Ask a Feeder Driver, Feeder Driver FAQ

[pickup]

Tampering with company property solves the problem?

The company will have a better chance of having intact equipment by this so called tampering. Without such tampering, the driver in the sleeper birth, who already has a hard enough time sleeping, will be constantly awoken by the beeps generated by that system. When it's his turn to drive, he would be more likely to have an accident.

But safety first, right?

 

[Mugarolla]

The International I drove for years had a habit of lighting up a service engine soon light. The first time it happened, I took it by the shop and showed it to the mechanic. He gave me a roll of black electrical tape. He said here, put a piece of this on your dash to cover up the light. lol.

Got a piece on my International right now covering the ABS light. It is on half the time. Problem fixed.

 

[MaceFremonti]

So can Big Brother Brown hear me when I cuss them out? LOL

I haven't had a chance to drive one of the 276xxx Macks but I think this is actually for when you connect your phone to the head unit using bluetooth...

 

[Johney]

So can Big Brother Brown hear me when I cuss them out? LOL

I haven't had a chance to drive one of the 276xxx Macks but I think this is actually for when you connect your phone to the head unit using bluetooth...

Then they can hear you.

 

[OPTION3]

...without notifying the driver and explaining what is being recorded prior to it's installation.

Strategic grease smear fixes that!

 

[retiredTxfeeder]

Got a piece on my International right now covering the ABS light. It is on half the time. Problem fixed.

My mechanic had the feeder drivers' favorite words down pat."OK to run."

 

[Mugarolla]

My mechanic had the feeder drivers' favorite words down pat."OK to run."

Talked to a Columbus OH driver the other day. He said a trooper was at their building the other day and one of the things he mentioned was the driver can get pulled over and cited if the trailer ABS light is on.

The drivers are refusing to pull trailers with non-working ABS right now.

Haven't heard yet if UPS is ordering them to pull them or not. This could get interesting. One in ten trailers I pull has the ABS light on. The reason for the tape covering the lignt. It becomes annoying with a big orange light on the dash at nignt.

Haven't heard back from my sup as to whether or not I can refuse to pull them or risk getting a citation.

 

[hondo]

Does anyone know anything about a recall or replacement campaign for brake chambers on some ZZZs (relatively new ones)?

 

[Jones]

Does anyone know anything about a recall or replacement campaign for brake chambers on some ZZZs (relatively new ones)?

844xxx and 842xxx series are all supposed to be red tagged for a recall having to do with the brakes.

 

[MoarTape]

844xxx and 842xxx series are all supposed to be red tagged for a recall having to do with the brakes.

We have a bunch of 370 series red tagged for this as well. Something to do with Haldex brake chambers.

 

[Pickles]

I'd like to talk about this recall...



Friday I was shifting when all of a sudden they called out to me that we needed to rerun a trailer, then another, then another. Finally asked what I should be looking for. They said 28' Great Danes made in 2015-2016. They printed out 2 different sheets. The first 1 was a letter to all the mechanics talking about this recall saying the trailers were starting on fire because of a plastic thing falling off of the brake canisters and engaging the brakes. Trailers need to have the cans replaced and when completed put a 1 on the i Box. THIS EMAIL/LETTER WAS DATED MARCH 18.

Next letter was to take all of these trailers out of service. DATED JULY 10.


So I was talking to a mechanic and he looked up on the computer and sure enough another trailer in California started on fire on July 10th so they finally must've decided to stop movement of these trailers.

So the conclusion is ONLY the mechanics/mechanic sups knew about this recall and just sent everything on hoping the next mechanic would fix it.

UPS knew about this for THREE AND A HALF MONTHS and never told a single driver or Feeder management person that the trailers that they are pulling were known to start on fire.

How many drivers got fired in this 3.5 months for having their trailers start on fire? How much does the company care about the lives OF US DRIVERS pulling these trailers when none of us were even told about this?

I think it's complete bull and will be bringing it up at our safety meeting on Thursday.

 

[Kicked Your Dog]

Does anyone know anything about a recall or replacement campaign for brake chambers on some ZZZs (relatively new ones)?

They've been catching fire on the road here in SoCal. We've been instructed not to touch them.

 

[MaceFremonti]

We had a piece of paper taped to the wall in dispatch notifying us to redtag both the aforementioned 28s and 53s...I doubt if more than a few guys have even seen it.

 

[retiredTxfeeder]

I had a pup catch on fire several years ago, way before this recall, but the first thing they said was, You didn't check your hub oil, It's your fault. I put the fire out with a fire extinguisher and left it at a truck stop (it was an empty). They had it wreckered back in. Guess what? it STILL had hub oil in it. Trailer had just gone thru a PMI and the brakes had been adjusted. The hub oil blame game went away.

 

[Mugarolla]

We had a piece of paper taped to the wall in dispatch notifying us to redtag both the aforementioned 28s and 53s...I doubt if more than a few guys have even seen it.

I remember a message on the IVIS a few weeks ago mentioning something about seeing trailers starting with certain numbers to not pull and notify dispatch.

I guess now I know why. Did not write the numbers down though. Maybe I should have. They would have tried to blame me for pulling it when instructed not to.

If they had said they were catching on fire, would definitely have written the numbers down.

 

[m00npies1]

Yup same crap at CACH 4 days wi th a driver trainer and he's more worried about where my key is or how many times I look in the mirror. .....I didn't know crap about rail yards or containers.......

 

[MaceFremonti]

I had a Start Work audit the other day and my assigned tractor was in the shop. I was given the keys to a new automatic. When the supe and I got in the cab I said with a straight face, "Look! You guys should be able to drive these!"

For some reason they did not find the humor in my statement.

 

[MaceFremonti]

Feeder Tip #219

Don't joke with a supe about their lack of shifting ability when being audited!

 

[pickup]

I remember a message on the IVIS a few weeks ago mentioning something about seeing trailers starting with certain numbers to not pull and notify dispatch.

I guess now I know why. Did not write the numbers down though. Maybe I should have. They would have tried to blame me for pulling it when instructed not to.

If they had said they were catching on fire, would definitely have written the numbers down.

We never got any such messages but I noticed on monday that a bunch of red tagged( relatively new ) trailers sitting in row. Those trailers must be related to what Pickles(the poster who started this talk about trailers going on fire) was talking about.

 

[govols019]

I've pulled two 372XXX trailers this week. Is it just a regional thing?