Cline Everhart launched Everhart Transportation Inc. (ETI) 30 years ago with five owner-operators leased on. Since, he’s grown the business to about 70 trucks.
Cline EverhartPhotos and video by Lawson Rudisill
Today the fleet runs pulls about 50/50 dry van and flatbed freight. On the van side, the fleet's contracted with UPS. On the flatbeds, ETI moves extruded aluminum and aluminum flag poles for a couple of dedicated customers the company's been hauling for for a couple decades now.
Everhart grew the business to more than 120 trucks at one time “and kind of reeled it back to where we’re at now,” he said, at around 70, with 30 of those being owner-operators.
“We’ve always utilized owner-operators from the beginning, and that’s also been a key to our success, I think.”
At the 2025 Large Cars and Guitars truck show and music festival, hosted by former ETI truck driver Tony Justice, Everhart showed one of his personal trucks and a piece of trucking history: his 1997 Peterbilt 362E cabover featured in the video up top. The “E” in the model signifies a set-back axle configuration that Everhart said “was popular at the end of the cabover era with all the different makes.”
In addition to all the other custom touches, Everhart added plenty in the way of lights to the unit.
He bought the unit from Fox Sports, where it had pulled the company’s mobile satellite communications trailer for TV production. He repainted the truck with ETI colors, added larger fuel tanks and other things “to make it a show truck,” he said.
Everhart has called himself an "old cabover guy" in past, when Overdrive detailed an ETI Freightliner Argosy in 2015 at this link. This ’97 model Pete 362E is a very-low-mileage unit with just 320,000 miles on the odometer. It’s powered by a 500-hp Cat 3406E with a 13-speed transmission that Everhart dropped in to replace the 15-speed that was in it when he bought it. “That’s really the biggest change we’ve done to it,” he said. It’s “still a low-mileage engine, but it’s a sweet cabover, that’s for sure.”
[Related: Owner-op's 2000 International Eagle the 'Talk of the Town']
In addition to fresh paint and bigger fuel tanks, Everhart added extra battery boxes, fiberglass rear fenders and dual exhaust.
He also removed the factory roof fairing and, after leaving the roof bare for a number of years, decided to add an AeroShield fairing back to it.
The rig’s interior is still stock, Everhart said, noting it remains “in great shape. It’s almost like new.”
At the Large Cars event this Spring, the COE was paired with ETI’s truck-show-only trailer, a 48-foot 2021 Utility dry van. Everhart said he ordered a group of trailers and added this one to the order for the purpose of pairing it with the 362E.
“Nobody uses 48s anymore, and I thought that would be kind of cool,” he said. “We got a closed tandem instead of a spread on it. Kind of an old-school look.”
The trailer has never had a load in it and is just used for truck shows “when we get the opportunity to go,” he added.
[Related: Aaron Tippin, Tony Justice: Behind the music video with Chris Fiffie]
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Cline Everhart: Well, there wasn't many 362E model Peterbilts, so that was right at the end of the cabover era. It's a sweet cabover, that's for sure.
I'm Cline Everhart, own Everhart Transportation Incorporated. We're out of Greeneville, Tennessee. We run about 70 power units. Flatbed and van. Dry van. Been in business 30 years this April, and it has been a journey.
This truck is a 1997 Peterbilt 362E, and the "E" references the set-back axle, which was popular at the end of the cab over era with all different makes. When I bought the truck, it came from Fox Sports. Fox Sports had four or five, and ESPN had four or five trucks, and this pulled satellite communications.
Well, of course we painted it. And when it was, ESPN truck, it didn't have the big fuel tanks or the extra battery boxes. Of course, the fiberglass fenders. Dual exhaust. I put took the factory fairing off the top. And for years I didn't have a fairing up there. That's an AeroShield fairing that came, you could get it factory when this truck was built new.
Lawson Rudisill: And I'm kind of seeing the wings kind of going out to the side.
Everhart: Yeah, those were on it. A lot of people don't like them, but I'm a child of the '80s, so I left them on there. I kind of think they fit the truck. Has very low miles on it; it has, like, 320,000 original miles on it. It's low miles for a '97, for sure.
It's got, powered by a 3406E Caterpillar, 500 horsepower. When I got it, had a 15 speed in, and we've changed that to a 13.
It's all stock on the inside. And it's in great shape. It's almost like new.
That's a 48-ft., 2021 Utility dry van. And we ordered a group of trailers, and I added one on. Nobody uses 48s anymore, and I thought that would be kind of cool. We got a closed tandem instead of a spread on it. Kind of old-school look. We've actually never had a load in it. We just take it to truck shows when we get the opportunity to go.
