We buy off-highway trucks
Sell Your Off-Highway Truck
Articulated and rigid haulers — priced on drivetrain condition, tyres and body wear.
- Written offers
- Transport arranged
- Running or not
- California
On this page
MachineryBarn buys used off-highway haul trucks — articulated dump trucks and rigid frame haulers. These are the highest-hour, hardest-worked machines in earthmoving and they are valued on the drivetrain: transmission, differentials and final drives carry enormous sustained loads, and a failure in any of them is a major-component cost. Tyres are the second question and they are not a small one — a set for a large hauler is among the largest consumable bills in the industry.
What counts as an off-highway truck
An off-highway truck hauls material on a site rather than on public roads. Articulated dump trucks bend in the middle, have all-wheel drive, and handle soft and uneven ground — the standard machine for earthmoving and civil work. Rigid frame haulers have a fixed chassis, carry far more, and are built for prepared haul roads in quarries and mines.
Haulers are described by payload capacity in tons. Articulated trucks commonly run in the twenty-five to forty-ton range and are the volume segment of the used market. Rigid haulers start well above that and rise into mining classes where the buyer pool is very narrow and transport becomes a project in itself.
Where these machines usually come from
- Mass earthmoving on civil construction sites
- Quarry and aggregate haul
- Mine haul on rigid frame machines
- Landfill operations
- Large-scale site development and dam work
- Rental fleet duty on articulated trucks
Off-Highway Trucks we buy
Configuration changes who the next buyer is, so it changes the offer. These are the variants worth naming when you describe your machine.
- Articulated dump truck (ADT)
- Six-wheel, all-wheel drive, bends in the middle. Works on soft and uneven ground and is by far the most liquid configuration in the used market.
- Rigid frame hauler
- Fixed chassis, much higher payload, needs prepared haul roads. Quarry and mine machine with a narrow buyer pool.
- Ejector body ADT
- Pushes material out rather than tipping. Safer on slopes and under power lines, and a distinct configuration worth stating.
- Water truck conversion
- An ADT chassis fitted with a water tank for dust suppression. A real and separate market — say if that is what you have.
What determines a used off-highway truck's value
Roughly in order of how much each one moves the number.
- 1
Transmission and torque converter condition
The most consequential and most expensive component. Haul trucks shift constantly under full load, and a slipping or harsh transmission is a major-component repair on a machine this size.
How to check it: Load the truck if possible and drive a grade. Feel for slip and harshness through the shifts, and listen for converter noise.
- 2
Differentials and final drives
Carrying full payload up grades loads the driveline continuously. Noise, metal in the oil, or a machine that pulls unevenly all point at driveline repairs that run into serious money.
How to check it: Check oil condition at every differential and final drive, and listen while driving loaded and unloaded.
- 3
Tyres
Off-highway tyres are among the largest consumable costs in the industry, and a set for a large hauler is a very substantial figure. Condition, whether the set matches, and tread pattern all matter directly.
How to check it: Note remaining tread on all six, cuts and chunking, sidewall damage, and whether all six match.
- 4
Body condition and liner
The body takes rock impact every single load. Floor thinning, cracked welds at the floor-to-sidewall joint and a bowed body are common on high-hour machines, and body work at this scale is expensive.
How to check it: Look at the floor from inside for thin spots and patches, and check the sidewall welds and the front bulkhead.
- 5
Frame and articulation joint, on ADTs
The articulation and oscillation joints take constant load and impact. Play there is felt in the cab and it accelerates wear throughout the machine.
How to check it: Articulate full lock both directions on level ground and watch the centre pins for movement.
- 6
Hoist system
A hoist that will not raise a loaded body, or that drifts down, is a functional failure. Cylinder seals and the pump both take heavy duty.
- 7
Brakes and retarder
Haul trucks descend grades loaded, which puts far more demand on brakes and the retarder than road vehicles ever see. Brake condition is a safety-critical finding rather than a wear note.
- 8
Hours, engine and emissions tier
Standard off-road diesel considerations including California's fleet rules, which matter for whether a California operation can add the machine. Older haulers frequently find stronger buyers out of state or for export.
How usage is measured
Engine hours, and expect them to be high. Haul trucks run continuously through a shift and accumulate hours faster than almost anything else on a site. What matters is the haul road: a truck on well-maintained roads with moderate grades has an easier life than one on rough, steep haul routes, and it shows in the frame, drivetrain and tyres.
