Truck Maintenance | Trucks and Trailers

Trucks Fuel Economy

July 21st, 2008 by shenron

The words truck and fuel economy usually do not go hand in hand. Trucks in general use much more fuel than passenger vehicles because of their larger size, amount of weight they are towing, poor aerodynamics and maintenance issues. However, for those that own trucks or looking to own one, you can improve your trucks fuel economy by following these tips.

Choose Diesel over Gasoline Engines
If you are planning on buying a truck, it is usually better to choose a diesel engine over a gasoline engine. For most heavy duty trucks, engines almost always only come in diesel; however, light trucks usually offer you a choice. Diesel engines have been improved over the last several decades and are now more efficient, quieter and easier to maintain. Most diesel engines can increase truck fuel economy by 30% to 50%. Besides increasing fuel economy, maintenance costs can also be lower.

Keep Your Truck Properly Maintained
Since most trucks are used for business purposes, they are relied upon to work hard. However, many times this extra work duty causes trucks extra wear and tear. By keeping your truck properly maintained, you can easily increase your trucks fuel economy by 5% to 10%.

Properly Inflated Tires
Just like cars, a truck’s fuel economy can improve when the tires are inflated to the proper level. Make sure that you always have an air gauge to measure the tire’s pressure and consult your owner’s manual as to the proper air pressure of the tires.

Don’t Haul Unnecessary Loads
Many trucks are made for hauling, however many truck owners keep unnecessary weight on their vehicle that they don’t need. Keep your truck’s load as light as possible and you will save a lot when it comes to fuel economy.

Avoid Stop & Go Traffic
Obviously, you always can’t dictate where your truck will need to make deliveries, but generally speaking, stop and go traffic can waste fuel unnecessarily. Try to drive at periods of the day and night that have less traffic and offer smoother traveling. It is also a good idea to stay at a steady speed- usually 55mph in which your trucks engine is calibrated to offer the most fuel economy.

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Things You Need To Take With You When Going Off Road Driving

June 25th, 2008 by shenron

Four wheel drive vehicles are extremely popular and are an important part of many people’s lifestyles. Much like people once would head off into the hills on horseback to get away from it all, people now days can head off into the hills in a four wheel drive vehicle. Whether you are heading out for such an off road trip in a four wheel drive truck or an SUV, there are some basic things you need to take along for your own enjoyment, convenience, and above all safety. Driving off road is a great way to spend down time and also release some stress, but it can turn quickly into a bad day or even a tragedy if some of the necessary items you should have with you are not there.

Offroad Driving

Things you need to take with you when going off road driving:

First Aid Kit
The most important thing you need to take with you on an off road driving trip is a first aid kit. When driving off road on unstable land and among cliffs and trees, anything can happen. When it does you should be prepared for the worst.

Tool Box
Bringing the tools you may need for minor and even semi-major repairs is very important, knowing how to use them to make those repairs is also important. Doing this can lead you to avoid some serious expenses related to repairs and vehicle recovery.

Vehicle Jack & Spare Tire
When driving off road, the chances of having to change a tire are multiplied because the roadway you will be on is not nice flat smooth pavement. If that were to happen, having a jack and spare tire will make your situation a lot more doable.

Electric Drill
If extensive repairs are needed to a vehicle, these repairs will go much more smoothly if they are able to be done with cordless power tools.

Flashlight
Whether your off road trip is taking place in the day or night, a flashlight with new batteries is a necessary item. During engine work it can come in handy to see into dark places, and during the night time it can be useful to find your way out of the darkness.

Duct Tape
Whether repairing a hose or any number of other minor repairs, duct tape may make the difference between getting your vehicle back to civilization or having to leave it behind and walk out of the wilderness.

When all of the necessary items are included in the vehicle when you take an off road driving trip, it extremely lessens the chances that something can go wrong. In fact, if something does go wrong, being prepared for the worst can lead you to recover faster when bad things happen. Enjoy your off road trip, but take care of yourself and your passengers by making sure you are as prepared as you possibly can be.

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Light Truck Tyres

December 10th, 2007 by shenron

When it comes to safety on the road, there are many things that trucking companies have to keep in mind in order to keep up with the everyday standards. Though airbags, brakes, and other things are very important, one the road safety begins with your tyres. You have a ton of options if you are trying to outfit your fleet with something safe. Over the past few years, light truck tires have become increasingly popular among commercial trucking and logistics companies. This is because they are more cost effective than their immediately available counterparts and they also feature much higher safety standards than competing tyres.

