Your fleet is what keeps you in business. Naturally, you should ensure all the trucks are in tiptop shape. The best way to do this is to ensure that all the vehicles undergo preventative maintenance regularly. Properly maintaining your semi-trucks can provide you with benefits, including some surprising ones. Let’s look at why it is so important to keep your trucks maintained.
Take Care of Small Issues So They Don’t Grow
When your trucks undergo preventative maintenance, they are serviced by a professional who knows the vehicles inside and out. If they notice any problems with the truck, you can have them repaired right away. This will ensure that your truck continues to operate correctly, and it reduces the risk of those issues growing.
If you weren’t getting preventative maintenance for your truck, those little problems would continue to grow. They will get worse and worse, and they will become more expensive to repair.
Unexpected repair work, as mentioned, does have the potential to be expensive. This is especially true when it is emergency work that needs to be done. You don’t have time to shop around. You want to get the vehicle back on the road as soon as possible.
Sometimes, this requires buying new parts, and you would have to expedite the shipping, which increases the cost further. Additionally, if you are rushing around to find help for the repairs at the last minute, it can be hard to find someone you can trust.
Not taking care of the little problems could even lead to a catastrophic failure, which could be dangerous, not just financially costly. There are a lot of things that can go wrong, even when the problem might seem small. It’s always better to have everything checked out and repaired.
Less Downtime
Along the same lines, you will find that preventative maintenance ensures there is less downtime. Having the vehicles serviced on a regular schedule helps to keep them running, meaning less downtime for you. Since any needed repairs are likely to be smaller, as well, it means that your trucks won’t be sitting on the sidelines. They will still be out there working for you.
Take a moment to consider just how much money you could lose with just one truck that is down for repairs for one day, two days, or longer. A lot of businesses would not be able to survive if these kinds of issues continue to happen.
Increase Semi-Truck’s Lifespan
As a business owner of a fleet, you want the trucks to last for as long as possible. When taken care of properly, a semi-truck has the potential to last for 750,000 miles or more, which is incredible. It means you can get a lot of use out of these trucks. Of course, you also have to consider that these vehicles tend to put a lot more miles on them in far less time than what happens with a residential vehicle.
The best way to make sure your vehicle keeps on going is by ensuring you have regular preventative maintenance. If you were to let a vehicle continue running when it is low on oil, when the brakes are squeaking, or when the tire pressure isn’t correct, there is going to be a lot more wear and tear on your truck. Instead, get on a regular maintenance plan to see what a difference it can make. The vehicle will operate better and more efficiently, and it will last for a long time without the need for major repairs.
Saves Time
What happens if you don’t take the time out of the truck’s schedule for maintenance? Some business owners want to keep working the truck, so it’s not out of commission for even a day or just a few hours. However, the time you save by not getting routine maintenance will come back to haunt you in a big way.
Think about just how much time you could be wasting if you don’t have preventative maintenance. You might find that the truck will be out of commission for several days or longer because you waited too long. Now, instead of being down for an hour or two for the maintenance and repair, you are cutting deeper into your work schedule. This will undoubtedly throw off your delivery schedule.
Plan well in advance. Schedule your maintenance and stick to that schedule. Get the vehicles repaired before there is a major problem. It’s the best way to ensure that your truck doesn’t stay out of commission for any longer than needed.
A Good Impression
While this might not be the first thing that people think about when it comes to the importance of preventative maintenance, it is no less a benefit. When you have well-maintained trucks, whether you have just one or an entire fleet, it can impress the clients.
You want the truck to look good and to run well. Customers want to know that you use high-quality trucks, as it will give them more confidence than if you had trucks that sputtered and smoked whenever they arrived to pick up goods.
Get on a Preventative Schedule
Now that you have an understanding of just why you need to keep your trucks properly maintained, it’s time that you took action. This means getting those trucks on a maintenance schedule with the right company. You want a team that can provide you with all of the most essential elements of maintaining your trucks and repairing them if something goes wrong.
Once you are on a schedule, it will be up to you to ensure that you follow through, have the professionals visit, and that you keep up with the maintenance. Don’t try to cut corners on the maintenance, as it will only come back to haunt you later.
Take the time to find a quality company that can provide you with the types of preventative maintenance and repair you are going to need. See how long they have been in business and get a better sense of the types of services the company offers.
Resources: https://www.strongtieinsurance.com/6-reasons-semi-truck-maintenance-is-crucial/
