The semi truck or 18-wheeler is a beast that reigns the road like a king. These types of trucks are formed with a combination of a tractor unit attached to a trailer. The sight of a semi truck cruising down the Interstate is a sight to behold. To be sure, kids and adults alike are amazed at the size and looks of these vehicles.
Some people are scared of semis and don’t like driving right next to them. We don’t blame you, semi trucks are huge and rather intimidating. But if you are a kid in the back seat of the car, semi trucks are a source of entertainment and fascination.
Big Truck Hoods, your source for Freightliner, Hino and Kenworth hoods and fenders, offers these facts about semi trucks that you probably didn’t know.
Semi Trucks Weigh a Lot
Semi trucks are more than just tall and long, they weigh a lot as well. The average loaded weight of a semi truck is right around 80,000 pounds. Of course, some truck haul heavier materials and can weigh as much as 170,000 pounds.
Freightliner Is King
There are several companies that make semi trucks including Mack, Hino, Kenworth and International. However, Freightliner is king. In 2015, Freightliner trucks had nearly 40 percent of the market share for semi trucks.
Registration
Semi trucks cover a lot of ground, so you can expect them to be registered all over the country. Then it might come as a bit of a surprise to discover that the vast majority of trucks are registered in three states: California. Florida and Texas.
How Many Gears?
You may have driven a car with four or five speeds, if it wasn’t an automatic. Semi trucks do not have automatic transmissions and can have up to 18 gears. It can take a lot of practice navigating your way through so many gears. It gives you quite a workout as well.
1,000,000
You can be very happy if you buy a car and it keeps running for about 200,000 miles. Consider it a good investment. To get to this point, you would have your car on the road for about 11 or 12 years.
Here is an interesting fact: The engines of semi trucks are designed to last a little longer, up to one million miles. That is a serious amount of driving.
Transporting Goods
Every time you see a semi on the road, it is probably full of goods traveling to their destination. You might think that transporting goods by semi truck is outdated, but the logistics make sense. Trucks account for about 70 percent of all domestic freight in the United States and Canada and Mexico as well.
Truck Living
Many semi truck drivers live in their trucks while they are on the road. Driving a truck from the east coast to the west coast will take several days and drivers will want to be efficient about resting and sleeping.
The best way to catch some sleep on long journeys is to get your shut-eye in your truck.
And if you are in need of a truck fender or bumper, contact today. We can help.