I really do not know what to think about the problems we keep having. A couple of weeks ago, our turbo actuator went out and we ended up driving 1300 miles under load without a turbo. It sucked, but on that load, our freight was only 200 pounds and the route was from Iowa to Florida so there weren't any mountains to deal with. What we thought at that time was a terrible drive, we now know was only a nuisance.
We know this because that new turbo actuator that was installed two weeks ago failed while we were on a load from Alabama to California. This time our freight was 6100 pounds and we had mountain after mountain to deal with. Our total trip was 2230 miles and the problem began when we were in Tucumcari, NM. That left us with 1160 miles to our delivery. Sheer torture. I think we drove most of those miles with our flashers on. Every time we encountered even the slightest incline, the truck would lose speed and there was nothing we could do except downshift and put the flashers on when we got below 45 mph.
It was a test of our patience and determination. We were not giving up that load if we didn't have to. We wanted the revenue from the load to cover any repairs that we were going to have to make to fix the truck. Of course, we didn't know for sure that it was the actuator until we were able to get to the dealership and have it looked at, so there was the possibility that our turbo itself would need replacing so we were preparing ourselves for a $2500 repair bill.
Fortunately, the load had plenty of time on it for delivery. In fact, it had an entire extra day. But because this was a weekend load, we weren't able to stop into a dealership and get the repair made on our way since they were all closed and at home nice and comfy and not at all concerned about us and our problems. Problems that it turns out is caused by poor workmanship. It was indeed a faulty actuator. Two weeks? Two weeks is all it lasted? How can this be? We pay dang good money for parts and labor and I expect more than two weeks! Sure, it was covered under warranty. But what about our down time? What about the frustration of driving over 1100 miles through mountains with no turbo? What about that?
I asked the service counter guy if that was unusual to see a part go out after two weeks and he said no. He said unfortunately they get a lot of angry truck drivers who are upset because their parts aren't lasting. I asked him where these parts are coming from and he said Asia. I don't know if he really knows or if he made that up, but wherever they are coming from, it needs to stop. How about making them here in America? How about holding manufacturing companies responsible for quality parts? We would be money ahead if we had to pay a little more for a quality part that will keep us running rather than paying less money for a part that isn't going to last and is going to cost us downtime, potentially a tow bill and a loss of a load.
What do I know? After all, I'm just a driver!
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