A member of his sales team rolled out the 2021 Model 567 pictured here, and if “creampuff” can describe something as burly as this, well, that’s what it seemed to be. Its odometer showed fewer than 91,000 miles and it drove like a new vehicle. Rempe said it was spec’d like the new trucks desired by operators around here in northeast Ohio: Cummins X15 power, Allison 4000-series automatic transmission, 20,000-pound steer axle and 46,000-pound tandems on a Hendrickson HaulMaax mechanical suspension, plus a trio of 13,200-pound Hendrickson liftable axles. Payload on this “quint” is about 20 to 22 tons in this bridge-formula state.
Color is one thing that’s not easily changed on a used truck, and this one had gray paint on the cab and dump box. They matched the gray overcast skies on this winter day, so I decided that if the truck were mine, I’d call it “Graylius.” There—it’s now a masculine machine and can better haul a lot of dirt, aggregates, asphalt, or just about anything else I’d want loaded in the steel box to ably carry to or from a job site, paving project, quarry, or whatever.
I mulled over such matters while cruising along nearby streets, then turned south onto Interstate 77 and westbound I-271, and later reversed that course to return to the dealership. Along the way I noted the truck’s manners and quirks and found almost nothing to complain about. The 14.9-liter Cummins chugged along in a manly manner, which is to say, somewhat noisily. Outside temps were chilly, but if I had cracked open a window I could’ve heard the exhaust and might’ve liked that better.
How does a used truck ride?
With the Allison's 0.67 overdrive top gear, 4.11 axle ration, and 11R24.5 rear tires, the engine spun at 1,540-or-so rpm at 65 mph, about right for a vocational vehicle. There were no buttons on the steering wheel, so cruise control and other functions were operated with rocker switches on the dashboard. The steering wheel was cocked a bit to the right after years of counteracting slightly sloped expressway pavement. And the Heritage-built box behind the cab was empty so there was some bouncing over rough spots, but the ride was better than I expected.
So was maneuverability. At one point during street running, I made a hard right turn and began spinning the wheel early, as is sometimes necessary with the usually limited wheel cut on a 20-grand steer axle. But I paused the spinning when I saw that we were making the turn easily, from curb to curb on the two streets, and not needing to grab any extra space to make the swing. That makes a driver’s life less stressful, whether or not he appreciates the engineering that went into building 8 extra degrees of wheel cut into the steering geometry.
That was done back in 2013, when Peterbilt introduced the 567. Its principal improvement was the 2.1-meter-wide cab, which is about 8 inches wider than the ages-old but highly regarded narrow cab on the earlier Model 367.
“At first there was some customer resistance to the bigger cab,” Rempe said, “until they’d get into it and see the extra room. Then it was ‘Ooo, look at this.’” The newer cab is shared with Pete’s Paccar sibling, Kenworth, which employs it on its T880 vocational series and various highway trucks.
Drivetrain performance in a used Peterbilt
Peterbilt and Kenworth share an increasing number of components. Aside from the roomy cab, the main ones are Paccar’s MX heavy duty diesels and Eaton-built automated transmissions, some carrying the Paccar name. There are also the smaller Paccar-branded, Cummins-built PX diesels and, for quite a few years, a common steering wheel. But designers keep the two brands separate and distinctive. For instance, Peterbilt uses separate sleeper boxes in tractors while Kenworth integrates them with cabs; and in vocational models, Pete stays with separate headlamp pods while KW mounts them in the fenders; and instrument clusters and other interior styling cues are mostly different.
In common with most brands’ modern vocational trucks, transmissions are almost always Allison automatics. They are rugged and reduce jolts to a driveline, and they’re easy to drive, making it relatively easy for fleets to locate drivers. “These days you can’t find young people who know how to drive a manual,” Rempe said. “They don’t even teach it in truck driving schools anymore. It’s sad.”
Read also: Pre-buy or face the consequences, from Fleet Owner, a sibling publication in Endeavor Business Media
I know about the recruiting and maintenance advantages and, perhaps agreeing with him, always found the 6-speed Allisons boring to drive because of their mushy feeling. But I liked the Allison in Graylius; it shifted smoothly and a little more crisply than usual. And as usual, the autotranny always chose a ratio appropriate for a situation. I especially admired the way the transmission downshifted to raise engine revs and maximize retarding when I used the Jake Brake on downhill exit ramps. This I did with a four-position stalk on the right side of the steering column; from fully up it’s Off, 1, 2, and 3 as it’s pulled downward. I never needed 3, though in hillier and even mountainous regions it would be useful.
Overall, this this truck was “like new,” as used car ads often proclaim. That would be accurate here, pending a decent ispection, of course. The asking price is $198,000, which seems about right for a 2021-model truck with low miles vs. a new truck with similar specs that now costs about $280,000 plus FET.
Need something like this but want to pay less? You could call Greg Rempe at Ohio Peterbilt and start bargaining.
