Small Straight Trucks

HotShotTrucking.com is a leading provider of expedited and overnight shipping services across North America.

Whether by ground or air transportation – or combination of the two, HotShotTrucking.com does it all to support your most demanding shipping requirements. One premium ground option for both inter-state and local shipping is through expedited small straight trucks – also known as box trucks.

Types of Box Trucks

There are several types of popular box trucks on the road today, including models built by Isuzu, Hino, Mitsubishi, Freightliner, and Chevrolet. This class of vehicles is extremely adaptable and has many advantages compared to Sprinter vans, larger straight trucks, and semi-trailers. These can also be fitted with refrigerators and freezers to haul temperature-sensitive freight, much like Sprinter vans, or left completely empty for maximum volume. As a top-flight third-party logistics provider (3PL), the experienced expeditors at HotShotTrucking.com know precisely when an expedited small box truck is the best option for your next time-sensitive shipment – or not. There are many reasons why your next shipment might end up on a small straight truck, so let’s look at what makes these vehicles unique and how HotShotTrucking.com can help you with your urgent shipping needs.

Call Me Boxy

Box trucks are easily recognized by their cube-shaped body style. As previously mentioned, they are also called straight trucks or cube vans, but should not be confused with cargo Sprinter vans. One key thing to remember about small box trucks is that they are unibody vehicles, which means that all the vehicle parts are attached to a single frame. A box truck typically has a separate freight compartment that is divided from the front cab where the driver sits, although some do have an access door between the two compartments.

Box Truck Stats

Small box trucks range from 10 to 16 feet long (not including the cab) and are 96 inches wide. This makes them larger than Sprinter vans but smaller than large box trucks and semi-trailers. Most types have a standard rear roll up door, but some might have hinged doors, built-in ramps or lift-gates, and some models have additional side doors to access the cargo area.

Conventional

This is a traditional truck design, with the engine located in front of the steering wheel with the usual hood or “nose”.

Cabover

A newer style of truck design, these box trucks do not have a traditional hood, or “nose”, since the engine is located beneath the front seats. These flat-nosed trucks are increasing in popularity in certain parts of the U.S. because of their ability to more easily navigate through busy residential and commercial areas.

Carry (more)

Of course, as a larger vehicle, small box trucks can simply carry more than a Sprinter van. The typical small straight truck has a load capacity of up to 9,000 pounds (although this can vary between models). Standard small box truck lengths include 10, 12, 14, and 16 feet cargo areas that range from six to eight feet high. This provides an incredible amount of shipping space in a relatively compact area that is still greater than what a Sprinter van can provide.

For example, a 16-foot box truck is 192 inches long. At 48 inches in length per pallet, you can easily fit two parallel rows of four inside the cargo box, for a total of 8 pallets, single-stacked. If you double-stack, you can fit 16 pallets in a 16′ small box truck – which is safe if you do not exceed the vehicle’s carrying capacity and properly secure the load.

As previously mentioned, small box trucks do not reach standard loading dock heights, which can impact when and where a small box truck should be used. However, the side doors on some models can also make accessing and unloading freight easier. HotShotTrucking.com ensures all of these details are taken into consideration when deciding if a small box truck is right for your shipment.

Cruise (further)

Although small box trucks are primarily used for completing local and inter-city shipments since they are easier to maneuver than large box trucks and semi-trailers, this does not preclude their use for longer trips. In fact, these vehicles do just fine travelling between states and even across the country.

In most cases, a small box truck has better gas mileage than larger trucks, though perhaps not quite as good as Sprinter vans. The tradeoff being, of course, extra freight and fuel carrying capacity. Because of their ideal size and relatively lower fuel consumption, small box trucks can be the perfect solution for driving in tight areas like crowded commercial and industrial districts, residential areas, and heavy traffic – anywhere you need them to be.

Integrated Network

HotShotTrucking.com provides the same outstanding performance, coordinated logistics, tracking and customer service for its small box truck options as it does for all of its ground and air cargo services. We have an integrated network of air and ground shipping options to give you the widest range of choices without having to call around for multiple quotes.

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Advantages of cabover box trucks

When deciding between using a conventional or cabover box truck, HotShotTrucking.com has a few factors to consider, together with the details of the specific route the box truck will take for your shipment. Here are the main advantages of cabover box trucks compared to conventional box trucks:

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Better maneuverability

The primary reason for choosing a cabover truck is its maneuverability. Cabover trucks can turn in a tighter radius when compared to conventional cab trucks, making them a better fit for residential neighborhoods, narrow driveways, crowded commercial districts, busy industrial sites, and no-curb parking lots. At the same time, they offer the equivalent power and operations of a conventional cab vehicle.

Excellent visibility

In a cabover box truck design, the driver sits over the engine and closer to the windshield, which provides better visibility and situational awareness. This design also increases cabover box truck safety as well. When maneuvering in tight spaces, drivers can see directly in front of them, which can help them get into spaces that a conventional cab box truck could not.

Easy maintenance

From a maintenance and repair perspective, cabover box trucks are easier to care for. Getting under the hood to look at the engine and make necessary repairs is less difficult compared to conventional cab designs. This reduces time and expense, and ultimately increases vehicle uptime – which means fewer mechanical failures that result in a delay for your expedited shipment. Vehicle dependability is absolutely crucial when every minutes counts!

Get boxed in with small box truck service by HotShotTrucking.com

While hot shot trucking got its start in the oil fields of Texas with small trucks running critical parts and equipment out to oil rigs, today HotShotTrucking.com is your full-service third-party logistics provider. HotShotTrucking.com provides optimized and customized shipping solutions that work for you and your business needs both on the ground and in the air and any combination in-between. With small box truck service from HotShotTrucking.com, you get so much more than just a reliable vehicle and fully vetted driver. Here is what you can expect when you work with HotShotTrucking.com.

Persistent teamwork

Your dedicated expeditor is on-call 24/7/365 to answer any questions and handle any unexpected issues that arise, from your shipment’s current location to a complete rerouting or vehicle change.

Proactive planning

HotShotTrucking.com analyzes every detail of the delivery route, from traffic patterns, weather reports, and road construction, in order to select the one least likely to experience a delay.

Perpetual tracking

Technology never sleeps, so HotShotTrucking.com is able to track your shipment at all times. Thanks to our tracking systems, we know if a delay arises and work to eliminate it.

Partner quality

HotShotTrucking.com carefully vets each logistics partner, ensuring a dependable work record of transporting and delivering safely and on time. We only work with drivers who demonstrate responsibility, courtesy and commitment to exceeding customer expectations.

Addressing your requirements

Your shipment size and speed requirements are matched to the perfect right-sized vehicle, and if your deadline does not support using ground service, your shipment can fly via a dedicated air charter service. From the moment you call, until after your shipment reaches its final destination, you can trust HotShotTrucking.com to deliver your freight and superior customer service – every time.

Contact Us Today

With HotShotTrucking.com, experience the confidence that comes from an expert delivery plan and working with the same expeditor from start to finish. Your freight is important to you, so it’s important to us. For more information about small box trucks, or any of our top-tier shipping options, contact us today at (800) 604-2511 or simply go online to HotShotTrucking.com and click Get a Quote. No prior account needed! We look forward to working with you as your complete logistics partner!

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