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Parts for Trucks - North Bay Truck Center

North Bay Truck Center has an extensive Parts Department. We carry most parts for Series 5-8 Class Commercial Trucks. If we don't carry it, we are equipped and able to manufacture it for our customers. If you would like more information on pricing, please contact us.

Some of the parts we carry are:

• International Truck Parts
• Retail Truck Parts
• Starters and Brakes
• Lights
• Suspension Parts
• Electrical Parts
• Air Conditioning and Heating Parts


Give us a call at 707-427-1386 with any parts requests or needs.

5 Steps To Buying A Big Rig

When you decide to buy a truck there are some simple steps you can take to be sure you get the best bang for your buck. If you go into a truck purchase blindly, you are likely to pay too much and get much less than you hoped for.

1. Shop Around.

Truck dealers can only advertise in their own region. A truck dealership in Ohio is not allowed to advertise in California. But dealerships are allowed to sell trucks to customers in other regions if the customer contacts them. As you travel, grab some truck papers from different regions of the country and consider contacting dealers that are far from you. If you already know what make of truck you want, call around to dealers around the country.

2. Compare Apples to Apples.

If you are going to be ordering a new truck, ask for a price quote along with the specifications- this will be about 10 pages long. Compare the spec sheets from different dealers line for line. You may find that a salesman who gives you a lower price quote also skimped out on some of the options without mentioning that to you. If you find that a salesman's quote has inferior specs, tell them which ones you want changed and have them resend the specs and quote. ALWAYS read through the specs line by line- don't trust anything verbal. You may have to pay a chunk of change to receive the faxes from all these dealers, but at least you'll know you're comparing prices, not options.

3. Prioritize

If you are shopping for a used truck, it's unlikely that you will be able to find two trucks that are exactly alike. You won't be able to compare apples to apples like you would if you were buying a new truck. Make a list of the specifications that are most important to you. What make and model are you looking for? How old and roughly how many miles? What engine do you want? What transmission? What rears? Once you nail down those requirements, you may have to compromise on some of the options. Power windows, gauge packages, color. Most options can be changed if they are not to your liking. The things that matter most are the things that are permanent, but you will want to consider the less important options once you have narrowed it down to a few trucks.

4. Get a loan from your own bank.

If you have the dealership set up financing, they are likely to add "points" to your interest rate. There is nothing unethical about this- you are, after all, using their resources to secure financing and they should be compensated for the work their employees do. But you need to decide if you are willing to pay the difference over the life of the loan. The bank may give you a 10% interest rate, but the dealer sets it up for 12% and will pocket the difference with each payment you make. Generally, the dealer will not disclose this information. However, you need to be aware that you may be able to secure a lower interest rate on your own. Consider- a difference of 3% will save you hundreds of dollars each month. It's worth it to do the extra legwork on your own.

5. Make sure you can afford the truck.

There are a lot of owner-operator contracts out there. There are many more mediocre owner-operator contracts than there are lucrative ones. Before you take on the risks involved with owning a truck, make sure you have a contract that can pay for it. Will you be pouring every dime you make back into the truck? Calculate the costs of fuel and maintenance and taxes. If you are a company driver, spend a few months putting your records on paper. Look at the bottom line- what will you have left after all your expenses? If you are not yet a driver, you will want to spend a couple of years driving a truck as a company driver before you decide to buy a truck on your own. Don't buy the lie that owner-operators with rates twice as high as company drivers are making twice as much. They may not even be making the same amount once you figure in all the expenses.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Suzanne_Roquemore

How to Properly Load a Trailer - CURT

This short video will teach you how to properly load a trailer. The most important thing to consider is how the weight of your cargo is distributed onto your trailer. The ideal distribution is to have 60% of the weight in front of the trailer axle, and 40% behind. Its also very important to make sure your cargo is secured properly. Always practice safe towing.

EVIR® Electronic Verified Inspection Reporting

Tag, inspect and transmit - it’s that simple

TAG – Data-encoded RFID tags are placed in each inspection zone of a vehicle or asset. In a commercial trucking environment, for example, tags are placed in inspection zones that adhere to DOT compliance requirements for pre- and post-trip inspections. Many school districts place tags at the back of a bus to ensure that drivers perform their end-of-shift check for students.

INSPECT – The individual performing the inspection must physically scan each tag on the vehicle. The tablet device must be within two inches of the point of inspection, which helps to verify that a check was performed and the vehicle is up to operating standards. EVIR acts as an electronic, verifiable log to prove that inspections are being performed accurately and consistently.

TRANSMIT – Defects or vehicle damage can be captured with Zonar's tablet device. Equipped with a 5 mega-pixel camera, drivers can easily transmit photos to give maintenance a heads-up as to what they are seeing. After the tablet is docked inside the vehicle, the inspection data is seamlessly transferred back to Zonar's web-based application, Ground Traffic Control®. Fleet managers and maintenance personnel have immediate access to the inspection data from the field, helping them to prioritize and schedule repairs.

