RDI Power began on the road. Before the shop on Donto Way existed, owner Ryan Bethell, who learned the trade in his father’s garage and started out building engines, ran a mobile unit serving fleets from Brooksville to Tampa. The shop came later, but the service truck never went away, and it is how we reach a stopped diesel in Bushnell today. The bays are about 28 road miles south; the mobile side is there so that distance is not the truck’s problem.
Calling in a truck stopped around Bushnell
The more precisely we know where the truck is, the better the technician can plan. A good call covers 4 things:
- The road and direction. I-75 runs along Bushnell’s western edge with Exit 314 at CR-48; US-301 runs north and south through the city; CR-48, signed SR-48 and called West Belt Avenue in town, links the interchange to downtown; CR-476 crosses east and west; CR-475, North Main Street, heads north beside the CSX tracks.
- A landmark. The truck stop at Exit 314, Dade Battlefield Historic State Park on CR-603 between the interchange and US-301, and the Sumter County Fairgrounds at 7620 SR-471 are all easy references.
- The truck. Year, make, engine and unit number, plus whether it is loaded.
- What happened. Warning lights, noises, smoke and what the truck did just before it quit.
On the shoulder of I-75 near Exit 314
An interstate shoulder is the least forgiving place to wait. Get the truck as far right as it will go, turn the hazards on, set out the triangles and stand well away from traffic, behind the guardrail if there is one. If the truck can still move safely, the exit ramp or the truck stop at CR-48 is a much better place for a technician to work. Many interstate failures are fixable on site: air leaks, belts and hoses, electrical faults in the trailer connection, fuel filter problems and sensors that trigger a derate.
Fairgrounds, job sites and yards around Bushnell
Not every stop is on the highway. A fleet unit at a yard can get inspections, filter service and small repairs without losing a day to the drive. A truck at a job site off US-301 can be diagnosed in place. And a diesel pusher or tow rig that will not start at the fairgrounds, home of the 10-day Sumter County Fair each March, can get a technician instead of an immediate tow. Wherever the truck is, the technician scans it, confirms the fault, repairs what the parts on hand allow and documents everything in a digital inspection with photos, the same report a shop visit produces.
When a Bushnell breakdown needs the shop
Internal engine work, transmission rebuilds, alignments and anything that needs a lift belong in Brooksville. The mobile visit still earns its keep by confirming the diagnosis, so the truck makes the trip south on I-75 and west on SR-50 with a plan waiting. For trucks that can drive in, our Bushnell diesel repair page covers the shop side.
RDI Fleet accounts get 24/7 roadside, described on our roadside assistance page; anyone else can call (352) 433-3800 weekdays from 7:00 AM to 4:00 PM. The full program is on our mobile diesel repair page, and the farm roads southeast of town are covered on mobile diesel repair in Webster.