Idealease of Stockton

Should Fleets Own or Lease Trucks? Trucking fleets are looking more closely at all their options, from outright ownership to finance leasing to full-service leasing, even opting to own some trucks while leasing others. Opting to acquire power units through a finance or full-service lease in lieu of ownership has long been seen as a financial decision, typically based on how standard a fleet’s trucks specs are and how quickly it cycles out trucks. Today, however, fleet manager...s may have other good reasons to consider leasing over owning, namely as a strategy to deal with the galloping arrival of new equipment technologies (everything from electronic logs to advanced emission systems to alternative power) and the ever-growing shortage of qualified technicians. While leasing historically has been favored by sizable fleets running fairly standard equipment on shorter trade cycles, full-service and finance lessors say such marketing distinctions are not so cut and dried anymore. More fleets are looking more closely at all their options, from outright ownership to finance leasing to full-service leasing, even opting to own some trucks while leasing others. Typically, larger fleets, driven by an interest in tax benefits and the company’s cash flow, choose a leasing model, says Steve Goodale, vice president of Daimler Truck Financial, which provides services for customers of Freightliner, Western Star, and other Daimler Trucks North America brands. For example, a larger fleet may not need the depreciation benefit that comes with financing [by loan] and will decide to take advantage of [finance] leasing’s lower payments, which allows them to simply expense the monthly lease payment. This also offers them shorter equipment life cycles and allows them to adopt the newest technology as it becomes available. In addition, he notes that a finance lessor can offer customized deal structures, such as seasonal payments, balloon payments, and extended terms that work for the needs of the specific customer. On the other hand, smaller fleets tend to gravitate toward retail finance because they are more comfortable with the product, and want [to outright own] the asset, or have a longer trade cycle planned. That last element is often a congruent factor for fleets that run specialized truck equipment. Full-service leasing from a third-party provider continues to have an advantage over the ownership model for a variety of reasons, chief among those are buying power and an expansive, reliable maintenance network. Full-service leasing is a growth market and has been for quite some time now. See more

EPA intends to review truck emissions regs to uniform rules, add tighter NOx standards The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency on Tuesday afternoon announced plans to explore overhauling emissions regulations for heavy-duty trucks and engines, aiming for greater simplicity of emissions regulations and national uniformity of such regs, said EPA Acting Administrator Andrew Wheeler. Specifics about the program, dubbed the Cleaner Trucks Initiative, were sparse, but EPA says it ...Continue reading

A Driver's Perspective: The Best & Worst things about being on the road

International Extends Commercial Truck Lineup With Classes 4-5 CV Series CHICAGO International Truck, a unit of Navistar Inc., launched its International CV Series Nov. 7 by underscoring it is the only Classes 4-5 truck designed, distributed and supported by a manufacturer specializing in commercial vehicles. The truck, which accommodates a wide range of specialized body types, is aimed at businesses that are expanding, such as landscapers and tow companies, according to ...Continue reading

Is your Company Prepared in the event of an accident? Depending on the severity of the accident, just the involvement is enough to throw the thought process of most drivers and supervisors into array. Companies need to have a clear and direct plan in place that will be implemented when an accident occurs. This plan needs to be flexible and can be activated no matter what time of the day or night. When an accident occurs the company has a number of immediate items that need to...Continue reading