What gets inspected on an off-highway truck
Knowing what a buyer looks at lets you describe the machine accurately the first time, which avoids the offer changing later.
Drivetrain
Transmission shift quality under load, converter noise, differential and final drive oil condition, and driveline vibration.
Tyres and wheels
Tread depth on all positions, cuts and chunking, sidewall condition, rim damage, and whether the set matches.
Body and hoist
Floor thickness and patches, sidewall welds, liner condition, hoist cylinder drift, and pump function.
Frame and joints
Articulation and oscillation joint play, frame cracks, prior weld repair, and suspension strut condition.
Brakes and retarder
Brake performance and holding on a grade, retarder function, and cooling oil condition on oil-cooled brakes.
Engine and cooling
Cold start, blow-by, coolant condition, radiator cleanliness, and operating temperature under load.
Wear items that dominate cost on this class
What we need to price your off-highway truck
You do not need all of it to start. The more of it you have, the closer the first number is to the final one.
- Make, model and serial number
- Year and hour meter reading
- Articulated or rigid, and rated payload
- Tyre condition on all positions, and whether the set matches
- Body and floor condition, including any patches or liner
- Known transmission, differential or final drive issues
- Whether the hoist lifts a loaded body without drift
- What haul roads it worked — prepared, rough, steep
- Any frame or articulation repairs
- Whether it starts, drives and dumps
Common situations
The circumstances that come up most often when someone sells an off-highway truck, and what each one actually means for the sale.
The tyres are worn out
Do not buy a set to sell the machine. Off-highway tyres are one of the largest consumable costs in the industry and you will not recover the outlay. Describe the condition accurately — buyers price known-worn tyres predictably.
The transmission is slipping
Still bought. A hauler with a tired transmission has a market — the rest of the machine holds real value and the parts market is deep. Say what it does and when it started rather than diagnosing it.
It worked a quarry on rough haul roads
Worth stating. Rough haul roads are the hardest duty a truck sees and it shows in the frame, suspension and tyres. Disclosing it produces a firm number rather than a defensive one.
A site is finishing and the fleet is being dispersed
Send the whole list. Haulers usually sell alongside the excavators and dozers that loaded them, and a matched earthmoving fleet moves better as a package than piece by piece.
The truck is deep inside a site with limited access
Tell us where it sits and what the access is like. These are large machines and collection needs planning — a hauler parked at the bottom of a pit is a different job from one parked at the gate.
Moving an off-highway truck
Among the more demanding collections we do. Articulated trucks travel on a heavy lowboy and frequently need the body removed or an oversize permit. Rigid frame haulers above the smaller classes usually travel in multiple loads with the body, and sometimes the wheels, coming off separately, and reassembly is part of the job. Access matters as much as the machine — tell us where it sits. Transport is arranged and paid for by us and is inside the offer.
Ownership and paperwork
Off-highway trucks are equipment rather than vehicles and are not titled in California. Ownership transfers by bill of sale against the serial number. Because these are high-value machines, financing is common and appears as a UCC filing; any payoff is settled as part of the purchase.
Attachments and extras
Body liners, tailgates, spare tyres and wheels, water tank conversions and any spare major components stored alongside the truck all count and should be listed. Spare tyres in particular carry real value at this size.
Makes and model families we see most
We buy off-highway trucks from manufacturers beyond this list. These are the ones that come up most often, with the series a seller is likely to recognise from the machine.
| Manufacturer | Model families |
|---|---|
| Caterpillar | 725, 730, 740 articulated; 770, 775, 777 rigid |
| Volvo | A25, A30, A40, A45 articulated haulers |
| Komatsu | HM articulated; HD rigid frame haulers |
| John Deere | 260E, 310E, 410E articulated trucks |
| Bell | B-series articulated haulers |
| Hitachi | EH rigid frame haulers |
| Doosan / Develon | DA series articulated trucks |
Get a cash offer
Get an offer on your off-highway truck
Tell us what you have and what shape it is in. We come back with a cash figure in writing.
- A written offer, not an estimate
- Transport arranged and priced into the offer
- Running or not, any make
Prefer to talk it through?
(916) 740-7755Get a Cash Offer
Any brand, any condition, any hours.
- Written offer
- Transport arranged
- No Spam
Where we buy off-highway trucks
We buy across California. Our published town-level coverage is concentrated in these counties.
