10-4 Magazine - For Today's Trucker

October 2006 - Performance Zone
LIVING IN SELF-DENIAL
By Performance Specialist Bruce C. Mallinson

Are you living in a world of self-denial? Do you feel you do not deserve a great running truck? I hope you realize that the better your truck runs, the better the fuel mileage it will get. If you want to continue to be an owNer-operator, you must be able to obtain good fuel mileage from your truck. This article is geared towards the owner-operators who are in the 45 to 70 year age group. If you procrastinate and always say, “I want to think it over,” then I’m writing to you.

For the life of me, I can’t figure out why anyone would drive a truck their entire life that doesn’t make them happy or make them any money. When you park your truck in a truck stop and you’re walking into the building and you turn around and look back at your truck, does it put a smile on your face? If not, then why do you drive it? I realize everyone can’t have a shiny new truck with all of the lights and stainless on her, however you can have a great running truck that obtains good fuel mileage if only you would spend some of your money, in the right places, for the right products. Don’t just talk about it, do it!

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, it amazes me how many of you are driving a semi truck with a single stack and a stock muffler, and you want to think it over before you spend $158 for a straight-through quiet muffler. That muffler will give you a savings of at least $3,300 the first year, and it will last almost indefinitely because it doesn’t collect soot and moisture. And if you really want to save fuel, you must make the engine responsive; a slow responding engine takes too much throttle to get it moving, especially from a dead stop and going up through the gears.

For those of you who live in a world of self-denial, you won’t want to hear this, but the truth is that a Pittsburgh Power Computer will give you the response you need and eliminate a lot of downshifting. I know this is an expensive item originally, but the savings the first year, if you only run 100,000 miles, is about $3,432 (assuming you only get a 3/10th mpg improvement). That would pay for the computer and then some! So the muffler (or mufflers) and the computer can save you $6,732 per year in fuel or more. And you want to think it over! Every mile you travel with a stock truck, you’re losing money – big money.

Self-denial is a sacrifice of one’s own desires and interests. Some people will not use their air conditioner because it costs money and they want to save the money for their children’s inheritance. Your children can fend for themselves; don’t negate your own comfort today for someone else’s benefit in the future.

I personally do not live in a world of self-denial. When I started drag racing in 1967, I learned quickly that if you wanted to have the fastest car at your high school, you had to spend some money. Then I went on to road racing at Nelson Ledges Road Course in Warren, Ohio in 1971 with a 1966 Corvette coupe. Yes, this was expensive racing and I worked two jobs to afford this racecar. My day job was in dispatching and traffic management and in the evenings I built racecars for other people. While my friends were out dating and drinking, I stayed in the garage wrenching on racecars. Whatever it took to go faster and handle better around the 2.3-mile long racetrack, I did. I had passion for racing and performance, and spent every extra minute and every dime I had on that Corvette.

Because of my strong desire to be number one, I set the track record in 1973 and the record stood until 1979. I quit road racing in 1977 when I got into the diesel engine business (trying to build high performance diesel engines by day and race cars by night was too much). So instead of racing, I got into competition water skiing. My life has always been competition – even as a child I had to be the fastest bicycle up the hill and at Boy Scout Camp I had to have the fastest canoe across the lake. As teenagers, when we played baseball and football, if you were on my team, you’d better be playing to win – or watch out!

So how can we help you to be a winner – especially if you procrastinate or live in a world of self-denial? I do realize that everybody can’t have the most powerful truck in this great country, but you can have a truck that makes you happy and is fuel-efficient. If your truck doesn’t put a smile on your face, let us help you. Remember, a truck is like a women – the better you treat her, the better she’ll treat you (and the longer she’ll last). It doesn’t matter how new or what brand of truck you have, what matters is how you enjoy it and how well that it runs. After all, you have to drive it for 14 hours a day – why not be happy! If you have any questions or concerns regarding diesel engine horsepower and/or efficiency, send me an e-mail at bruce@pittsburghpower.com or call me at Diesel Injection of Pittsburgh at (724) 274-4080.