Not just for vehicles

The EVIR system is as flexible as our customers' unique needs. While most commonly used to verify the pre- and post-trip inspection process for fleets across all industries, EVIR use spans to wherever there's a need to verify a process is being followed.

A complete solution provider

Zonar offers a full suite of smart fleet technology solutions that improve safety, decrease downtime of vehicles, reduce fuel costs, coach driver performance, and streamline back-office reporting.

Unparalleled customer service

From onboarding to installation, our U.S.-based Customer Care team makes sure that you’re set up for success. There’s a reason more than 99 percent of our customers that choose to do business with us, stay with us. More than 30 percent of our company is devoted to after-sale support, which means you can always reach a live Zonar employee—24/7/365.

Learn more at: http://zonarsystems.com/solutions/evir-electronic-verified-inspection-reporting/

Webasto Air Top 2000 ST Heater Animation

The Webasto Air Top 2000 ST is the perfect solution for keeping comfortable in your cab, reduce vehicle idling, and save money.

Test Drive: Driving the FTR, Isuzu's Biggest Truck

Around the world, Isuzu Motors sells a range of commercial trucks, ranging from light- to heavy-duty models. In North America, however, the Japanese OEM focused for many years exclusively on providing midrange Class 3 to 5 medium-duty trucks.

But in 2017, that dynamic changed when the company launched its Class 6 FTR model — a 25,950-pound GVWR cabover optimized for urban and regional applications — in the U.S. And on a clear day in mid-November, I got to climb up into the cab and take a shining new FTR out on the road to see for myself how Isuzu is approaching the heavier end of the medium-duty market here.

For starters, the FTR is by no means a departure from Isuzu’s long-standing and highly successful formula for short-wheelbase cabover trucks.

 At first approach, the FTR appears massive compared to other Isuzu models I’ve driven in the past. But, scale aside, the truck also seems intimately familiar. All the design cues I’ve come to expect from Isuzu are present, from the panoramic front windshield, outstanding agility in tight surroundings, simple and intuitive switches, knobs and controls, crisp, easy-to-read instrumentation and gauges, and work-focused cab interior ergonomics.

More to the point, the FTR retains Isuzu’s proven low-cab-forward design developed for city driving, which boasts a combination of maneuverability and visibility. My demo model featured the standard, four-cylinder, Isuzu 5.2L 4HK1-TC turbocharged diesel engine. Mated to a North American-exclusive Allison automatic transmission, the powertrain puts out 215 hp and 520 lb.-ft. of torque at 1,600 rpm. The truck was fitted with an 18-foot Morgan refrigerated body and a Thermo King T680R-50 reefer unit, making the truck suitable for urban and short-haul refrigerated food transport.

Learn more at: https://www.worktruckonline.com/345481/test-drive-driving-the-ftr-isuzus-biggest-truck

Source: Work Truck Magazine

In NTSB top transport issues, technology's pace quickening, human error in sharp relief

Technology is the unifying theme running through NTSB's updated Most Wanted List this year as well as the related recommendations the agency has.

All indications in the National Transportation Safety Board's latest "Most Wanted List" of problems to fix in transportation point to one thing: in many ways, technology across that broad industry isn't just advancing, it's accelerating. It is both problem and solution.

Technology is the unifying and strongest theme running through NTSB's updated list this year as well as the related recommendations the agency has for state governments and others to solve these "most critical" woes in transportation. NTSB investigates transportation accidents and deaths throughout the year, and the Most Wanted List shows how the focus for those efforts is changing, as these problems themselves are.

Read more at: https://www.fleetowner.com/safety/article/21703470/in-ntsb-top-transport-issues-technologys-pace-quickening-human-error-in-sharp-relief

Source: 

Since 2018 Federal Law Requires New Cars, SUVs and LD Trucks to Include Back-Up Cameras

A rule requiring backup cameras in all new cars, SUVs, minivans and pickups weighing less than 10,000 pounds was enacted by May of 2018 by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.  All new cars, SUVs and minivans, as well as some new small trucks and buses, weree required to include backup cameras, a measure which is expected to reduce the nearly 210 backover deaths each year.  It is estimated that rear facing camera, including those automakers already offer, could save between 59 and 69 deaths a year, many of which were children.  Automakers will be allowed to “remove side –view mirrors and replace them with cameras that may expand side vision while increasing fuel efficiency”.  In February 2018 , the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration decided to require vehicle to vehicle communication systems in all new cars and trucks, however an exact date for implementation of this technology has not been set.

Source: http://omaha.legalexaminer.com/automobile-accidents/federal-law-to-require-new-cars-to-include-backup-cameras-by-2018/

Happy New Year

Happy New Year from North Bay Truck Center