Rainier Truck Production Expected This Summer

There have been a few speed bumps on the way to production for Rainier Truck & Chassis LLC, but now they’re all behind the truck company, said President Gary Jones. Delivery issues with its initial cab suppliers were part of the blame, he said, for the delays since late 2014.

The Yakima, Wash.-based company is already reporting “robust sales” for its new line of cab-over trucks, specifically its Rainier RT 2600 and RT 1950.

“I believe we’ve hit a very nice value proposition for our dealers and end customers,” said Jones. “Through it all, our goals have not changed. We will deliver what our customers want, which is lower acquisition costs, more power, better dependability, simpler to service and a comfortable drive.”

The Class 4, 5 and 6 trucks use a Cummins ISB 6.7L diesel rated 300 hp and an Allison 2500RDS six-speed automatic transmission. The Rainier Class 7 models use a Cummins 6.7 L diesel engine rated 325 hp. The cabs will be supplied by Sinotruck, one of China’s largest heavy truck manufacturers. Rainier offers a range of standard features on its trucks, including load leveling front and rear air suspension.

“To keep our prices low, we standardized the cab-chassis platform including most components and systems,” said Jones. “This helps the dealer out financially by not having to stock so much inventory of common maintenance items. On the other side of the equation, ‘commonizing’ the components help the factory financially by reducing inventory and lead time. It also helps the factory take advantage of economies of scale by utilizing readily available off-the-shelf components.”

Jones said the company’s target is to be in full production by this summer.

Diesel Progress first covered the cab-over truck start up in its July 2014 issue.