As an important means of transport, it is crucial to do regular maintenance on trucks, but most people pay attention to the maintenance of tires and engines, ignore the truck chassis. So, how to maintain your truck chassis? You can start with the following.
1. Clean and rust-proof frequently
When maintaining the chassis daily, it is first to clean it thoroughly, if there is too much mud on the chassis, it is also necessary to wash it with an oil-free cleaner to make the chassis look like the new one, and then you can start anti-rust care. Another thing to note is that after cleaning, it is necessary to wait for the moisture on the chassis to dry thoroughly before anti-rust care can be carried out, that is, to form a uniform anti-rust coating that retains a long time. After all, is completed, it will be naturally air-dried for 5-10 minutes, and the anti-rust treatment of the chassis will be covered. In addition, it should be noticed that when cleaning the truck. it’s necessary to pay attention to not using alkaline cleaners, otherwise, it will greatly affect the anti-rust effect and shorten the anti-rust time.
2. Choose the right lubricant
Lubricating oil has three functions: cooling, cleaning, and sealing. First, the circulating flow of the oil carries away the friction and lowers the temperature of machine parts. Second, lubricating oil flushes away impurities on the surface of the machine, reducing wear. Third, it maintains a layer of oil between the piston and the cylinder, which increases the tightness. At the same time, when driving daily, you should pay more attention to the movement of the truck transmission, the tightness of the bearing should also be checked in time, and use lubricating oil to adjust well. If the adjustment is not appropriate, it’s likely to cause the clutch to heat and burn. Therefore, it is extremely significant to choose the right lubricant, and a good truck lubricant can not only reduce engine heat and burn, but also reduce the loss of the machine parts and protect the engine.
3. Engine maintenance
The engine is the source of power and the core component of the truck, so it’s a very important job to maintain the engine. The air intake system of the engine is mainly composed of two parts: the air filter element and the air intake duct. Depending on the different use, the air filter and air intake duct should be cleaned regularly. If not cleaned in time, the surface of the filter element will accumulate dust, which will lead to insufficient intake during engine operation, resulting in the excessive exhaust gas and weak acceleration of the truck. The manual will suggest a certain mileage interval to change the air filter, but it should be changed whenever it’s dirty. Regular intervals can vary widely, but when driving on dusty roads, the air filter may need to be changed after just a few hundred miles. A snorkel might be a good upgrade to increase filter life if the truck is consistently used in an extremely dusty environment.
The cooling system plays an important role in the operation of the engine. However, some truck owners do not pay attention to the use and quality of coolant, usually adding ordinary water to the tank, resulting in tank is rusted and scaled. Therefore, cleaning the water tank regularly and using the coolant suitably can ensure that the engine is working properly and extend the overall life of the water tank and engine.
Engine are the heart of trucks, and lubricants, which play an important role in the operation of engines, are the top priority in the maintenance process. When checking daily maintenance, you should first look at the stock of each oil tank in the engine compartment and replenish the oil in time. In addition to the stock, it is also necessary to check whether the oil that is easy to mix into moisture has deteriorated. If the oil is found to be abnormal, replace it immediately. Also, different lubricants are also used in different seasons, for example, there is usually a low viscosity in summer, when winter comes, it should be changed to lubricating oil of high viscosity used in winter.
4. Brake system maintenance
The truck braking system is divided into a pneumatic brake system and a hydraulic brake system. The pneumatic brake system is a brake sub-pump to push the brake shoe with the help of high-pressure gas which can achieve the braking effect. Since you want to push the brake shoes, you need the activity of it. If you haven’t maintained it for a long time, the brake shoes and iron pins were rusty and stuck, and it can’t move fluently, which naturally led to brake failure.
The structure of the hydraulic brake system is simpler than that pneumatic braking. The sub-pump is pushed put by the brake oil, and it pushes out to open the brake pads for braking, then the powerful spring is used to reset. For hydraulic braking maintenance, the sub-pump is relatively easy to rust and get stuck. If it has any problems, it is recommended to replace it, because it is not reliable to continue to use.
Brakes will wear significantly faster when stopping hard or heavy loads. Brake pads and shoes should be checked at every tire rotation interval (check your owner’s manual for instructions). If heavy loads are moved regularly, a brake upgrade might be a good option.
The quality of braking performance of the truck is related to the safety and reliability of the truck and it’s the guarantee of safe driving. Therefore, it should be paying attention to the condition of the brake system. The inspection and maintenance of the brake system should also be carried out in time during daily driving.
5. Maintenance of truck tires
The truck chassis is integrated with tires, brake systems, etc. Therefore, in addition to checking the brake system in time, doing a good job in tire maintenance can also protect the chassis. The performance of the truck tire affects the travel function of the truck, and the rotation system is too loose or too tight which will cause damage to the chassis, so the elasticity of the tire should be adjusted to the right state. Also, the wear should be checked regularly and we should clean up some debris that has been caught in the gap in the tire to avoid great damage to the tire and affect driving safety. At the same time, The air inside truck tires are easy expand at high temperature. If the tire pressure is too high, the tire will explode, so it must develop the habit of checking the air pressure of the tire regularly in the summer.
6. Guarantee of truck sensitivity
The braking function of the truck is generally an important guarantee for safe driving, under normal circumstances, the parts in the brake are not adjusted properly or wear too much, which will reduce the braking sensitivity of the truck, resulting in brake pad wear, truck chassis failure and other obstacles. Therefore, before each trip, we must ensure the sensitivity of the truck and do a good job of safety inspection
7. Replace parts regularly
Truck drivers drive trucks on bumpy roads all year round, which can easily lead to damage or shed of truck parts. Truck parts are small but critical, and broken parts may not affect the normal operation of the trucks for the time being, but major problems or partial accidents in the trucks are usually caused by these small problems, and the importance of these parts cannot be ignored. Only regular inspection and replacement of parts can ensure driving safety and good performance of the trucks, and can also extend the life of the truck.
8. Check the frame
Frames are thought of as the biggest and strongest parts of a truck, but they can crack, bend and rust if neglected. Inspecting the frame once a year to check for excessive rust and any areas that may be bent or cracked is a good idea. If the truck is used for towing heavy loads often, then it’s a good idea to check the frame where the trailer hitch receiver attaches, either near the bumper or under the bed. If the truck is used in an area with high salt content on the roads, it should be washed regularly or have an undercoating applied before winter to protect it from extra corrosion.
9. Check the safety of the battery line
When spring and winter change seasons, the battery electrode wiring is also easy to have problems, if found that there is a green oxide at the electrode wiring when you are inspecting, remember to take boiling water to wash away, if these green oxides are not removed, it will cause the engine run out of power, so that the battery is in a state of loss of power, serious when the battery will be scrapped in advance, or the truck can not to start.
There are many important things to do to keep a truck running strong for a long time, but driving it regularly and performing regular maintenance is the key. Working for long periods of time allows components to rust, dry up, crack or seize when they otherwise wouldn’t. Take care of worn parts before they become a problem and damage other parts. Use good-quality, manufacturer-approved fluids and filters, and replace them regularly. All in all, use the truck for what it was intended for, drive and maintain it with care. And as always, be prepared.