Am I The Slowest Truck On The Road When Hauling 40k Lb Load??

Just got done hauling a 40,000 lb load making my gross weight like 77,500. Had to Scale it 3 times for the right axle weights and move tandems and all. (thankfully they had their own scale as i could use it 10 times if i needed) ( God I hope I never have to do that many on one load..lol) Keep in my mind I'm a rookie driver. Had to go from Dunkirk, NY to Bethel, Pa. Lots of up and down hills. It was a luxury if I didn't have to downshift or brake in a 5 minute span....... and those 5 minute spans were few and far between let me tell you. Including constant Hazard signals and a couple of pull offs to let drivers pass and I even stalled the truck on an uphill trying to get enough torque to maintain a 25-35 in a 50 mph. Each time i downshifted, 5 seconds later I would need to down shift again until finally I missed a gear or something and the truck slowed way down and I couldn't recover in time.....Stall...! On a hill.....

Anyway, is this Normal, hauling heavy. Feeling like your the slowest person on the road compared to the 100's of semi's that you encounter. Other Trucks, that certainly can't all be empty, passing you. and I was I was behind on my delivery time, so I was pushing as much as I could. so its all frustrating. So I'm wondering, Do i Have a Poor engine in my company truck? I don't know how to tell what kind of power i have. It felt like I had the Ford Fiesta of 18 wheelers. lol

Anyway here are the Specs I know.

2016 International Prostar plus IS X15 CM2350 x101 14.9L L6 Diesel 6x4

What is my Horsepower, Torque, etc and Is my truck good enough? Power-wise Average? Decent? Or is it that I have to Get used to the frustration with hauling heavy roads through back mountains.....AARGH!

What is my Horsepower, Torque, etc and Is my truck good enough? Power-wise Average? Decent? Or is it that I have to Get used to the frustration with hauling heavy roads through back mountains.....AARGH!

Your truck is fine, it is normal to lose speed on hills. Given that you mentioned you stalled a few times and you were having to downshift again right after shifting, I'd guess you're downshifting too late. You should be high RPM when you come into a new gear on a downshift. If you wait too long before downshifting, your RPM will be low when coming into gear, the engine will start to lug and you will have to downshift again immediately (or stall).

The grade will make your truck slow down faster than if you were on flat ground, and as a consequence you must downshift sooner to compensate for that loss of speed. In my 13-speed I split down a gear at a hair below 1300rpm when on a hill, and come into the next at 1500. The rpm ranges will vary based on your transmission. Try downshifting before you think you need to, and see if that helps. And don't feel bad. I hated mountains for the first two months of my career, because I had the same issue as you.

Short answer:

Yes, it's normal, and yes, you need to get used to it :)

I pull a lot of loads that put me in the 75,000-79,999 range, and I also do a lot of driving in the Rockies. Sometimes I have trouble keeping it above 25 on the uphills.

Definitely downshift at a higher rpm, you don't want to run it down to 1000 before you downshift. Also, it depends on who you drive for. Some of the larger companies castrate their trucks as well as govern the speed.

Aha I'm might be downshifting too late.....This might be my problem/struggle. Mountain driving still sucks but my shifting doesnt have to....

Explain more about the downshifting on hills

Flatland 10 speed I'm coming off an exit ramp and slowing down......I downshift at about 1000 Rpm and revving up to 1300/1400 rpm and then put in the next lower gear.

Now going uphill ; you s.... waiting for 1000 rpms will be too late. So If I downshift sooner at say 1300 rpm then I dont need to rev at all or do I? ....before putting it in the lower gear?? Is this where I kind of have to be lightning fast on my shift.....so i dont lose speed on the uphill climb.

I know..... This is stuff I should know already....But when you're by yourself...Theres so much to worry about that you don't quite remember what they tell you in training and don't quite remember how you did it

Aha I'm might be downshifting too late.....This might be my problem/struggle. Mountain driving still sucks but my shifting doesnt have to....

Explain more about the downshifting on hills

Flatland 10 speed I'm coming off an exit ramp and slowing down......I downshift at about 1000 Rpm and revving up to 1300/1400 rpm and then put in the next lower gear.

Now going uphill ; you s.... waiting for 1000 rpms will be too late. So If I downshift sooner at say 1300 rpm then I dont need to rev at all or do I? ....before putting it in the lower gear?? Is this where I kind of have to be lightning fast on my shift.....so i dont lose speed on the uphill climb.

I know..... This is stuff I should know already....But when you're by yourself...Theres so much to worry about that you don't quite remember what they tell you in training and don't quite remember how you did it

When you are heavy and attempt to downshift ascending a steep incline, you need to downshift at a higher RPM because the speed of your truck is decreasing rapidly (I think you know this). If you shift at say, 900RPM, it may be too late. Depending on your truck/engine/tranny, try catching it around 1100-1200 and rev to 1350-1400. Be quick...but don't rush and you will find it's smoother. If it's really steep and you are under a 45k load, skipping gears (5th-3rd, for example) may also help get you over the hump. I have several really steep grades in the Northern PA mountains that require me to drop it down to 3rd from 5th when fully loaded. Remember in the higher range, gears ratios are "spaced" further apart, however when in the low range ratios are "spaced" closer together.

Just for the record I downshift on a flat surface at around 900, revving to no more than 1150. Works for me and the half dozen 10 speed Freightshakers I slip seat in and out of. Once you have more experience, this will all become intuitive.

