Best Semi Truck Maintenance Tips
Get the best semi-truck maintenance tips to ensure your vehicle’s health. It is essential to keep your truck running safely and efficiently. Regular maintenance can help you avoid costly repairs in the future and ensure its proper performance.
Taking your semi truck to a mechanic with regularity can preserve your vehicle’s health while also preventing hazardous situations from occurring. Here are a few crucial elements to check before hitting the road.
Change the Oil and Filters
Its functionality comes into play when helping keep all the moving parts lubricated and running smoothly. Changing the engine oil every 5000 miles or so is recommended, although you could check your owner’s manual for recommendations.
Check Tire Pressure
Keeping them in good condition is essential to your safety and enjoying a pleasant trip. Make sure to check the pressure of your tires regularly and adjust as needed. Many things can go wrong with tires, so checking them regularly is critical.
Brake Inspection
As one of the most critical safety features on a semi-truck, it is essential to ensure they’re always in top condition. Inspect your brakes regularly and ensure they function correctly before embarking on a journey. If your truck has air brakes, you’ll want to inspect the air lines, brake pads, and drums to ensure they are working correctly.
Clean and Inspect Hoses
Since hoses carry fluids such as coolant, fuel, and brake fluids throughout the truck’s engine compartment, keeping them in good condition is essential.
Develop a Maintenance Schedule with Your Mechanic
Once you’ve learned a few semi truck maintenance tips, moving on to creating a maintenance schedule is essential. As one of the leading causes of accidents, developing and keeping track of your vehicle’s maintenance is vital to the process. Anticipating potential damage and hazards is the key to avoiding accidents and improper operation of the vehicle.
Whether you need a minor repair or a complete parts replacement, having a mechanic you can trust will help you get peace of mind with a healthy vehicle.
The amount of time in your maintenance schedule may vary depending on the equipment; while some parts may require an annual change, others need to be changed after a certain number of miles.
One of the most significant advantages of having a planned maintenance schedule is not relying on our memory or our senses to maintain the vehicle’s health. Simply consulting the calendar is a reminder of what needs to be done next.
If you still need a maintenance schedule, contact your mechanic to develop one. If you drive for a fleet, they will most likely provide you with the one you will need to follow.
Fast and Effective Maintenance Checklist Before Hitting Down the Road
Life on the road takes work. Keeping tight schedules with so many different things to remember and unpredictable conditions to consider, it’s essential to follow a simple but effective routine that allows you to get everything done quickly and efficiently.
Here is a short and essential checklist to safely start the road.
Service and Parking Brake
When performing a check, you should ensure that the brakes are responsive by ensuring that the pedal is firm when depressed and that it returns to its position on time. The parking brakes should provide pretty good resistance when starting.
Inspect the Cab and Exterior
Any responsible truck driver should regularly inspect the cab and exterior to look for any damage. Check windows, door seals, windshield wipers, and roof anchors to ensure they function correctly.
Test Lights and Signals
Check all headlights, brake lights, turn signals, hazard lights, and interior cabin lighting to ensure they are working correctly.
Emergency Equipment
Disasters can strike at any time, so it is critical to include emergency equipment checks in your regular routine. Fire extinguishers, spare fuses, stalled vehicle warnings, and first aid kits are essential parts of emergency equipment.
Seat Belts
Regular maintenance checks are essential to owning a vehicle, and seat belts are often overlooked. Make sure the system works by adjusting your seat bets and performing a visual inspection.
Engine Coolant Level
Depending on the model and make of the truck, there are different locations where the engine coolant can be checked, such as near the radiator or the oil reservoir. The best way to check whether a truck has enough coolant is to look at its dipstick, which should always be done with the engine off and the truck cooled down for at least 15 minutes for safety reasons.
Oil Level Check
First, ensure the truck is parked on a level surface, with the parking brake on. Next, locate the dipstick and remove it entirely from the engine. Using a rag or cloth, wipe excess oil from the dipstick and reinsert it back into its tube until it is completely plugged.
Finally, remove the dipstick and read the oil level indicator to get an accurate reading of your engine’s oil supply.
Other elements to keep in mind:
- Rear Vision Mirrors
- Windshield Wipers
- Working Horn
Benefits of Preventative Maintenance
Reduce the chance of breakdowns
By constantly checking your truck, you ensure that you prevent major problems from arising and even detect small cracks before they become more significant.
Save money
Naturally, when your truck spends more time on the road than in the shops, this will translate into higher profits due to productivity.
Safety of the Truck & Driver
Poor maintenance will put your vehicle at risk and the life of whoever drives it. Preventing tragedies from happening is a great benefit that comes with regular maintenance.
Increasing Fuel Efficiency
If regular maintenance can help us save some money on fuel, it’s something worth doing. With fuel prices fluctuating globally, a small saving will be a financial lifesaver for your vehicles.
Hire a Professional Assistance
If, while on the road, you need a professional, experienced, and trusted company for your semi truck maintenance needs, look no other than our business.
As we have made clear throughout the articles, periodic maintenance is essential to enjoying a smooth road trip while also getting the most out of your investment and protecting your life.