Which straight truck?

Mike99 · Oct 9, 2012

Hi. I need some advices . I want to buy a straight truck. I find two.
First, 2004 International 4400, autom Allison trans, 380 kmiles with $25 000.
The second one is a 2007 Freightliner M2 106, autom trans,C8 engine ,370 kmiles with $35 000. Which one is the better buy?Thanks

BigCat · Oct 9, 2012

I would go with option 2. Still new enough to lease on anywhere. You could probably get the difference in the price back by running it longer.

tenntrucker · Oct 9, 2012

The Cat C9 is a far better engine than the International.

Sent from my DROID X2 using Tapatalk 2

aquitted · Oct 9, 2012

I would have to go with option 2 dont forget to look at box dimensions and door opening dimensions

Mike99 · Oct 9, 2012

tenntrucker said:
The Cat C9 is a far better engine than the International.

It is a C8. Any major difference between C8 and C9?

tenntrucker · Oct 9, 2012

Never heard of a c8, figured it was typo

Sent from my DROID X2 using Tapatalk 2

RETIDEPXE · Oct 11, 2012

If the Cat is a C9 (B50 life of 750,000 mi.s), better then a C7 (B50 life of 450 - 500,000 miles). Maybe it's a bored over C7 and somebody is calling it a C8, the number closely associated with the liter displacement. Cat did not manufacture a C8.

Something else to consider, some '07 M2106 were mnfctrd w/ an '06 C9, so no Diesel Particulate Filter, and Cat ACERTs do not have any form of EGR which is a big plus. There have been plenty complaints of the HUEI system on ACERTS, however, there is a report on a construction company who had repeated injector failures and they found switching to the recommended Cat high efficiency fuel filters solved their problems. Caterpillar is using a 2-micron secondary filter, while Cummins is using a 10- or 15- micron filter, depending on the engine, and other engine makers fall in between those two extremes. Here's a good read on the subject; http://www.nicktane.com/images/February HDT Fuel Article Part II.pdf

Deville · Oct 11, 2012

I would go with option 2. I think the 04' Int'l was the first year for that design & had it's fair share of issues.

jt1980a · Oct 12, 2012

Both International and Cat motors are basically the same. Either engine is a pile. One thing to keep in mind is that the Freightliner uses better mechanical parts than the international. Such as wheel bearings, timken (freighliner) -vs- Hyatt (International). There are other good points to the freightliner but there is one bad point. The Freightliner 45 mph death shake. I own both International and Freightliner. If you are looking for a truck that will last for a long time I would consider a PaCar brand (peterbuilt and Kenworth) with a cummins engine (PX8). A little more money and not as aerodynamic or nice inside but the cummins engine will get you 25% better fuel mileage and last 200% longer.