What are some of the benefits of choosing light truck tyres for your entire trucking line? The first and most obvious thing is that they are designed to handle more effectively in all weather conditions. Whether your company needs people to drive in the rain, the sleet, the snow, or the driving hail, these light truck tyres have the capability to handle turns and the elements. That’s where the second aspect of these types of tyres comes into play. In addition to being able to handle the harshest of weather conditions, they also feature some of the finest handling that you could ever hope to find.

The high performance of ability of light truck tyres, combined with the fact that they are very sturdy in poor weather makes this a very attractive tire for your company. The building block for every company is their ability to transport goods. Beyond that, keeping your people safe and doing things efficiently is the most important thing that you could take into account. By choosing a tyre with a good reputation and a history of success, you will be taking the first steps to establishing your company as a new power in a very competitive field.

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Truck Lights

November 20th, 2007 by shenron

When it comes to running a trucking company or any company heavily versed in transportation, safety is one of the most important concerns. When bunches of heavy trucks get to rolling down the interstate alongside passenger cars, there are dangers that could ultimately come to fruition. With that in mind, it is certainly in the best interest of trucking companies to protect their people and the other folks on the road. This saves lives and can help promote a company’s sense of responsibility in the community.

All truck lights are created equal, right? That’s what some folks might be led to believe. The fact of the matter is that all truck lights aren’t the same. For companies that really want to put their emphasis on safety, LED truck lights are absolutely essential. LED lights have more diodes than standard lights that you might find on a regular truck, so you will be sure to illuminate the road. These lights are a relatively inexpensive way to shine during the night and promote safety for large trucks.

There are various shapes and forms of LED lights available to consumers. Choices aren’t only limited to standard tail lights or brake lights. You can pick from a number of different shapes and designs. This choice adds a little versatility to your fleet of trucks and can even become a staple of your company. One of the most important things in the business world is distinctiveness for your company. Imagine being one of the only companies to feature a fleet of trucks on the road that has some very distinctive LED truck lights. This will help your company climb to the top of the heap in regards to notice ability and brand name recognition. Considering the costs of conquering such markets through other means, obtaining high quality LED truck lights makes plenty of sense.

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Clean Gas Induction in Trucks

November 19th, 2007 by shenron

Clean gas induction is a technology component found on both gasoline and diesel cars and trucks. This technology can be found on engines that are called stratified charge engines or are proprietary components found in specialized diesel engines such as ACERT technology found on Caterpillar diesel engines. Generally speaking clean gas induction in trucks refers to the fuel air mixture and the charge inside the cylinder that burns it smoothly and efficiently.

The stratified charge engine with clean gas induction is very similar to the direct injection diesel engines. In a standard diesel injection engine, diesel fuel which is a much heavier fuel than gasoline is injected into the top of the cylinder, using this method, higher compression rates can occur and ping is much less prevalent. The result is that diesel injection usually delivers very good fuel efficiency. This is why most heavy duty trucks that are needed to run for long periods of time are usually fitted with diesel engines.

But while these diesel engines have lots of advantages, one of the main disadvantages is that since they are sprayed into the cylinder head into highly compressed air, they seldom have time to mix correctly with the air. In this case, lots of fuel and air do not have the opportunity to combust. Having both un-burnt fuel and air remaining after combustion usually leads to the opportunity of many different types of pollution to form- specifically NOx.

However, recent technology in clean gas induction has been able to reduce pollution that is normally made with direct injection diesels. One way clean gas induction has reduced pollution in trucks and increased fuel efficiency is with Caterpillar’s ACERT technology.

Once fuel is burned in engine with ACERT technology, it continues to move through a treatment system. However, once through the treatment system, there are always small parts of fuel that remain, this remaining fuel is drawn out from the rest of the substances and cooled. As the fuel cools, it is mixed again with cool clean air and returned to the combustion chamber to be burned.

There are many advantages of fuel being burned twice in the ACERT technology process. First, since the fuel is cooled and then mixed with cool air, both substances do not have the opportunity to form pollutants such as NOx. Another benefit of ACERT technology including clean gas induction is that that since un-combusted fuel is drawn out and sent through the system to be combusted again, fuel efficiency is increased. Finally, since the fuel and air goes through a treatment process, the result is a reduction in harmful emissions.

It should be noted that Caterpillar’s ACERT technology is propriety, however other truck engine manufacturers are also looking into how clean gas induction can help reduce emissions and improve fuel efficiency.

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