It isn’t uncommon to form a connection with your equipment. Your commercial truck can feel like a beacon of reliability and sturdiness – you understand how it drives, how it handles, where its gauges and warning lights reside. You’ve even broken in the seat to the point where it feels comfortable on long hauls. Why get rid of it now?
At WiseCap, we hear from several independent owner-operators and trucking companies who want to keep their existing trucks. It makes sense from a comfort standpoint, as detailed above, but it also makes sense from a financial viewpoint.
Recently on this blog, we discussed the equipment shortages in the trucking marketplace due to COVID-19. Strong housing starts, “COVID lag,” mining, and oil production continue to throttle the large equipment supply chain, and, consequently, it can be challenging to secure the equipment you need to support your livelihood.
For those reasons, you may opt for engine rebuilds and older truck financing. In this article, let’s explore your options and discuss how WiseCap can help.
Engine Rebuilds
Engine rebuilds (or engine overhauls) are a fantastic option for cash-conscious operators and companies who want to keep their current truck or fleet.
Essentially, rebuilds breathe new life into a truck. A professional mechanic disassembles, examines, cleans, repairs and/or replaces relevant parts of the engine to ensure that the truck operates smoothly again. Ideally, engine rebuilds and overhauls should be done through a certified repair facility with a warranty attached.
There are several signals you might look for before considering an engine rebuild. A few of them are:
- Engine failure: the most common reason operators opt for an overhaul – and, obviously, the easiest signal to spot!
- Poor oil analysis
- Excessively high mileage: anything north of a million kilometres is cause for engine rebuilding
- Low cylinder compression
- Observable issues like smoke, fuel odour or unfamiliar sounds
- And more
If you notice any of the symptoms above, yet aren’t ready to part with your trusty equipment, you can consider financing an engine rebuild through our business financing experts (more on that below).
Credit: aleksandarlittlewolf Via Freepik
Acquiring Older Trucks
If you need a truck but feel squeezed out by equipment shortages, another wise way to go is to find an older truck that needs major repairs to make it road-worthy.
Fleet Owner still classifies the used-truck market as overheated, citing a trend among truck owners toward extending lifecycles on current assets (again, spurred by the new-vehicle production shortage). Still, they maintain that buying used is a good idea in 2021, especially for those looking ahead to long-term prospects.
If you can find an older truck that needs significant repairs, you might be able to snag a deal, in which case you just need to finance the repairs to make the equipment operational.
How WiseCap Financing Can Help
Whether you plan to overhaul your current truck’s engine, or acquire an older truck and repair it, WiseCap can help.
We can finance major repairs to all parts of a truck, including the engine. According to Major Overhaul – a heavy-duty truck repairer here in Canada – engine rebuilds (from certified facilities) cost between roughly $26,000 and $53,000. That’s certainly not an insignificant amount of money for companies or owner-operators to shoulder. Luckily, our knowledgeable business financing experts will work with you to explore creative solutions according to your needs and assets: refinancing, collateral mortgages, asset based lending and more.
If you choose to buy an older truck to upgrade, we can help with that as well. Talk to one of our experts about the best available commercial truck loans in Canada for your needs, as well as financing options for the upgrade process. Whatever you need throughout the upgrade process, chances are we can find a financing solution. We can even help finance new tires.
All of our business financing experts are passionate business owners, professionals and entrepreneurs just like you. They want to see your business succeed and grow, which is why they take a holistic approach to your financing, taking the time to understand your business’s strategic financing needs, budget, equipment usage and more.
As COVID continues to cast a long shadow over the trucking industry, more owner-operators and trucking companies are extending the lifecycle of their assets and exploring creative ways to stay on the road. If you need financial help rebuilding an engine, upgrading a current asset or buying a used fixer-upper, you’ve come to the right place. Call WiseCap today for support.