Just Do It

Here are some maintenance practices that should be done on a regular basis to ensure you have a reliable truck when you need it:

Oil: Change oil and oil filters regularly. Send samples of used oil for analysis, especially if you're extending drain intervals beyond factory recommendations. You don't need to wait for an oil drain to get a sample. For a few dollars, you can get oil gallery fittings from your lab. They let you draw samples while the engine runs. Check at regular intervals, then plot the results on graph paper or in a computer spreadsheet.

Check results against your engine manufacturer's recommended limits for wear metals, alkalinity (TBN, or Total Base Number) to fight acid and percent of soot.

Here are some danger signals, and what they might mean:

Excessive iron indicates cylinder liner or valve wear.

Aluminum is usually from piston slap.

Copper, lead and tin are from worn bearings.

Chromium is from piston ring wear.

Silicon could be from dirt, if you operate in a dusty environment; in some engines, it could be from formed-in-place gaskets.

The report will also alert you to the presence of coolant from liner pitting or blown gaskets, or diesel fuel from leaking injectors.

Analyzing used oil gives a good snapshot of what is happening inside your engine. Plotting the results helps you predict when parts showing excessive wear might fail, so you can have major maintenance done before the fact - on your schedule. It's always cheaper to drive to your favorite shop or dealer than to be towed to one just because it's close.

Coolant: Use test strips to check the concentration of Supplemental Coolant Additives (SCAs) in your coolant. Too little, and your cylinder liners won't be protected against pitting, your water pump won't be lubricated, soldered fittings in the radiator will corrode and scale could build up inside the engine to cause hot spots. Too high a concentration, and "green goo" will precipitate, harden and block flow through the radiator.

With winter here, check the temperature at which the thermostat opens. You don't want one stuck in the open position keeping your engine overcooled. Also check the pressure at which the radiator cap releases. A pressurized cooling system is necessary for overheat protection.

A few years ago, Penray came out with "Need Release," a device to dispense SCAs as needed. Baldwin has an SCA-charged filter that time-dispenses the protective chemicals. They make it easier than the old charged filters that dispensed SCAs all at once, or the liquid additive mixed with the coolant.

Hoses: Whenever you do a PM, whether you change oil or just lube the chassis, give all your hoses a squeeze. Hoses that are hard and brittle from aging and ozone are just as likely to fail as hoses that are soft and mushy to the touch as a result of internal chemical attack. It's hard to limp in to the shop when you've lost all your coolant. While checking hoses, check fan belts, or more correctly, "accessory drive belts."

Electrical: In cold weather, batteries always have less than their full charge, while engines require more current to start when cold. Since battery boxes are out in the cold, unlike car batteries that sit warmly in the engine compartment, truck batteries are harder to give a full charge in winter. Corrosion in wiring or terminals and dirt across the battery can drain batteries continuously.

Periodically, clean battery tops and terminals with a baking soda solution, to neutralize acid. Coat terminals with a dielectric grease such as Truck-Lite NYK. Connectors will squeeze the compound from between the mating surfaces, leaving the excess to protect from moisture and road salt. On battery posts, make your connections first, then spread the dielectric grease over the posts and terminals for protection.

Consider fully sealed lighting and a sealed, internally grounded wiring harness, instead of chassis-ground lamps. They will prevent corrosion failures. Tires: All the experts at TMC stress the importance of proper air pressure. Most over-the-road tire failures are due to excessively low pressure. Above 60 to 65 psi, tire pressure cannot be determined by thumping. This has been demonstrated time and again, and you can prove it to yourself.

Even 80 psi is dangerously low for normal operations; at that pressure, heat will build-up and damage the tire. It may not fail immediately, but if weakened enough times, it will fail eventually, usually at the most inopportune time and place. Gauge all your tires at least weekly.

Tires can also be damaged by misalignment of any or all wheels and axles. Your front tires may be perfectly aligned, but if both drive axles are offset to the same side, they could wear out the steer tires quickly, by pushing them sideways as they roll. If the drive axles thrust to different sides of the centerline, they may not wear the steers, but all drive tires will lose significant life by scrubbing against each other. All-wheel alignment saves tire life, and at $350 and up for each new tire, profits depend on long life.

Drivetrain: The driveshaft is like a fuse. Since it is the easiest and least costly part of the drivetrain to replace, it is designed to be the weak link between the transmission and drive axles.

That doesn't mean it has to fail; quite the contrary. The easiest maintenance is to make sure all Zerk fittings are fully and completely lubed. This will ensure that universal joints turn and splines slide freely.

Maintenance is like insurance: you shouldn't run without it, and won't run at all if you push it too far.

Check tires, wheels and brakes regularly for longer life.