LOOKING COOL SAVING FUEL
THE LATEST PROJECT FROM CLINT MOORE
This months “creation” was built for John Angle of Denver, PA. After driving a neat 2006 Pete 379 flattop that John purchased from Clint a few years prior, he decided to order a new truck for better fuel mileage. But he still wanted to look good. His old flattop was getting about 4 mpg and now his new 389 (pictured above) is getting 5.5 mpg - and John did not change his style of driving at all. In today’s tough times, truckers have to work smarter, not harder, if they want to survive. And if you do the math, John is saving well over $3,000 a month on fuel now, and he gets to drive a brand new truck.
John has been trucking for 27 years, but he did not grow up in a trucking family. At 17 years old John started working for a small construction company. When he got frustrated with having to rely on someone else to deliver his machines, he learned how to drive and began doing it himself. A short time later he found himself hauling milk, and then he transferred to a moving company.
When John purchased his first truck, a 1980 Pete COE with an 8V92, he did not even have a job. But that did not last long. John leased on with Marck Express out of Ohio, hauling LTL freight on a flatbed. It was there that he met Eddie Braun, who would later introduce John to Clint. John’s second truck was a 1984 Pete 359. He sold his motorcycle to buy a shabby reefer trailer and then a drunk driver ran a stop sign and totaled the combination. John took the insurance money and bought a 1988 Pete 379 Ext. Hood outright and then financed a nice reefer trailer. Around that time, he started hauling for Stoltzfus STBI out of Honey Brook, PA, hauling LTL reefer freight, and has been there ever since.
In 2003, John purchased a new Pete 379 flattop with a 300-inch wheelbase and ran it until his buddy Eddie told him about Clint. John went to see Clint, who just happened to have a cool 2006 Pete 379 (pictured below) in stock and ready to go. Painted Black Cherry with Radiant Fire and Gold stripes, the colors were not John’s favorite, but he liked the specs, the interior and the long 312-inch wheelbase so he bought it.
With times getting tough for truckers, John recently decided to trade in his cool flattop for a more aerodynamic truck to save money on fuel. As mentioned before, he bought a new Pete 389 which is saving him a ton of money, and he is still driving as hard as ever. It was a tough change to make, but it was a good business decision.
The black 2009 Pete 389 was ordered with an emission-compliant ISX engine and features an 18-speed transmission, 275-inch wheelbase, low air with a car hauler front axle, and a standup sleeper with two beds so John’s 12-year-old son Tyler can come along now in comfort. After the truck arrived, Clint installed a wing, extra grille bars, cab and sleeper lights, a stainless steel sleeper cap, and then painted the tanks.
Tyler is the apple of John’s eye, and he can’t wait to take more trips with his son and his new wife Alice. The name plate on the new 389 even says, “Custom Built for Tyler” from the factory. Tyler hated to see the flattop go, but in the end he understood why his dad traded it in. In today’s economy, truckers have to work smart, but John’s new and efficient (and comfortable) truck proves that you can still look cool and save fuel.
~ If you would like Clint Moore to order and/or build you a new custom truck, contact him at Kansas City Peterbilt via e-mail at clintmoore@kcpete.com or call him at (913) 441-2888. You can also visit his website at www.custombuiltfor.com and check out pictures of other custom trucks he has built.