2023 Western Star 49 POS | TruckersReport.com Trucking Forum

The new Western Star encompasses the technology of a 15 year old ford focus. It comes with a basic gauge set up and the computer menu is the type where you have to scroll through multiple headings in order to find what you are looking for. Kind of like an Atari or a Commodore 64…very old technology and pretty much useless. What kills me is the set up of the dash switches. Some are on/off two position switches while others are momentary type switches, and there is no rhyme or reason which type is used in each position. You just have to guess and play with them, all the while trying to keep the truck on the road. And don’t expect the switches to actually do anything. Some will illuminate when switched and some will not, and the illumination isn’t tied to the function of any particular switch, meaning some will turn on the dome light but give no indication on the switch while others won’t turn on anything yet the switch illuminates as if it did something, again…no rhyme or reason. Very stupid confusing setup. You will want to take the switch panels apart and move the usable switches to a more convenient position, of course any other decent manufacturer would put a little bit of time into the switch details but Western Star just wants to squeeze you out of your hard earned money, they don’t give a ####.

If your new truck runs like #### while gulping DEF and fuel then the factory probable shipped the truck with the wrong engine configuration setup for the actual engine…so don’t assume there is any quality control at Western Star…there isn’t.

Even though you will be spending $235,000 plus for a new truck, DO NOT assume that you will, at the very least, get the basic driving comforts of a new $20,000 Ford Focus because you will be disappointed. Automatic headlights or wipers? Not for that kind of money. Glove box? Nope, you have to let any paperwork blow loosely around the cab. Heated steering wheel, carpeting, floor mats? Not a chance. You should get electric mirrors, but when you use them they will blast out the squelch in the CB so I assume they don’t know how to run wires without causing interference…rookies. Hope you don’t try to back up at night because you would be better off holding a candle compared to the weak back up lights. The radio works but it’s a basic low end Walmart radio, only with less features, and it only works on high powered stations, don’t expect to keep any station for very long as the range is very limited, you will have to pay extra for the satellite stations. The passenger seat is nice though…only kidding, it’s more like a seat off a yellow school bus, with no suspension. The drivers seat is decent, but it’s an add on and it’s not integrated with the truck at all, purely a stand alone unit.
The suspension is crap. Our truck has about 15k miles and the drive tires are already cupping and the steers are rubbing against the pitman arms. The dealer keeps ignoring the many issues.
Bottom line is that if you want a good reliable truck then stay away from Western Star. Our truck has been in the shop more than we’ve been able to drive it and most of the problems still remain and we discover new problems everyday. You will be disappointed if you buy a Western Star.