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This house on wheels — or hotel on wheels — has a reputed 163-inch sleeper. It’s driven by a trucker named Melvin Davis. He’s from Michigan.
It’s a 2000 Freightliner Classic. This could be a useable long-haul truck or a comfortable RV. It has lots of space for a semi sleeper and a lot of RV amenities.
It’s powered by a Detroit Series 60 engine. The engine has around 600,000 miles on it. The truck has a 13-speed tranny.
Davis told the trucking magazine Overdrive Online about the construction of the big sleeper. It’s 2 semi sleepers cut up and put together to make one big custom sleeper.
“It’s 2 sleepers. One’s turned backwards to the other. The back out of the front one is not the back of the back one. And the back out of the back one is the two side panels of the sides. Separates at 37 inches.”
This is the truck called by its owner the “Hillbilly Hilton,” after the successful hotel chain originally developed by American Conrad Hilton.
“Gives me 173 inches altogether,” said Davis to Overdrive Online.
He took the front axle off. It’s got a dead axle in it which gives the trucker some of the weight back they took out when they stretched it. So he can put 43,5 in the box (full of fuel) as the custom sleeper semi is now. “So I can still carry a pretty good payload,” the long hauler said.
The trucker bought the truck off his business partner. His partner now drives his other semi truck.
There’s some photos of the interior, but unfortunately there aren’t any good wide-angle interior shots available for this truck. If some become available, we’ll put them in here.
Specs:
Company: Davis Trucking
Location of base: Hartford, Michigan
Wheelbase:365 inches or close to that (360-365 or
something like that)
Interior of sleeper:
Full-sized bed
Bigger than a full-sized shower
Easy Chair
Table
Computer Station
Refridgerator
Full-sized closet
storage space
Kitchen sink
Microwave
Counter top
