Tips for Keeping Your South Carolina Truck Fleet Maintained

Follow these tips for keeping your South Carolina truck fleet maintained. We’re sure that you’ll be glad you did, because doing so can help save you a lot of money over the course of a year – or even a season.

Tune Up Your Engines

It’s one thing to say it; another to do it. Your vehicles’ engines are their most important and expensive part, save for the transmission. While these are least likely to give you a headache, they can also cost you more in emissions when they’re not running at 100 percent. Consider that you can increase your mileage by 4 percent on average when you’ve completed an inspection, lube and maintenance on the engines.

If you saved $0.11 cents on each gallon from keeping your engines ticking, you could earn thousands of dollars, depending on the size of your fleet and how much they drive.

But what if you’ve got a bigger problem – such as a bad oxygen sensor? In that case you may be increasing your miles per gallon up to 40 percent. It’s an incredible investment.

Check Your Air Filters

If you’re driving old vehicles, built prior to the 1980’s, replacing crud-laced air filters may up your fuel savings and acceleration.

Most fleet vehicles, however, contain engines that are fuel-injected or diesel driven. These trucks won’t see improvements in their fuel economy, but will get more acceleration with proper air filters. Building in more performance can decrease the amount of time it takes you to cover ground.

That can save you money on logistics and increase your client satisfaction.

Check Your Tires

You probably do this already, but it never hurts to mention the little things. Actually, this is a big thing…tires properly inflated are well known to reduce gas mileage and increase the life of the tires – and your drivers.

Build up your mileage by 3.3 percent with properly pumped tires. Lost 0.3 percent of gas mileage for every single pound per square inch you lose.

Strike it Rich with…

Oil, of course. Regularly checking and changing your fleet’s oil will give you an extra 1 to 2 percent of gas mileage. Using correct oil for your engines is also important. Because even if you switch oil like a soldier, if you’re using the incorrect viscosity you’ll bleed out the percent gain you’ve painstakingly made.

Make sure you’re buying Energy Conserving oil, and find the label on the API performance ring on the side of the bottle.

Fuel Cards

Last but first in mind, consider a fleet fuel card, which can bring you data to back your decisions and let you know how your drivers perform. All that shaving of mileage and energy are for nothing if your drivers aren’t working with you every mile of the way.