Regular oil changes are essential to your semitruck’s maintenance. They can keep your truck operating efficiently, prevent unnecessary breakdowns and lengthen its life. A healthy motor can make all the difference to your bottom line. The key is knowing how and when to carry out this preventative truck maintenance.
How often do semitrucks need oil changes?
Semitrucks require an oil change every 25,000 miles. You should check your engine oil every few days. If the dipstick comes out with degraded oil, you should change it, even without a vehicle sensor alert. Oil checks should be part of your pre-trip inspection.
Tracking mileage compared to the vehicle’s last oil change can help you determine the need for a change before you send a truck out with a new load. For example, if the truck has completed 24,000 miles since its last oil change, you might not be getting a light. But changing it before the truck goes out on its next job may prevent unnecessary engine strain. It also can extend the life of your fleet.
7 top tips for semitruck oil changes
Learn how to keep your engine running smoothly with high-quality, scheduled semi oil changes.
Use high-quality oils
The oil you use in your fleet can make all the difference in its longevity and how well it protects the engine. Lower-quality oil requires more frequent oil changes and may damage your engine.
While high-quality oils cost more up front, they can prevent serious mechanical issues that will cost far more. Additionally, high-quality oil can improve your truck’s fuel efficiency.
Stay on top of oil changes
Regular oil changes ensure that your engine is never running with worn-out, sludgy oil. Motor oil has a limited lifetime and gets denser the more it runs through an engine. It also picks up dirt and debris with every cycle. You might start to notice that your truck is less powerful as engine oil ages.
Each truck has a different oil change timeline. Monitor timelines carefully, and set notifications up in your maintenance management software.
Tighten up your driving habits
When drivers operate trucks more aggressively, they may decrease the oil change intervals. The terrain of your vehicle’s journeys, like dusty, hilly roads, can also impact its maintenance timeline.
Encourage drivers to operate vehicles conservatively and avoid routes that place extra strain on vehicle engines.
Create a maintenance plan
Preventative truck maintenance is an important part of operating a successful transportation business. The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) requires an annual commercial vehicle inspection, but more frequent inspections will benefit your fleet.
Truck drivers must complete daily post-trip inspections under FMCSA regulations. To build an effective maintenance plan, auto-schedule required activities and equip drivers with tools to document mechanical observations.
Avoid on-the-road oil changes
You may be overcharged for on-the-road oil changes, which are often carried out with low-quality oils. When you go to a shop you don’t know, you have less control over the oil change.
Ensuring that your driver isn’t forced to stop for an oil change during a trip can help you keep expenses down. When in doubt, change the oil with your regular shop before sending the truck on its next load. This approach ensures favorable pricing and offers you more control over the oil that’s used.
Implement annual service contracts
Work with a local mechanic to negotiate an annual service contract for a commercial truck oil change. Building this relationship will ensure that you have someone looking out for the well-being of your vehicles. That’s because the shop is motivated to keep your annual service contract and ensure renewals.
Plus, these contracts provide bulk discounts for completing more maintenance with the company.
Maintain oil flow systems
The mechanics of the oil flow system are carefully constructed to protect your engine. Oil filters protect the engine from contaminants. You can’t just worry about the health of the engine oil. You have to review the full oil-flow system.
When changing the oil, always look at the oil filter and change it if it looks dirty. Also review the engine seals during each oil change. Keep this system in prime shape for greater oil efficiency.
Increasing the life of your semitrucks
Regular oil changes are essential to ensuring the health of your semitruck’s engine. The healthier the engine, the longer your semitruck will last. Schedule this essential maintenance activity for the best results.
FAQ
A semitruck can go up to 25,000 miles between oil changes. However, it’s best to monitor engine oil closely for signs that it’s time to change the oil.
Warming up an engine for two to three minutes can help the oil flow easily without it being so hot that it will burn the mechanic. This ensures that old, sludgy oil can drain from the vehicle during the oil change.
Oil lasts longer when the vehicle completes highway miles versus city miles because it puts less wear on the engine.
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