something for you all to ponder over, ------ YTD INFORMATION ------ GROSS 36446.07

as company driver.

Old School: Thank you for taking the time to document an issue that you needed to get off your chest. I, for one, appreciate the points you made in this post.

For Kenneth: Is the following "YTD" gross from 1/1/2016?

Oh yea, and just for something for you all to ponder over, ------ YTD INFORMATION ------ GROSS 36446.07

as company driver.

That's last year's YTD gross 2015. I started driving at the end of April.

Great post OS. Ya'll knew I went lease a tear and a half ago. No one, I repeat no one here jumped on me at all. We are all different with different situations. I did ok at it and it filled my needs at the time. Things change in this world, and when it no longer fit my needs I went back to being a company driver that now suits my needs. I knew what I was getting into and things went pretty much as planned. If ever anyone wants to know more I'll be happy to share the information. I did well with alot of hard work but my take home was approx. 1/3 of what I grossed. The tax breaks was my primary concern and I did well there also. I am much more relaxed without having to deal with the business aspect and just driving.

Great post OS. Ya'll knew I went lease a tear and a half ago. No one, I repeat no one here jumped on me at all. We are all different with different situations. I did ok at it and it filled my needs at the time. Things change in this world, and when it no longer fit my needs I went back to being a company driver that now suits my needs. I knew what I was getting into and things went pretty much as planned. If ever anyone wants to know more I'll be happy to share the information. I did well with alot of hard work but my take home was approx. 1/3 of what I grossed. The tax breaks was my primary concern and I did well there also. I am much more relaxed without having to deal with the business aspect and just driving.

Your numbers seem to be about correct. There is a driver here that the way he figures things is 1/3 to the truck for tires and fuel, 1/3 to the company for taxes, licensing, insurance etc and 1/3 to the driver(him).

Met a guy the other day that purchased a 2008 truck 6 months ago and now needs a new motor but he does not have a pot to **** in or a window to throw it out of. He is out of work and still owes that payment on the truck.

As a lot you know, I am a big proponent of owning your own truck but the key word is owning. Leasing to me is a bad way to say you have your own truck but 95%, or more, of those drivers NEVER end up with the title in their hands.

I have ideas on how things should be done and I have some experienced help but I also realize that I am not ready for my own truck yet. People getting into this right out of the box have an infinitely higher chance of failure than someone that has the patience to learn first. You would never dive into the water without first knowing how deep it is. Same goes for owning a business of any type.

Old School, once again a good informative post. And you give a whole new meaning to "Let your fingers do the walking"

Old School - I love that you're calm when you respond to people on the forum. Don't let those buttfaces make you feel guilty for providing rationale for your viewpoint on leases.

You brought up several valid points. People not being able to discern between net and gross do not need to be leasing. Anyone who jumps into a lease without several months of thought and preparation, or years of prior of experience, is probably setting themselves up for failure.

Why did I tell people not to voice their opinion on my possible lease? I've utilized the search bar. I've combed through videos on youtube and other forums to find out people's opinions on leasing. Why am I skeptical about the people who have negative viewpoints? They generally don't personally lease at Prime. I compare it to someone financing a vehicle for 22% when they could have gone down the street and financed it for 12%. Different leasing terms for different companies.

Why else am I skeptical about people's opinions on the forum? I personally know a man that is leasing. His father has had a handful of successful leases at Prime too. He showed me his pay stubs when I started asking for specifics. I challenged him when he told me he brought in 2600 one week NET. He then showed me the next week where he was down for 3 days due to repairs, 600 NET. Yes, this is after tire fund, emergency fund, etc etc. What does this not include? Health insurance and taxes. You can throw around whatever numbers you'd like to about taxes, but damn near everything is deductible.

I then asked why the heck is everyone complaining about leasing at Prime. He told me about a kid who was losing hundreds of dollars each week on fuel. You have a two hour window to get your reefer fuel and Prime covers it. Also, the guy was fueling out of network and not receiving the company discount. Have a lead foot? Slow down. Don't have an emergency fund? You're running a business and crap comes up you need to cover. Not setting money aside for taxes? You're going to fail.