w900's or comparible trucks

Hello,


I am looking to buy a new to me semi to haul feed. All my runs will be 80k #'s with a 13'6" tall, 53' long, walking floor, box trailer. Mainly through Arkansas and the surrounding states. With the majority of my runs staying around 500 miles and ending down dirt roads/pastures. Originally I was wanting a Kenworth T2000 with an ISX and Volvos with the lower table bunk for my boys but the price or milage is to high. I am currently lookin at W900's with 13speeds. I am wondering about the best bang for my buck combination truck and motor, for my hauls. Also I will have the occasional flat bed oil field hot shot runs.


For example the pros and cons between a Cummins N14 and Cat 3406e? Both with 3.70 gears.


Also what is the best years, in your opinion, for these? IE: tunable horsepower, longevity, type of freon(R130A vs. R12), expected milage, type of cabin, etc...


The N14 is a 96' model with 500k and the Cat is a 95' with 450k.


Finally in your opinion what are some other truck combinations I should consider for my application?

Currently I drive an 01' Columbia day cab with no fairing. I consistently get 5.7-6.3 mpg. I have never gotton less than 5.3 and have managed 8mpg in that brick. lol (edit: Has ISX)


Thank you for your time,

 

Thank you for your reply. That turned up c15 sounds like a beast!

 

Thank you for the reply! Why would you consider 2000-2002 and a 6nz serial number to be better?

 

I had nothing but good luck with the two isx's I drove. Until an imperfection in the casting caused a leak on a cooling chanel. Found out that you can't weld a isx block but you can any of the older blocks ddue to metal composition. Fixed it the best I could. It went from leaking about a gallon every 8 hours to about quarter gallon every 20 or so.

 

I drove a water truck for a summer with a Detroit and loved it! It fit my driveing style to a t. Now that Im looking at such an investment the shear amount of parts in a Detroit worries me. The initial cost and parts for a Cat is a concern to. To me that left Cummins. But pulling the trigger on such a large investment is making me presue all options.

Of course fuel milage is a concern but to me reliability is bigger and resale ability is comeing into play. You know I'm sure I'm like just about any other driver out there. Concerned about the overhead, buying American, and most of all getting home.