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This big Peterbilt 389 with its huge sleeper and a bunch of chrome was shared with us by Plains, Trains page member Frank Bowers, who sent us some details of his truck, and here we are sharing it with you.
Frank uses this Pete to run all over America in a fairly comfortable ride: “I bought this truck in April of 2013. It had 43,000 miles on it,” Frank wrote to us. “The original owner spared no expense on this tractor. The cab and chassis was ordered with every available option, the sleeper is an ARI custom with custom floor plan. All the stainless work was costed built by Brunner’s in Joplin, Mo. I run a lot of oversize freight and LTL. My empty weight is 43,000 lbs, but who cares. Tractor has double frame from radiator to very back. 16,000 lbs front axle. Empty weight on front axle is 15,000 lbs. 600 Ho Cummins with an 18-speed auto shift. The comfort level really outweighs the missed loads. I run about 65,000 miles a year. I always hear how I couldn’t get into this place or that place but in three years I’ve only been to one place I couldn’t get into. I run All 48 states. New York City excluded. But I do run Long Island. No over length issues even though the tractor is 40 feet long by itself.”
It’s a 2012 model, and that big sleeper you see on it in the photo is, as Frank wrote, an ARI Custom Sleeper. It’s a 170 inch one. The tractor has a 378 inch wheelbase and it’s powered by that big Cummins engine. It has 3:36 rears, Frank told us.
All the custom stainless work was done by Brunner Fabrication in Joplin, Missouri. That 40 foot long tractor pulls a 48 foot trailer, which makes for a total length of 83 feet.
Here are some interior shots of the sleeper unit and the nice looking dash, as well as the exterior photo of the whole rig. With that matching paint and all that chrome, it looks pretty nice, don’t it? Viewing these photos on a large screen is recommended.
Thanks, Frank.