I have an isx as well, you need to keep the engine in the power curve climbing hills or a little above the curve. On that engine it should be 1300 to 1450 rpms. Above 1600 rpms the engine has no power to climb and below 1250 your out of power as well. When I shift going up hill I aiming for 1500 to 1550 rpms. I shift before the engine brops below 1300 rpms. I don't drive a 10 speed so I don't know what gears you are looking for but that the RPM range you want.

One thing you had mentioned is what everyone around you is doing well at least speed wise. Every driver out there isn't set up exactly like you are. Yes some drivers are running a ultra light loads or empty desperately seeking another load and when they pass you it dose make you feel like your the retard clogging up the flow of traffic but the truth is the same as the others have said to you. Your heavy and it's going to take you longer to move and stop. A lot of us drivers have the same anxiety. I've drove dump tucks in an area packed full of ten wheeled dump truck with drop axels wondering why I'm the slow guy. It's not that I'm the slow guy it's cause I'm moving more weight. A lot of trucking/driving is psychological and as hard as it could be to do we could try ignoring everyone else on the road without forgeting about safety. That feeling of frustration when it's not going the way we want it to go is very strong and with the passing of every truck that leaves you feeling like your in last place is building up on you last nerve isn't anything other than us in this position losing our cool. You may have a slightly underpowered truck or you may be in a area that calls for more than most trucks can keep up with but in time this worry will be something you'll be able to share with a new driver that's asking the same questions your asking today. Stay strong and don't loose your cool you got this.

One thing you had mentioned is what everyone around you is doing well at least speed wise. Every driver out there isn't set up exactly like you are. Yes some drivers are running a ultra light loads or empty desperately seeking another load and when they pass you it dose make you feel like your the retard clogging up the flow of traffic but the truth is the same as the others have said to you. Your heavy and it's going to take you longer to move and stop. A lot of us drivers have the same anxiety. I've drove dump tucks in an area packed full of ten wheeled dump truck with drop axels wondering why I'm the slow guy. It's not that I'm the slow guy it's cause I'm moving more weight. A lot of trucking/driving is psychological and as hard as it could be to do we could try ignoring everyone else on the road without forgeting about safety. That feeling of frustration when it's not going the way we want it to go is very strong and with the passing of every truck that leaves you feeling like your in last place is building up on you last nerve isn't anything other than us in this position losing our cool. You may have a slightly underpowered truck or you may be in a area that calls for more than most trucks can keep up with but in time this worry will be something you'll be able to share with a new driver that's asking the same questions your asking today. Stay strong and don't loose your cool you got this.

Thanks Butch, I really needed that "Mental Pat on the Back" It was very frustrating and will probably continue to be for awhile till I get used it. It didn't make me want to quit trucking.. (although It did cross my mind, briefly...of, course..) But it made me think that I might want to switch to a Broader area beyond the Northeast, U.S.......Arkansas; Wyoming..etc lol....

While the slow moving on hills did frustrate me.....What has frustrated me more was some of these spots I have to try to back into....In CDL school and company training; the areas to practice backing in are wide open..but that's surely not always the case in real life trucking......I just had one(Small Drop Lot) that after I did like my 10th-plus pull-up, I decided to abandon the spot. I was so frustrated and upset at myself that I almost just dropped the trailer across the front of a bunch of parked trailers and let the company find a way to move it....Although its not really that particular companys fault that I wasnt skilled enough to park it but, I didn't care at that moment, It was one of only 2 spots available. ( blind-side, straight backing down a "dead-end" part of the lot for 200+ feet first before starting any kind of turning maneuver), I decided to reluctantly give the other spot a try. a More difficult spot and got it in with only 4 pull-ups...Miracle...I say...lol

Anyway, I got off topic there......Thanks for the words of encouragement......

When I shift going up hill I aiming for 1500 to 1550 rpms. .

I played around with the shifting advice from everyone who replied. And it got a lot better, thank you guys very much.......But ; it seems like I'm killing the engine at 1500 rpms when climbing those long hills.......My Newbie Brain is screaming at me to... Upshift! Damn it Can't you hear your Engine "Crying"......and when I gave in to it thinking I might be ok to upshift, I paid the price.....Engine went immediately down to 1000 Rpms and I had to downshift back again to the same gear but now I lost a little momentum(speed) in the process.

Am I hurting the engine in anyway keeping it at that 1450-1500 Rpm for like 5, 10 minutes or so until I crest the hill...?

For example...40-45 mph @ 1200 Rpm is my normal shift range(flat land) to upshift into 9th gear. But if I'm in 8th gear on a hill and my tach is reads 1500 and I'm doing say 40 mph....I've been trying to keep it there.....And When I crest the hill and my rpms start rise slowly beyond the 1500 and my speed starts creeping to say 45-ish. Then I'll upshift.. So again....My engine is fine at that 1500 RPMs for a long duration?

You're not going to hurt that engine, trust me. It'll start winding out around 1800 rpm and even then it may sound as if it's begging you to stop but it'll just keep going. These trucks are built to be rode hard and put away wet, not to mention, most of the engines are set up for durability and longevity. At 435 hp from the factory, there's still plenty of ponies under the hood that haven't been tapped into yet because of the factory settings so keeping it in the top end of the power band to climb a hill isn't going to hurt it in the least.