Someone define 'glider'

Truck that is sold with 2 of the following not installed at factory. Engine, transmission or rears.

 

what i was told was a glider was for someone that had a title to a truck that has been wrecked or no longer road worthy and they just dropped there own engine in the truck but i have seen 2013 gliders on ebay and they have the engine and everything in them

 

It means a new truck without a driveline, but otherwise complete. Some can be ordered with or without drive axles. There original intent was if you had an accident and the cost of repairs exceeded the cost of the truck, but your engine and trans are still good, you could order a new truck without the driveline. It was generally about 20% cheaper than buying a new truck. We had a 1999 Sterling that wrecked in 2003. We ordered a glider and built a 2003 and used the 99 engine trans and rear.

Nowadays, they are often built to dodge emissions. You can buy a 2014 glider and put an pre-emissions engine in and trans in and legally the emissions only need to meet the requirements of the engine year. This loophole will probably eventually close as the government tightens it's grip on emissions.

 

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/2013...rms=clkid=4951873416812538140&forcev4exp=true this is a glider kit they sell on ebay its 134,500 dollars and you can get it turn key ready

 

yeah i seen that when i was looking at some other trucks and had to ask my dad what a glider was

 

Think of it similar to a kit car. You can get a kit car, either assembled, or you do it yourself. You can take that old Chevy small block and throw it in if you want. This is basically the idea behind a glider... it is a kit truck. It is ordered thru the parts arm of the OEM and not thru normal new truck process. The factory does all the major assembly, you just drop in your own engine and components. The title/registration process is the same as for a kit car. All that is required is that it meet FHWSA, FMCSA, and DOT standards.

My 2013 FL Columbia glider, complete and ready to work, was $112K and no FET.

I am not so sure that the loophole on the emissions will be the primary motivation for government to close the loophole on doing this. They want money. They are missing out of a basket full of cash on every glider build. They will eliminate the tax incentive before they get to emissions. They will let them be built, at least for a while, and will change the tax law to eliminate the avoidance of FET. So far, it hasn't made it on the radar enough to really get their attention. Stay tuned.